Home Instead, homeinstead.com
Care.com, care.com
Leeza’s Care Connection, leezascareconnection.org
HFC, wearehfc.org
Conversations With Alzheimer’s (available at Amazon)
A book with tips for socializing with people with Alzheimer’s or other form of dementia.
Dementia Care Improved by Just One Hour of Social interaction Each Week (Medical Press)
“Previous research has found that in many care homes, residents have as little as two minutes of social interaction per day…When combined with just one hour a week of social interaction, the programme improved quality of life and reduced agitation and aggression in people with dementia.”
Daily Chats Improve Lives of People With Dementia, Study Says (BBC)
“He said in many care homes social activities were done in groups, such as with bingo, which often left a number of residents unengaged. Interacting with them, and learning about their interests and abilities, not only improved the quality of their lives but also made them easier to deal with, he said.”
Social Interaction Improves Quality of Life of People with Dementia (NPR)
“As part of the study, a ‘care champion’ from each facility took part in four days of training and then went back to coach others. The goal was for every resident to get at least one hour a week of social interaction with a health care worker…The researchers carried out the intervention for nine months and then followed up with the residents for nine months. They found that participants reported a significant improvement in their quality of life. The intervention also reduced their agitation as effectively as antipsychotic drugs.”
Better Understand the Effects of Personal, Interpersonal, and Societal Factors on Aging, Including the Mechanisms Through Which These Factors Exert Their Effects (Study by National Institute of Aging)
“Social relationships are consistently associated with biomarkers of health. Positive indicators of social well-being may be associated with lower levels of interleukin-6 in otherwise healthy people. Interleukin-6 is an inflammatory factor implicated in age-related disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and some forms of cancer. Social isolation constitutes a major risk factor for morbidity and mortality, especially in older adults.”
Social Engagement and Its Change are Associated with Dementia Risk Among Chinese Older Adults (Study by National Library of Medicine)
“People whose SE remained high or medium had a significantly lower risk of dementia than those whose SE remained low.”
How to Support Someone With Dementia—and Feel Better Yourself (University of Alberta)
“One study showed that trying to include non-verbal dementia patients in conversations-looking at that person when you speak and watching for non-verbal responses-reduced their feelings of confusion, Duggleby noted. ‘You really are doing them a great kindness. You might see their facial expression relax, or they might move,’ she said.”
Ways to Help