Before Lauren gave this presentation, I was not aware that former President Ronald Reagan had Alzheimer's disease. His roles included being a husband, father, son, brother, and patriotic American. His occupations included riding horses, acting, and taking care of his ranch and horses. I was aware of some of the symptoms of Alzheimer's, including forgetfulness and memory loss, but did not know about some of the other symptoms, including difficulty sleeping. I noticed in Lauren's goals for Reagan that she included a sleep management program to help him get a restful night's sleep. I did not know that Alzheimer's could cause irregular, inconsistent sleep patterns, as Ronald had. I also learned that he had acquired a blood clot after being thrown off a horse in 1989, which Nancy believes is a big cause of his Alzheimer's. He did not get diagnosed until 1994.
One of Ronald's main concerns was to not be a burden on Nancy, since she was his primary caretaker. Lauren introduced caregiver education as part of her treatment program, which would be very helpful in improving both Nancy's and Ronald's quality of life. Her long-term and short-term goals for Ronald were very reasonable. I learned a lot about Alzheimer's and about former President Reagan. Her presentation was very insightful and informative!
No comments:
Post a Comment