Case Study

Christine came into your setting when the care home she had been living in closed down. She had a history of complex health problems and these had been the focus of her care in her previous home; her dementia seemed to have been seen as part of her overall ‘frailty’ and no dementia-specific care had been provided for her. Christine was doubly incontinent and although she could bear weight she was unable to walk more than a step or two when being assisted by two staff. In her previous home she had been cared for in bed for most of the time as staff had felt she just wanted to sleep and was more comfortable in bed. Christine had lost a considerable amount of weight and was prescribed dietary supplements to drink to increase her calorie intake.Christine spoke only a few words and would often sit for long periods humming to herself or singing the same line of a song over and over again as she pleated the hem of her skirt or repeatedly ran her hand over the table as if wiping it clean. If staff approached Christine to offer her help or bring her food or drinks she would often appear startled, as if she had not seen them until they were right in front of her.Staff quickly realised that many of Christine’s needs had been incorrectly attributed to her physical health problems and that she was exhibiting behaviours and visual perceptual and communication difficulties that indicated she had dementia at stage 3.

1. What key social aspects of that environment would enable care workers to ensure respect and dignity for an individual with dementia? How could these be implemented?
2. What key physical aspects of the service could be used to help Christine?

It is rare that there is just one way to respond to a scenario or situation, so do not consider that the responses you have to the above scenario will be judged as right or wrong. Share your scenario with a work colleague or friend and ask them to tell you whether they think you have responded appropriately. Ask them to challenge your response if necessary. You do not need to submit this task for assessment unless asked to do so by your assessor.