Alzheimers Disease Health Promotion Case Study :: Alzheimers Disease Essays

Introduction     This component will discuss the impact of Alzheimers disease on racial, cultural, and gender variables, with the revolve about being on the various approaches to deal out of the disease. Developmental stages and tasks will be discussed for both the client and the c begiver.Gender and acculturation     Alzheimers disease and related dementias impress all races, ethnicities and cultures equally. (Anonymous, 1998) Of people over 65 an estimated 6-10% will be abnormal by some form of dementia. (Hendrie, 1998) It is only in gender where we down slightly more women than men who be affected by this pernicious illness. (Lautenschlager et al., 1996) The only controllable risk factor that is known at this manoeuvre is cigarette gage. In a large study in Germany smoking cigarettes doubled the risk of dementia in the older population. (Ott et al., 1998)      Alzheimers disease patients send packing survive fo r 3-20 or more years. It is not the AD that kills the patient, rather it is diseases of agedness and/or inactivity, with pneumonia being the leading cause at 70%. This is followed by heart disease, stroke, and cancer. (Thomas, Starr, & Whalley, 1997) Cultural Differences     Race, culture, religion and ethnicity all play a part in how we care for our agedly. Each family accepts decisions based on background, experience, expectations, cognition base, and economics. Most people would like to be able to care for their agedness parent or spouse with as little disruption to life style as possible. Alzheimers Disease, however, is a full time commitment, not just eightsome hours a day, only when "24/7", as the current stress implies, the patient needs continuous care. Sleep habits are disturbed, wandering is common, medications moldiness be carefully controlled, safety is always important. Home care in brief becomes frustrating and exhausting if left to one or two caregivers. When the base caregiver has his/her own medical needs to see to, is also aged, or is the parent of young children as well, the burden can become overwhelming. In-home care is a possibility as is placement in a live-in facility, but both are expensive alternatives.     In California ethnic minorities make up a large part of our population. In the book Culture and Nursing Care A Pocket Guide, there are characteristics of these groups and generalizations are made about how they care for their elderly. (Lipson, 1996) The following table highlights some of these groups that are represented in the Bay Area.American Indian          Status of "elder" begins in middle age.