Paper Example on Delirium, Dementia, and Depression

Introduction

The transition from adulthood to the old age involves certain health and psychological conditions that accompany the process. There are various myths and facts that people often have regarding the elderly with respect to their physical health and mental well-being. It is a common belief that forgetfulness is an indication of the start of dementia, however, the loss of memory may be due to depression, medical condition, or a medication (Mohile et al., 2015). People also perceive that every elderly person develops dementia and have depression. The reality is that approximately six percent of adults aged 65 and above have dementia and depression is not part of the aging process, but a treatable illness. Besides, there is a view that psychological factors are responsible for depression in late life. However, the fact is that depression is co-morbid with such illness like diabetes, heart disease, hip fracture, and stroke (Singh & Upadhyay, 2014).

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Effective and safe care approaches for the elderly have a base on understanding the issue of functional decline where there is a decrease in cognitive and physical functioning. The factors that compose the care interventions include helping the elderly to maintain their functional status through improving their diet, increasing functional mobility, reducing incontinence, avoiding the incidence of falls, and supporting self-care maintenance (Grol et al., 2013). The care plan includes awareness of the origins, risk factors, effects, and how to manage dementia, delirium, and depression among the elderly and their family members.

There are different screening tools that help in the effective assessment of the possible causes of dementia and depression in elderly people. For instance, the Memory Impairment Screen (MIS), Mini-Cog Test, and the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE). These tools help nurses to identify the possibility of cognitive impairment among the elderly through observations of their behaviors during a communication process. Some of the barriers for adults in receiving and understanding information include lack of concentration or attention, declining memory, vision, and sight, lack of the ability to read and write, and the environment of communication (Freddi, 2013).

Older adults often experience enhanced susceptibility to side effects that result from drug influence on the body because of the impaired mechanisms of homeostasis. The health outcomes for this group of people are under the influence of economic, environmental, and ethical factors (Midlov, 2013). For instance, the availability of sufficient food and basic needs, the general body condition with regards to physical fitness, and the cultural influence of medication all affect the outcome of the treatment among the elderly.

References

Freddi Segai-Gidan, P. A. C. (2013). Cognitive screening tools. Clinician Reviews, 23(1), 12.

Grol, R., Wensing, M., Eccles, M., & Davis, D. (Eds.). (2013). Improving patient care: the implementation of change in healthcare. John Wiley & Sons.

Midlov, P. (2013). Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in the elderly. OA Elderly Medicine, 1(1), 1.

Mohile, S. G., Velarde, C., Hurria, A., Magnuson, A., Lowenstein, L., Pandya, C., ... & Dale, W. (2015). Geriatric assessment-guided care processes for older adults: A Delphi consensus of geriatric oncology experts. Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, 13(9), 1120-1130.

Singh, R., & Upadhyay, A. (2014). Mental health of elderly people. Journal of Psychosocial Research, 9(1), 61.