Dementia Awareness

NVQ Level 2 Health and Social Care
Katarzyna Nowaczewska
Ace Homecare 2015

Unit 13
Dementia Awareness

1. Understand what dementia is
1.1 Explain what mean by the term "dementia"
The word dementia describes a set of symptoms that may include memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem-solving or language. Dementia is caused when the brain is damaged by diseases, such as Alzheimer 's disease or a series of strokes.
1.2 Describe the key functions of the brain that are - affected by dementia
The main areas of the brain that are affected by dementia in terms of causing difficulties with their functions are:










Frontal lobe - movement, emotional behaviour, personality, interpretation and feeling, Parietal lobe - language, spatial awareness and recognition,
Temporal lobe - long-term memory, speech and hearing,
Occipital lobe - vision,
Cerebellum - balance, posture, muscle coordination (movement),
Hypothalamus - regulates thirst, appetite, body temperature and also sleep cycles and patterns of sleep,
Thalamus - muscle movement and processing sensory information,
Hippocampus - processes recent memories into stored memory,
Limbic system - emotions and smell.

All or some of functions of the brain may be affected, it all depends on which area of the brain can be affected by dementia.
1.3 Explain why depression, delirium and age-related memory impairment may be mistaken for dementia

All this terms like depression, delirium and age-related memory impairment manifest with similar symptoms, because they are often mistaken for dementia. Here are some of them: mild cognitive impairment, apathy, confusion, poor memory or low concentration.
Depression can sometimes be mistaken for dementia because with dementia a person’s behaviour and feeling of well-being can change and cause the person to appear withdrawn and this for example might be mistaken for depression. However, if the person is depressed then it could be the depression not the dementia causing