Elderly people with dementia and care managers
I shadowed the training instructor and visited the homes of elderly residents living in the community, where I observed the care management process as it unfolded between the instructor—who was also a care manager—and the residents. Although it was only a short period of three days, what left the strongest impression on me was that I became keenly aware of the challenges involved in caring for elderly people with dementia living at home in the community. In particular, what struck me most was not so much the dementia clients themselves, but rather the families caring for them at home—their limited capacity to cope with the physical exhaustion of caregiving and the psychological stress it inevitably placed on them, as well as their desperate, almost pleading feelings toward the care manager, who in this case was the training instructor. This experience made me reconsider the reality of elderly care, especially the challenges of caring for elderly people with dementia at home.
(translated version of the post on October 23, 2022)
認知症高齢者とケアマネ
実習指導者の後ろにくっついて、実際に地域で暮らしている高齢利用者のご自宅にお邪魔し、ケアマネである実習指導者と利用者との間で展開されたケアマネジメント過程を拝見させていただきました。3日間というわずかな期間だけでしたが、それでも、地域で暮らしている認知症高齢者の居宅での介護の大変さというものが、ヒシヒシとこちら側にも伝わってきたことが、この実習を通して特に印象に残りました。とりわけ、認知症の利用者ご本人というよりも、在宅で認知症高齢者を介護しているご家族の余裕のなさといいますか、ケアマネである実習指導者に対するご家族の、藁にもすがるような、そんな切実さが伝わってきて、高齢者介護、特に認知症高齢者の在宅での介護の現実を改めて考えることになりました。
(2022年10月23日のポストを再掲）