Abstract
Dementia and neurocognitive disorders present a long and uncertain trajectory of illness. People living with dementia and their caregivers face a wide range of challenges and opportunities unique to the nature of long-term, neurodegenerative decline. Dementia is stigmatized and often not discussed in Western cultures. However, through psychoeducation and clinical interventions, people with dementia, their caregivers and their care team can improve the well-being of people with dementia and mitigate the high burden of care, loss of agency, and caregiver burnout that often comes with dementia and neurodegenerative diseases. This chapter aims to introduce social workers to the psychosocial impacts of dementia and provide key areas for intervention during the acute, chronic, and terminal phases of illness.
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Notes
- 1.
All names and other personal identifiers in the case are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
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Robertson, K.N., Nathanson, A. (2023). Dementia and Neurodegenerative Diseases. In: Hemphill, M., Nathanson, A. (eds) The Practice of Clinical Social Work in Healthcare. Essential Clinical Social Work Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-31650-0_5
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