As a caregiver that for the most part, works with clients who have dementia, I spend a lot of time online looking for resources that provide cognitive engagement, entertainment, researching behavioural challenges that are new to me, cultural differences, translation apps, etc.
I couldn’t quite find exactly what I was looking for so I thought it might be a good idea to post some of the resources thatx have been successful, unsuccessful or somewhere in between.
Music
Music can be such an important tool for caregivers. I like to do a little research on music genres and eras that I think the client might enjoy. If I don’t have much information on the client’s preferences before meeting them, I will use their age as a guide.
I also use my iPad to create playlists for the client or play videos of their favourite artists. This has proven to be a popular pastime and helps them to connect with memories and people from a happy time in their lives. I use Spotify for the playlists and You Tube or TikTok for videos.
Trivia
Depending on the client’s cognitive abilities, I like to use trivia to engage them. I make sure that the questions are multiple choice and the correct answer is easy. I will also give them hints to help them along. You can also look for trivia questions that are specific to your person’s interests. For example, history questions, food questions, music questions, car questions, questions relating to a specific decade, etc.
Activity Books or Magazines
I like the “Highlights Brain Play Magazine”. It has a variety of games and puzzles that my clients enjoy. There are also crossword puzzles, but I haven’t had much success with them.
Interview Questions
This is one of my favourite things to do with a client. The questions are fun, silly and very entertaining. There is no wrong or right answers, they can say what they want and not be judged, I am just there to listen. There are times when a question needs clarification and I will provide that.
Here are some sample questions
- What’s your superpower?
- If you could have a song play whenever you walked into a room, what would it be?
- Do you have a secret talent?
- If you were famous, what would your stage name be?
- What is your favourite dinosaur?
- You open your freezer and it’s filled with penguins, you can’t give them away and you can’t donate them, what would you do?
This activity even has client’s family members joining in and offering answers. The questions may not be appropriate for someone in the later stages of dementia.
Artificial Intelligence
I use AI a lot now. Co-Pilot, Gemini, ChatGPT, Canva. I can generate trivia questions about a hobby or interest that the client has, generate stories starring my client then read the story to her. I can ask it to create a song about my client. Most recently, I used it to create a story about my client’s love of animals. The stories are not long but she loves them. I think the most fun activity has been creating AI generated images. The images may not be exactly what you envision, but they can be modified. We have laughed a lot when the image is not what we imagined. I find that Gemini creates a more realistic image. You can also save or share your stories and images. I was reading the same children’s book to her over and over and wanted a little more variety.