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Section 1 - Assistive Technology
Section 2 - Divorce Issues
Section 3 - Drugs/Medications
Section 4 - Checklist, Documents, Forms
Section 5 - Employment Issues
Section 6 - Estate Planning
Advanced Directives & DNR's
Section 7 - Caregiver Resources
Patient Quality of Life: Should Doctors Guess It?
Incontinence Care
Section 8 - Children Seriously Ill
Children of The Chronically Ill
Siblings of Children with Special Health Needs
Guides To Disability Issues
End Stage Hospital & Home Care
Child With A Serious Illness
Individual Family Service Plan (IFSP)
Camps-Special Needs Children
Children's Wish Foundations
Section 9 - For Kids
Section 10 - Family Resources
Section 11 - Patient Resources
Section 12 - Financial Aids
Section 13 - Insurance
Long Term Care Insurance
Section 14 - Legal
Section 15 - Long Term Care
Section 16 - Symptom Support
Section 17 - End of Life
Section 18 - Funeral Planning
Section 19 - After Death Occurs
Guestbook
Hospice FAQS
Symptom Support
Behavoir Strategies
Ill Person's Feelings
Caregiving & Family Harmony
Caregiver Grief ~Article
End of Life
Comforting A Dying Person
End Stages of Life
When Someone Dies
Funeral Planning
Bereavement Fares and Discounts
Common Bonds of Caregiving
Tips For Helping Your Friend
About me
Free Greeting Cards
Estate Planning Definition
Living & Other Trusts
Wills & Beneficiaries
State Laws On Wills
Conservator~Guardianship Definitions
Conservator~Guardianship
Insurance Issues
Avoiding Probate
Prescription Drug Program I
Prescription Drug Cards II
Disability & SSDI Insurance Questions
Long Term Care Insurance
Employment Issues
Divorce Issues
State Laws-Statutes
Legal
Documents
Making A Personal File
Emergency Info Form
Emergency Planning
Health Care Surrogate
Forms, Checklist
Family Resources
Patient Resources
Rehab Tools-Assistive Tech. Categories
State Map-Ombudsman Program
NH Your Rights-Fact Sheets
Nursing Homes and Your Rights - Factsheets for some seriously ill or their caregivers.
Long Term Care-Facts & Rights
State & Federal Resources
Drug Resources
Grief & Sorrow
When death nears - Signs and Symptoms
Some Facts About Artificial Nutrition and Hydration
Things To Consider-Artificial Nutrition and Hydration

INDEX Page

Symptom Support & Resources
Anxiety Questionnaire
Quick quiz-you can submit answers to be scored (kept in confidence) to provide insight whether this symptom should be addressed.
 
Behavioral Problems in Dementia-Management
http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1999/10_15_99/morgenlander.htm
Physician's Guide: recognize the common behavioral symptoms of dementia;  learn which environmental measures are useful for controlling disruptive behavior;  know when drug therapy is needed and which agents to prescribe

Caring for adults with mental disabilities
http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1999/11_99/councilman.htm
Guideline for Physicians on problems that tend to be complex. Identify challenges and potential solutions in providing medical care for adults with mental retardation;  provided health maintenance guidelines and several specific medical issues for this population
 
Caregiving and Cognitive Impairments 
http://www.hospicenet.org/html/cognitive_care.html
Cognitively impaired persons typically require special care, including (often 24-hour) supervision, specialized communication techniques, management of bizarre or difficult behaviors, incontinence, and help with activities of daily living (ADLs), e.g. bathing, eating, transferring from bed to a chair or wheelchair, toileting and/or other personal care.  Caring At Home; Managing Behavioral Problems; Defining Needs/Planning For Future
 
Chronic or Ongoing Care-How can you improve the quality of care
How can you improve the quality of care you provide? What changes (if any) need to be made? Here are some guidelines for evaluating your role in the ongoing care process.
 
Delirium-Quick recognition/evaluation/treatments
Physician's Guide: Delirium should be suspected when a patient rather suddenly shows evidence of intermittent confusion, perceptual changes, short-term memory loss, and sleep disturbance. Unrecognized and unaddressed, this disorder can lead to inappropriate management, deterioration, or injury. Quick recognition of symptoms and targeted assessment are essential to identify and treat the underlying causes
 
Demntia-Asking The Right Questions
Physician's Guide: To recognize the various signs and causes of memory loss; know which questions to ask patients and family members to identify the type and severity of cognitive impairment; learn the recommended steps in assessment of physical, neurologic, mental, and functional status of patients with suspected dementia
 
Delusions Questionnaire 
Delusions, believing false events are true, believing events that never happened-happened. This link is to a Quick quiz that you can submit answers to be scored (kept in confidence) to provide insight whether this symptom should be addressed. Written for PD but application to other illnesess.
 
Denial in accepting a terminal illness
Although written for ALS, applicable to any illness: You can help most by respecting their expressions of denial, even as you try to avoid reinforcing them. Recognize an expression of denial for what it is: a wish that things were different. Don't try to "break through" your loved one's denial, but don't become a part of it, either.....
 
Depression Clues
Physician's Guide: Appropriate intervention for depression is often delayed because patients are reluctant to report depressive symptoms or to face the stigma of the diagnosis. Therefore, primary care physicians need to be vigilant for manifestations of depression in their patients and knowledgeable about current treatment recommendations. This article reviews diagnostic considerations and discusses available therapeutic options for patients with this common disorder.
 
Depression Questionnaire  
Note that this test is merely designed to give a preliminary idea about whether the presence of depressive symptoms need evaluation by a psychiatrist. It does not replace in any way a formal psychiatric assessment. A Quick quiz-you can submit answers to be scored (kept in confidence) to provide insight whether this symptom should be addressed.
 
Disinhibited Behavior Questionnaire 
The following is a means of evaluating Disinhibited, or Provocative Behavior. Sometimes a patient is aware he/she is disinhibited. Sometimes only the care-giver is aware of the patient's disinhibited behavior. Disinhibited behavior may be related to: (1) Anxiety (2) Depression (3) Mood Swings (4) Difficulty sleeping (5) Delusions (6) Hallucinations (7) dementia. Written for PD but application to other  illnesess.
 
Dyskinesia Self Evaluation Form
If you have dyskinesias, writhing or wiggling movements, learn to evaluate them. It can help in managing your  disease. It can help in adjusting your medications. Written for PD but application to other illnesess.
 
Dystonia-Stratagies For Controlling
Physician's Guide: To become familiar with the types and causes of dystonia; learn which diagnostic options are most appropriate in specific situations; understand the basics of treatment, including drug therapy, botulinum toxin, and surgery, for dystonia.
 
Hallucinations Questionnaire 
Any Score, 10% (1 YES answer) to 100% (10 YES answers) is abnormal. Complete the Questionnaire each week the hallucinations are present. Quick quiz that you can submit answers to be scored (kept in confidence. Written for PD but application to other illnesess.
 
Managing Other Symptoms from Handbook For Mortals   
http://www.mywhatever.com/cifwriter/library/mortals/mor08000.html
Various symptoms can cause trouble at the end of life. Many can be alleviated most, if not all, of the time. Shortness of breath;
Mouth dryness; Digestive system problems; Bed sores;  Fatigue ; Depression and anxiety and  Confusion
 
Mood Swings Questionnaire
http://www.parkinson.org/qmood.htm
Mood Swings, Volatility, Emotional "Ups and Downs" can be associated with: Agitation, Anxiety,Depression, Difficulty sleeping, Delusions, Dementia, Hallucinations or Disinhibited Behavior. Intrepretation: 0% to 30% probably normal, 0% to 70% may be abnormal or 80% to 100% probably abnormal. Written for PD but application to other illnesess.
 
Myoclonus and chorea-Characteristics, causes, and clinical options
Physician's Guide: Myoclonic and choreic disorders encompass a wide range of manifestations, from simple jerking during sleep in neurologically normal persons to wild, potentially injurious flailing in patients with ballismus. Recognition of the type and cause of the disorder is the first step toward helping patients achieve better functioning when possible. Dr Caviness reviews classification of myoclonus and chorea and discusses appropriate evaluation and the available treatment options.
 
Pain-How To Relieve Pain Without Medicine
Hospice article:  Relaxation/Basic guideleines and techniques; Biofeedback, Imagery, Distractions, Skin Stimulation; Massage, Pressure,  Vibration,  Cold or Hot, Menthol Preparations, Operations, Nerve Blocks, Electric Nerve Stimulation (TENS), Alcohol,  Majijuana, Acupuncture, and Hypnosis.
Pain management for dying patients
Physician's Guide: To learn how to give a variety of effective opioids for patients in severe pain; understand the importance of preventing and treating adverse effects; recognize the multiple dimensions of pain
 
Pain: What Is It?
http://www.hospicenet.org/html/what_is_pain.html
Written by Hospice for cancer patients but discussses What Should I Tell Those Caring For Me About My Pain? Side effects of pain; How to describe how bad or intense the pain is; can anxiety or depression cause pain, etc.
 
Quality of Life survey
Although written for Parkinson's, this survey can help any family measure a person's current Quality of Life: A chronic condition that affects Mobility and may affect a person's ability to perform the ordinary Activities of Daily Living. It's less well known but PDn may also affect a person's Emotional State , their Body Functions, and their Thinking and Communicating skills. In trying to put a number on a person with PD's Quality of Life , all of the above must be considered. This Scale is such an attempt. At a minimum, the Scale will teach people with PD, their family and friends how different aspects of the disease impact on the Quality of Life, how the progression of the disease affects the Quality of Life, and how various treatments and coping strategies may improve the Quality of Life
 
Sleep-related behavior disorders management
Physician's Guide: To identify the various abnormal sleep states known as parasomnias; understand how parasomnias are diagnosed in a sleep studies laboratory; become familiar with the recommended treatments for parasomnia.

Sleep Questionnaire
If you are having difficulty sleeping at night and/or drowsy during the day, you or your care-giver, should complete the following questionnaire. This may help your doctor decide whether a particular drug has, or has not, changed your sleep pattern. Written for PD but application to other illnesess.