Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What is meant by “brain impairment?”
At The Caregiver’s Voice, the term “brain impairment” to refer to various diseases and illnesses such as dementia or those caused by stroke, trauma, or cancer treatments.
2. What is the difference between dementia and Alzheimer’s?
Dementia is the umbrella and Alzheimer’s is the leading cause and often used interchangeably with dementia. Other causes of dementia include Parkinson’s, vascular, and Lewy Body.
3. What are the stages of Alzheimer’s?
Oftentimes, people will express that a person is in stage two, three, four, or five. This can be unclear if they don’t specify how the total number of stages. For example, a person diagnosed as stage two of three stages suggests moderate disease progression. A person at stage two of seven stages however, indicates early-stage Alzheimer’s (see FAQ item 5). To simplify things and make them easier to understand, we recommend using three general stages—early, middle, and late.
4. How will I know if I have Alzheimer’s?
The Alzheimer’s Association offers “Warning Signs” as does The Caregiver’s Voice. Please click here for the Warning Signs of Alzheimer’s, adapted with permission from the Alzheimer’s Association.
5. Are “early-onset” and “early-stage” dementia the same?
No. “Early onset” refers to when dementia strikes a person younger than sixty five. “Early stage” refers to where the person is along the disease path (see FAQ item 3). A person diagnosed with early-onset dementia can also be diagnosed with early-stage dementia, which means the person is younger than sixty-five and at an early stage of the disease.
6. The Caregiver’s Voice uses the phrase “continuum of care.” What does this mean?
Continuum of care refers to the span of caregiving starting with in-home care and ending with hospice and bereavement. In between caregivers have many choices for their loved one’s care such as hiring an in home caregiver and making use of adult day care services to board and care, assisted living, and even nursing care. Additionally, families face many decisions throughout the disease such as using elder law services to set up an estate plan and establishing healthcare directives. For more information read TCV’s Informative Caregiving Articles Spanning the Caregiving Continuum.
We will continue to update and add to our FAQs.
For additional questions see: Media Interview Questions.
