ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses the development of unique Alzheimer’s disease training course at COHME. Some of the materials in the course deal with defining dementia and the caregiver role, which help the worker to understand the stages through which both the client and their caregivers pass. Other materials help the workers with concrete steps in their attempts to manage behavioral problems. The chapter discusses the development of an educational curriculum for COHME's workers that would include their own as well as their clients’ emotional needs. The curriculum ran for six sessions. It was jointly led by a social worker and the nurse who developed the curriculum. Each session featured an educational topic such as behavioral changes in persons suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. A pretest was developed that pulled relevant questions from previously taught individual in-services, as well as questions that would help the workers begin focusing on feelings.