Healthy Aging Brain & Cognition
What term refers to the mental processes involved in thinking, learning, understanding, and remembering?
What is cognition?
The gaining of information, skills, and knowledge measured by improvement in performance.
What is learning?
Mild loss of this type of memory commonly occurs with aging.
What is short-term memory?
The awareness and adjustment of care based on how slow or fast a resident functions.
What is pacing?
According to Maslow, these are the lowest two levels of human needs.
What are physiological (physical) needs and safety/security needs?
Healthy older adults generally remain intelligent and creative and can still do this throughout life.
What is learn new information?
This involves storing information in the brain for later use and recalling it when needed.
What is memory?
Older adults may have trouble doing more than one of these at a time.
What are tasks or requests?
The ability to deal with slowness or delay without appearing rushed.
What is patience?
Many older adults see their home as this, representing independence and identity.
What is their castle?
This concept suggests that cognitive function is related to how much it is used.
What is "Use It or Lose It"?
The time it takes a person to begin an answer or movement after a request is made.
What is reaction time?
Forgetting names, misplacing items, and poor recall of recent conversations are examples of these age-related changes.
What are cognitive changes due to aging?
Nurse aides should allow residents to do this when learning or performing a task.
What is set their own pace?
This syndrome may occur when residents are rushed and not given enough time to complete tasks.
What is Social Breakdown Syndrome?
Messages from the five senses are changed, stored, recovered, and used in this process.
What is cognition?
Reaction time generally begins to decrease gradually after this age.
What is 60 years old?
Decreases in these brain cells contribute to slower processing and response times.
What are neurons (brain cells)?
Before teaching a new task, nurse aides should connect new information to this.
What are past experiences or familiar information?
Residents moving into a nursing facility may commonly experience these emotions.
What are loss, fear, isolation, confusion, stress, or lack of control?
The ability to think and solve problems remains especially sharp in these types of situations.
What are usual situations and familiar experiences?
Older adults often experience increased learning time, slower responses, and difficulty with this type of skill.
What are motor skills (or relearning motor skills)?
Older adults may become easily confused when faced with these situations.
What are multiple changes, losses, or unfamiliar environments?
Name two ways a nurse aide can help compensate for slowed reaction time.
What are
slowing the pace,
allowing extra time to respond,
informing residents ahead of time,
minimizing distractions,
ensuring glasses/hearing aids are in place,
demonstrating tasks?
Name three actions a nurse aide should take to help a newly admitted resident adjust to a skilled nursing facility
What are providing orientation, introducing staff and residents, explaining routines, learning preferences, giving a tour, explaining procedures, or using the resident's preferred name?