MODIFYING REPETITIVE VERBALIZATIONS OF COMMUNITY-DWELLING PATIENTS WITH AD

Seven caregivers of a home-dwelling spouse with Alzheimer's disease we re trained during 12 weekly home visits to implement behavior manageme nt programs including written cuing procedures in response to repetiti ve verbalizations. Data from 7 trained caregivers and 7 matched contro l caregivers who only tracked repetitive behavior were compared. Resul ts revealed that trained caregivers were successful at decreasing pati ent repetitions using written cues. Patients of control subjects showe d no systematic changes in behavioral disturbances due to behavior tra cking. In addition, intervention effects lasted for 16 weeks or longer and several caregivers reported applying the cuing intervention to ot her, nontargeted behaviors. Trained caregivers' perceptions of their e fficacy in managing difficult patient behavior improved significantly at the 3-month follow-up assessment when program staff were no longer visiting them weekly.