This essay is a reflection on my anticipated health care practice. It was required that I choose a group that was effected by the diversity of ethnicities, religions, genders, sexualities and abilities in the Australian population. I chose to do a mental disability, which was dementia. Four components will be addressed into this essay; the barriers to health care access and good care, my attitude, values and beliefs towards those with dementia, culturally safe health care practices that I might undertake with Individuals with dementia, and how I, as a health care provider could advocate for people with dementia at a population level.
I noticed that people with dementia suffer from multiple barriers to health care access and good care. One of …show more content…
These are: the way some general practitioners view dementia, some general practitioners tend to stigmatize dementia, some even prefer not to disclose a diagnosis as there is fear associated with developing dementia (Gove et al., 2015). Another factor that is paramount in an early diagnosis not being made, is that a large amount of people believe dementia is a normal part of aging and as such is not an issue to be worried about (Paterson and Pond, 2009). Another issue with people who have dementia is that there is a significant lack of quality residential care. Dementia is often generalized and is treated as any other condition, often the case of people not having the proper training and knowledge of dementia. Australian courses that pertain to dementia care often have areas that are inconsistent and many of the standards of training vary (Smith and Stevens, 2013). This barrier to access to good care is also …show more content…
I endeavour to not associate stigma with anything no matter what it is. While this is not always possible I believe dementia is something I do not associate stigma. My reasoning for this is that dementia doesn’t primarily occur due to bad habits or bad lifestyles, it can happen to anyone. Due to this, I do not believe an individual with dementia deserves to be stigmatized. I believe that I attempt to keep an open mind on most topics. This was developed during my voluntary visits to my aunt; who has dementia, when nobody else in my family would. Having had experience with dementia, I believe this gives me a solid foundational start on understanding the condition and understanding what individuals with dementia are going through. I believe that in turn, this allows me to have patience and a very understanding attitude towards individuals with dementia. I also believe the aforementioned values, beliefs and attitudes will have a positive impact on providing care when dealing with individuals that have dementia, as there is already a preconceived positive image. One negative impact that could affect my health care practice with individuals with dementia, are my beliefs of how dementia affects people. As I already have a personal connection and prior experience with someone with dementia, I need to be careful to not stereotype other patients e.g. I should not associate the way my aunt was affected by dementia and
I noticed that people with dementia suffer from multiple barriers to health care access and good care. One of …show more content…
These are: the way some general practitioners view dementia, some general practitioners tend to stigmatize dementia, some even prefer not to disclose a diagnosis as there is fear associated with developing dementia (Gove et al., 2015). Another factor that is paramount in an early diagnosis not being made, is that a large amount of people believe dementia is a normal part of aging and as such is not an issue to be worried about (Paterson and Pond, 2009). Another issue with people who have dementia is that there is a significant lack of quality residential care. Dementia is often generalized and is treated as any other condition, often the case of people not having the proper training and knowledge of dementia. Australian courses that pertain to dementia care often have areas that are inconsistent and many of the standards of training vary (Smith and Stevens, 2013). This barrier to access to good care is also …show more content…
I endeavour to not associate stigma with anything no matter what it is. While this is not always possible I believe dementia is something I do not associate stigma. My reasoning for this is that dementia doesn’t primarily occur due to bad habits or bad lifestyles, it can happen to anyone. Due to this, I do not believe an individual with dementia deserves to be stigmatized. I believe that I attempt to keep an open mind on most topics. This was developed during my voluntary visits to my aunt; who has dementia, when nobody else in my family would. Having had experience with dementia, I believe this gives me a solid foundational start on understanding the condition and understanding what individuals with dementia are going through. I believe that in turn, this allows me to have patience and a very understanding attitude towards individuals with dementia. I also believe the aforementioned values, beliefs and attitudes will have a positive impact on providing care when dealing with individuals that have dementia, as there is already a preconceived positive image. One negative impact that could affect my health care practice with individuals with dementia, are my beliefs of how dementia affects people. As I already have a personal connection and prior experience with someone with dementia, I need to be careful to not stereotype other patients e.g. I should not associate the way my aunt was affected by dementia and