AAC Caregiver Support & Education 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A husband caring for his wife with mid-stage Alzheimer's displays signs of depression and weight loss. The care team should FIRST:
- Increase his wife's medication
- Screen the caregiver for depression using a validated tool (Correct answer)
- Recommend the wife be placed in a facility immediately
- Tell the husband to exercise more
Correct answer: Screen the caregiver for depression using a validated tool
Systematic screening with a validated tool like the PHQ-9 identifies caregiver depression and guides appropriate intervention.
Question 2: Which approach is MOST effective when educating caregivers who have low health literacy?
- Providing thick written manuals
- Using plain language, visuals, and teach-back method (Correct answer)
- Scheduling single long classroom sessions
- Relying exclusively on medical terminology
Correct answer: Using plain language, visuals, and teach-back method
Plain language, visual aids, and the teach-back method improve comprehension and retention for caregivers with low health literacy.
Question 3: The Alzheimer's Association's 'Caregiver Stress Check' is designed to help caregivers:
- Calculate medication dosages
- Self-identify warning signs of caregiver burnout (Correct answer)
- Schedule medical appointments
- Apply for Medicaid benefits
Correct answer: Self-identify warning signs of caregiver burnout
The Caregiver Stress Check is a self-assessment tool that alerts caregivers to early signs of stress and burnout.
Question 4: When a person with Alzheimer's refuses personal care from their family caregiver, the BEST educational strategy is to teach the caregiver to:
- Force the care to maintain hygiene
- Use distraction, redirection, and a calm approach (Correct answer)
- Stop providing care until the person agrees
- Medicate the person before care tasks
Correct answer: Use distraction, redirection, and a calm approach
Distraction and redirection reduce resistance by shifting focus and de-escalating the situation before re-attempting care.
Question 5: Adult day services primarily benefit caregivers by:
- Providing 24-hour nursing supervision
- Offering structured daytime programming and caregiver respite (Correct answer)
- Replacing the need for home care entirely
- Providing overnight care only
Correct answer: Offering structured daytime programming and caregiver respite
Adult day programs give people with dementia social engagement while providing caregivers with planned respite during daytime hours.
Question 6: A caregiver education curriculum for Alzheimer's care should include content on anticipatory grief because:
- It prepares caregivers for the person's eventual death and cumulative losses (Correct answer)
- Grief only occurs after the person dies
- It reduces the need for hospice services
- Grief is not relevant until the final stage
Correct answer: It prepares caregivers for the person's eventual death and cumulative losses
Anticipatory grief begins at diagnosis as caregivers mourn progressive losses of the person's abilities, identity, and relationship.
Question 7: Which factor MOST strongly predicts caregiver burden in Alzheimer's caregiving?
- The caregiver's age
- Behavioral and psychological symptoms of the person with dementia (Correct answer)
- The person's physical size
- Geographic distance from a hospital
Correct answer: Behavioral and psychological symptoms of the person with dementia
Behavioral and psychological symptoms such as aggression, wandering, and agitation are the strongest predictors of caregiver burden.
AAC Caregiver Support & Education 3
A husband caring for his wife with mid-stage Alzheimer's displays signs of depression and weight loss.
The care team should FIRST: