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    The Best Friends™ Daily Planner (Excerpt)

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    Health Professions Press, an imprint of Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
    This handy and practical daily planner provides you with Best Friends guiding principles, activities, and reflection questions to support your caregiving each week. With ample space to record your thoughts and the reactions of the persons with dementia that you care for, this invaluable tool will guide you through the year and provide a record of your caregiving experiences in the years to come.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved

    The Best Friends™ Daily Planner (Excerpt)

    Uploaded by

    Health Professions Press, an imprint of Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
    3K views16 pages
    This handy and practical daily planner provides you with Best Friends guiding principles, activities, and reflection questions to support your caregiving each week. With ample space to record your thoughts and the reactions of the persons with dementia that you care for, this invaluable tool will guide you through the year and provide a record of your caregiving experiences in the years to come.

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

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    This handy and practical daily planner provides you with Best Friends guiding principles, activities, and reflection questions to support your caregiving each week. With ample space to record your thoughts and the reactions of the persons with dementia that you care for, this invaluable tool will guide you through the year and provide a record of your caregiving experiences in the years to come.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    3K views16 pages

    The Best Friends™ Daily Planner (Excerpt)

    Uploaded by

    Health Professions Press, an imprint of Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
    This handy and practical daily planner provides you with Best Friends guiding principles, activities, and reflection questions to support your caregiving each week. With ample space to record your thoughts and the reactions of the persons with dementia that you care for, this invaluable tool will guide you through the year and provide a record of your caregiving experiences in the years to come.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    of 16

    CAREGIVING-ALZHEIMERS/DEMENTIA

    The best results of caring for an individual with dementia stem from
    staying in tune with the person. . . . This planner aids in doing just that.
    Jamie Huff, QDCP, Community Outreach Coordinator,
    Alzheimers Alliance of Smith County, TX

    This planner makes the concepts come alive in day-to-day


    interactions. . . . Were excited to put this resource in the hands
    of the people who need it mostour front-line staff.

    More than 200 activities,


    guiding principles, and
    reflection questions

    Jean Summers, SVP ALF division Americare

    he Best Friends Daily Planner shows


    you how simple it is to be a Best Friend
    to a person with dementia each and every day.
    Organized around the Best Friends Dementia Bill
    of Rights, this handy and practical tool provides
    you with Best Friends guiding principles, activities,
    and reflection questions to support your caregiving
    each week.

    Guiding Principles: Learn how to

    follow the Best Friends approach with these


    reminders and tips

    The Best Friends Daily


    Planner can be used as an
    individual resource or with
    any of the many books in
    the world-renowned Best
    Friends product suite.
    Developed by dementia care
    experts Virginia Bell and
    David Troxel, Best Friends
    is a sensitive and sensible
    approach to dementia care
    based on the essential elements of friendship: respect,
    empathy, support, trust, and
    humor.

    Activities: Implement over 150 quick,


    easy, and unconventional activities

    Reflection Questions: Record what works and what doesnt


    both for you and your Best Friend
    With ample space to record your thoughts and the reactions of the persons
    with dementia you care for, this invaluable tool will guide you through the
    year and provide a record of your caregiving experiences for years to come.
    ISBN-13: 978-1-938870-30-9
    ISBN-10: 1-938870-30-1

    90000

    healthpropress.com/bestfriends
    healthpropress.com/aboutbestfriends

    9 781938 870309

    Daily
    Planner
    Virginia Bell
    David Troxel

    More than 200 activities,


    guiding principles, and
    reflection questions

    Daily
    Planner

    In case of loss, please return to:

    What is Best Friends?


    Best Friends is a method of care for people with dementia. This comprehensive
    approach is grounded in the understanding that relationships are supremely important in dementia care and require the
    essential elements of friendship: respect,
    empathy, support, trust, and humor.

    The Best Friends approach is completely


    person-centered and flexible enough
    to adapt to each persons remaining
    strengths and abilities. To read a complete overview of the Best Friends model
    of care visit www.healthpropress.com/
    Best-Friends-Overview.
    Knack
    Defined asthe art of doing difficult
    things with ease, the Knack represents
    an attitude and set of skills that guarantee the success of the Best Friends
    approach. The elements of Knack central
    to the Best Friends approach include:
    Being well informed
    Having empathy
    Respecting the basic rights of the
    person
    Maintaining caregiving integrity
    Employing finesse
    Knowing it is easier to get forgiveness
    than to get permission
    Using common sense
    Communicating skillfully
    Maintaining optimism
    Setting realistic expectations
    Using humor
    Employing spontaneity
    Maintaining patience
    Developing flexibility
    Staying focused
    Being nonjudgmental
    Valuing the moment
    Maintaining self-confidence
    Using cueing tied to the Life Story
    Taking care of oneself
    Planning ahead
    Life Story
    Also at the core of Best Friends is the
    understanding that good dementia
    care begins with acknowledgement of a

    persons life story. Because people with


    dementia often can no longer tell us their
    histories, care partners must become
    their biographers, even if it means becoming a good detective. The more a care
    partner knows about a person, the more
    he or she can use the life story to improve
    interactions and care, including
    Greeting the person and improving
    recognition
    Introducing the person to others
    Reminiscing
    Improving communication through
    clues and cues
    Designing appropriate activities
    Pointing out past accomplishments
    Helping to prevent challenging
    behaviors
    Incorporating past daily rituals
    Broadening the caregiving network
    and resources
    Compassionate Speech
    The Best Friends philosophy of communication is grounded in a set of core
    principles:
    Remember the basics of good
    communication
    Understand the persons desire to
    communicate
    Make a good first impression
    Create an environment that facilitates
    good communication
    Treat the person as an adult
    Maintain caregiving integrity
    Respond to emotional needs
    Remember the importance of
    nonverbal communication
    Remember that behaviors communi cate a message
    Do not take the person too literally
    Employ good timing
    Use repetition to facilitate better
    communication
    Do not argue or confront
    Screen out troubling messages or
    news
    Speak using positive language
    Employ humor in communication
    Do most of the work

    Dementia

    Bill of
    Rights
    Every person diagnosed with Alzheimers disease or other
    dementia deserves:
    To be informed of ones diagnosis
    To have appropriate, ongoing medical care
    To be treated as an adult, listened to, and afforded respect
    for ones feelings and point of view
    To be with individuals who know ones life story,
    including cultural and spiritual traditions
    To experience meaningful engagement throughout
    the day
    To live in a safe and stimulating environment
    To be outdoors on a regular basis
    To be free from psychotropic medications whenever
    possible
    To have welcomed physical contact, including hugging,
    caressing, and handholding
    To be an advocate for oneself and for others
    To be part of a local, global, or online community
    To have care partners well trained in dementia care

    The Best Friends Dementia Bill of Rights by Virginia Bell & David Troxel. Copyright 2013 Health Professions Press, Inc.

    About This Planner

    ave you been wondering how to ensure you are providing


    the best dementia care? The Best Friends model of care
    for people with dementia is a proven, strengths-based approach grounded in the understanding that loving relationships
    are supremely important in dementia care. In this approach, caregivers are encouraged to treat the person with dementia as a Best
    Friend by embracing the essential elements of friendship: respect,
    empathy, support, trust, and humor. Best Friends also take the
    time to learn the person with dementias Life Story and employ the
    Knack, the art of doing difficult things with ease, in everyday interactions. If youre new to the approach, look into the Best Friends
    book series at www.healthpropress.com/bestfriends.
    The Best Friends Daily Planner provides you with Best Friends
    guiding principles, activities, and reflection questions to support your caregiving each week. With ample space to record your
    thoughts and the reactions of the persons with dementia who you
    care for, this invaluable tool will guide you through the year and
    provide a record of your caregiving experiences for the years to
    come. Filled with easy-to-implement activities and reminders of
    the core tenets of the Best Friends model of care, this handy and
    practical book shows you how simple it is to be a Best Friend to a
    person with dementia each and every day.
    And the best part is, The Best Friends Daily Planner is completely
    customizable to meet your needs. Divided by months that highlight each of the 12 Best Friends Dementia Rights and labeled with
    dates that arent day-of-the-week specific, the planner gives you the
    flexibility to start at any point of the year!
    We love to hear from our Best Friends. If you have an experience,
    story, or activity that you would like to share, email bestfriends@
    healthpropress.com and you could be in the next Best Friends
    book!*
    *Visit healthpropress.com/bestfriendsknack for complete details.
    iii

    Guiding Principles

    The Guiding Principles of Best Friends encourage you to honor


    the person with dementias Life Story and always treat him as you
    would a best friend, with respect, trust, and humor. Throughout
    the year, this planner will include reminders and tips for following
    the core tenets of this approach. Think about these Guiding Principles as you go about your day and try to incorporate them into
    your everyday interactions with your Best Friend.

    Activities
    You will learn that activities are everywherefrom the short and
    simple (e.g., make a funny face) to things that you might typically
    see as chores (e.g., folding clothes). Best Friends teaches you that
    the art of activities is not in what is done, it is in the doing. An
    activity can be any opportunity that provides for social engagement
    and interaction. Activities dont need to be structured and lengthy.
    The important thing is doing something together. Here you will find
    over 150 quick, easy, and unconventional activities that will make
    your Best Friend smile!

    Reflections

    To truly become a Best Friend, you have to ask yourself, How


    would the confusing experiences of dementia makemefeel? Think
    about the reflection question throughout your day and write down
    your thoughts and feelings in the space provided. With the help of
    these reflection questions, you can record what works and what
    doesntboth for you and your Best Friend.

    iv

    January

    Every person diagnosed with Alzheimers


    disease or other dementia deserves

    To be informed of
    ones diagnosis

    Bill of
    Rights

    COMSTOCK IMAGES/PHOTOS.COM

    Dementia

    COMSTOCK IMAGES/PHOTOS.COM

    January
    1

    Remember
    great inventions
    Talk to your Best Friend about
    the Titanic, the printing press,
    the steam engine, Model Ts, the
    telephone, televisions, etc.

    Understand
    that being a Best
    Friend takes
    flexibility, a
    sense of humor,
    finesse, and
    empathy.

    January
    5

    Read classic
    short stories
    Pick a short story that is
    important to you or your Best
    Friend. Share your love of the
    story together.

    January
    8

    How do you celebrate


    spirituality with your
    Best Friend?

    10

    11

    January
    12

    13

    14

    Look at family
    photos
    Talk about the fashions
    of the time.

    15

    Finish Bible
    verses
    Alternatively, read a philosophy
    book or book of famous quotes.

    January
    16

    Do not
    argue,
    confront,
    or correct
    your Best
    Friend.

    17

    18

    Evoke a memory
    from the Life Story
    of your Best Friend
    Talk about pets or a notable
    place your Best Friend
    lived or visited.

    19

    January
    20

    21

    22

    23

    Try out a new


    shade of lipstick
    Or try a new scarf, tie,
    suspenders, or belt.

    January
    24

    Fold clothes
    together
    Comment on the colors and
    textures. Talk about changing
    fashions.

    25

    26

    27

    Ask your
    Best Friend
    for her
    opinion.

    January
    28

    29

    30

    Ask simple
    trivia questions
    How many states are there?

    31

    Give a
    hand massage

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