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Posts Tagged ‘
social workers ’
Introduction
Eliminating toddler tantrums altogether is impossible. Managing them reasonably well is possible. Tantrum avoidance begins at home. If you do your "home work," you will be more prepared to diffuse tantrums when they occur in the car, in stores, in restaurants or in any places where you want to be, and must be, in charge.
Here is what to do—and keep doing– with tantrums in and out of the house:
1. Achieve Consistency! Have a consistent set of rules and limits, and have a kit of small consequences that you can deploy after a tantrum, or for that matter after any negative behavior that you want to eliminate. You will be creating a trust in your toddler that you WILL respond with a consequence; that you WILL do what you say; that you WILL be on top of behavior issues. Have rules for in the house and out of the house that both parents agree to follow.
2. Create Predictability and Follow Through! Be as consistent and predictable as possible, while refraining from threats, such as "I will knock you upside the head if you do not knock it off!" The parent who says, "If you do this, then I will do that…" and who does not do "that" when the child does "this" is setting up for problems. Predictability lets your child know you mean what you say. This is necessary groundwork for diffusing tantrums when they occur at times when you need your child to know you mean business.
3. Capitalize on Expression and Expectations! Even if the child is very young and may not understand all the words, your tone will convey meaning. When you prepare your child for going out to some other place that you know could be tricky, before you go, you might say, "Sweetheart, you and mommy are going out in the car and mommy expects you to behave. That means no screaming, no whining, and no crying." Note: Once you are out, if the child is very young and does evidence some sort of actual discomfort, it may be a good idea to check out the problem. But, once you determine the child is fine and safe, you can go back to your directive. "Now, you are fine, sweetheart, and I expect no more crying."
4. Use Planned Ignoring—and Follow Through! At that point if crying continues and you are in a place where you can ignore it, ignore it. If the crying continues, and you can return home, tell your little one in a firm voice that the outing cannot continue because she/he is making poor choices, and return home.
5. Have and Use Strategies! Once you and your toddler are out in the tough spots, you will need strategies. They will work better if you have prepared yourself and your child with tips 1 through 4!
- You can use the "If this continues, we will need to leave." Message: This is one a lot of parents use, but do not necessarily follow through with. If you say this and do not leave, it may work once or twice, but it can quickly become empty. If you are prepared to give up the activity once or twice, this might yield benefits for the future.
- Use ignoring if safety is assured. If you are in a place where you do not mind people staring or glaring, and the child is safe, plan to use ignoring. Ignoring can extinguish a tantrum, but it may take a few uncomfortable moments or incidents.
- Use distraction. Distraction will work better with no threats. If you have used the "if you don't stop, I will…" threat, and then use distraction, the distraction can actually reward the unwanted behavior. Bring some items for the child to play with or look at, and try them when things look iffy, and use quickly before things go too far.
- Take a break. In a restaurant or other public place removing the child for a short time can quiet things down. If in the car, you may have to pull into a safe parking spot and ignore till he calms down. When the child quiets down, even for a moment, you can begin to go again. If he starts up again, and you know he is safe, ignore,
- Reward desired behavior. When the tantrum stops or wanes for a few minutes, you have a golden opportunity to offer a reward if the child pulls herself together. However, as with any consequence, you must follow through with any reward you promise in order to get your full benefits for the future.
6. An important Do– and a few important Do Not's! Never shame your child. Name calling and making the child feel bad about himself may have short-term relief, but usually create potential problems in the longer term. Do not use physical punishment, even though you may be at your wits end. It may cause much larger problems overall. Do not promise any reward that you do not intend to deliver. And do not wait long to apply consequences. Do not withhold love, food or shelter or other basic necessities. Do not put toddlers alone in a room or leave them in a car alone. Do not threaten to make them go live with someone else or to give them away. Some of these do nots are obvious, but at a parent's wits end, going to desperate measures can seem appealing.
Do get professional help if the tantrums begin to occur more frequently or if the child becomes self-destructive on some sort of regular basis. Also do consider stress management training for yourself and for any other caretakers who are becoming overly stressed by a child's behavior. And, take heart, all toddlers tantrum. Yours is not an oddity or a casualty of some behavioral downfall. By using the above tips and strategies you will be in prime position to avoid and diffuse tantrums in top spots–and at home.
To find a social worker in your area, please click here.
Tags: Bette Freedson, social workers, temper tantrums
Posted in
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SECTION ONE: Laying a Foundation for Change
Understanding the Stakes
Understanding what is at stake in a custody battle is critical. As a child custody mediator and therapist specializing in higher-conflict child custody cases, I've learned that most parents are unaware of how high the stakes are. They fail to realize that how they handle themselves, even if the other parent won't play fair, can mean the difference between their child growing up to be strong and self-reliant, or an angry substance abuser. While this may sound extreme, I assure you it is not.
No parent gets into a custody dispute with the intention of going broke and jeopardizing the welfare of his or her kids. But losing one's life savings and putting children at risk, psychologically if not physically, is often exactly what happens. This is almost always the case when one parent decides not to play fair in order to seek revenge on the other. In this chapter, we will look at the real costs associated with a custody dispute.
The Human Costs: How Does Separation or Divorce Affect Kids?
Research into the impact of separation and divorce on kids reveals that most children do fairly well after an initial adjustment period, so long as the following four factors are in place:
- Sound parenting
- An effective shared-custody plan
- Little or no exposure to parental conflict
- Consistent quality time with the non-residential parent
When these factors are present, separation or divorce is more likely to promote resilience than emotional or behavioral problems. On the other hand, when these factors are absent, problems are likely to occur. Determining the exact effects a custody battle will have on a child is almost impossible to do. It is a simpler process to determine which kids are more at risk than others.
One of the best predictors that a child will adjust well is whether his or her parents were able to resolve conflicts in a healthy way before their breakup. When absent, parents tend to bring their combative ways with them into the courtroom where the proceedings quickly turn unproductive if not disastrous.
Other risk factors for kids include:
- Violence—history of domestic violence and child abuse
- Drugs—active parental substance abuse
- Change—multiple changes of residence and school
- Friends—absence of peer support
- Money—degree of financial hardship caused by breakup
- New partners—introducing new adult partners to kids too soon after breakup
- Loss of contact—little or no contact with the non-residential parent
- Mental health—debilitating parental mental illness
If a child is struggling with any of the risk factors mentioned, he or she is more likely to struggle with serious long-term problems such as:
- Intense anger—which may be displayed at home, school and in the community
- School problems—including poor grades and problems witht eachers and other students
- Substance abuse—more likely to experiment with, and abuse, drugs
- Mental health problems—such as depression and anxiety
- Legal trouble—more likely to get in with the wrong crowd and get into legal trouble
- Teen pregnancy and sexual diseases—more likely to start having sex at a younger age and to engage in unsafe sexual practices
- Running away—most teens who run away are from broken homes
- Risk of suicide—kids may start thinking about suicide when they feel that their situation is unbearable and is unlikely to improve
These are the human stakes connected with fighting over custody. If your children aren't suffering from the nasty side-effects of your dispute, be thankful. But also be careful to look deeply. Seeing the problems our kids are having can be more difficult than it seems. Some children are reluctant to reveal how they really feel. Others may take on the "good child" role, driven subconsciously by the fear of being abandoned. In their minds, if one of their parents can be sent away for not being "good," perhaps the same thing could happen to him or her.
For those of you who see several of the risk factors above in your children, there is good news. While your kids might currently be on the wrong path, there is a great deal you can do to turn things around, even if your ex won't play fair. Ways to do just that will be presented in each of the following chapters in this book.
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All of the proceeds from the sale of this book are being donated to the non-profit International Center for Peaceful Shared Custody.
Tags: resolving custody disputes, social workers, Tobias Dejardins
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Introduction
To celebrate Black History Month, we asked African American social workers to talk to us about their career.
Ivan L. Page, PhD, MSW
Professor and Administrator
Clayton State University and Spelman College
Atlanta, Georgia
 Dr. Page Q. Dr. Page, where did you earn your social work degree (s), where do you work and what is your area of expertise?
I am an Adjunct Professor at Clayton State University and Program Administrator at Spelman College. I received my Master of Social Work from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ and my PhD from Clark Atlanta University, Atlanta, GA. My areas of expertise are the family structure as a growing social phenomenon and the challenges facing our adolescents in relation to gang membership.
Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?
I believe that social work is a way of life. It's a roadway for trying to create a healthy and functional society. The existence of committed people (social workers) to help others is the key to making this world a better place. Being a social worker allows me to be a part of a "road way" helping to make our world a better place.
Q. If you were able to make one lasting impact on the world, what would it be and what would be my strategy for achieving it?
The breakdown of the family structure is by far the most pressing problem we face in our society. Regardless of your race or ethnicity the family structure is critical to one's development. Sociologist, Charles Cooley suggests that it is within the family structure we learn our values, morals and standards for social behavior. The family, the first social group we become members of, must overall be re-claimed and re-energized as a functioning social unit in our society.
We begin this re-energizing and re-claiming process by: 1) adequately funding family life and counseling centers; 2) working to eliminate out of wedlock births; 3) parents and school teachers partnering in developing our youth both intellectually and socially. We need to get back to grass roots social work in the community.
I would love to be a part of developing a nation- wide program aimed at strengthening the family unit—creating better relationships between husband and wife, son and mother, father and daughter and extended family members. Being a part of developing a model that could be adapted by each community in America would be the greatest gift I could give.
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To find a social worker in your area, please click here.
Tags: African American social workers, Black History Month, Ivan Page, social workers
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Black History Month Celebration |
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Introduction
To honor Black History Month we asked African American social workers to tell us why they chose the social work profession and to describe the unique challenges facing our African American community.
Jessica S. Sawyer, MSW, LCSW, QCSW
North Carolina NASW Member
Rockingham, North Carolina
 Ms. Sawyer Q. Where did you earn your social work degree(s), what is your area of expertise, and where are you currently employed?
In 2004, I graduated from Clark-Atlanta University (CAU); Whitney M. Young, Jr. School of Social Work, located in Atlanta, GA. The degree obtained from CAU is a Master of Social Work Degree (MSW), with a Health/Mental Health Specialization.
Currently, I am a full-time Licensed Clinical Social Worker in an Integrative Care Setting, at a Primary Care Facility (i.e., a "Community Health Center"), in which, I provide "Integrative Co-Location Specialty Services" to the patients of the facility. The term "Co-Location Specialty Services" means that I provide traditional mental health services within the primary care/medical setting to patients that colleague Medical Provider(s) refer for services inclusive of mental health, substance abuse, and/or developmentally disabilities. To accomplish the prior, I provide screening, triage, referral, and crisis services for those with such needs. I also provide psychotherapy to the patients with mild to moderate mental health illnesses. Patients whom are chronic and require comprehensive care are referred to relevant outer agencies. Then too, I am a part-time Emergency Crisis Services Counselor for two rural community hospital emergency rooms, where I serve psychiatric patients and those in need of detoxification from alcohol and/or drugs.
My area of expertise in mental health is psychoses/major mental illnesses, interpersonal relationships, behavioral problems, advocacy, information and referral, crisis intervention, and psychoeducation to primarily adults.
Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?
I always dreamed of being a school teacher, because I respected the way the educators in grade school assisted to make me a better person. Therefore, I wanted to strive to help others. Thus, my freshman year in undergraduate school, I chose the Elementary Education track. After my freshman year, I had a summer job in clerical work, at a local social service agency and while there I was introduced to the Human Services Field. I learned that the helping profession extended outside of the classroom. Upon my return to undergraduate school, my sophomore year, I readily changed my major to Sociology/Social Welfare. Thus, I firmly encourage upcoming students and current colleagues, not to limit experiences, but to expose themselves to various personal, social, and educational settings to find and/or enhance their passions.
Q. If you were able to make one lasting impact on the world, what would it be and what would be your strategy for achieving it?
I would like for my community, colleagues/peers, and consumers to acknowledge that I provided compassionate and comprehensive social work services. Therefore, I continually strive to take on new challenges and strive to meet my own personal and professional goals. I believe that if I keep focus on the objectives and opportunities set before me, then I have left a lasting impact on the world. If I do the priors, then I am "a genuine social worker".
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To find a social worker in your area, please click here.
Tags: African American social workers, Black History Month, Jessica Sawyer, social workers
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Black History Month Celebration |
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Introduction
To celebrate Black History Month, we asked African American social workers to talk to us about their career.
L. Aaron Smith, MSW
Mental Health Clinician
Youth UpRising
Oakland, California
 Mr. Smith Q. Mr. Smith, where did you earn your social work degree, what is your area of expertise and where are you employed?
I am L. Aaron Smith and I am a Master of Social Work having earned my degree from California State University East Bay in 2008. I currently hold the position of Mental Health Clinician at Youth UpRising, a youth leadership development center located in Oakland, CA. My area of expertise is working with youth and in particular, transition aged youth (13 to 24 -years-old).
Also, I have extensive experience serving traditionally underserved populations in the Hunters Point Bayview District in San Francisco and in North Richmond, CA. In these positions I have served youth in crisis, conducted psychiatric evaluations for youth under age 18 and facilitated a youth group for young ladies teaching both social and daily living skills.
Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?
I have been influenced by my mother, Dr. Joy L Johnson, who is a private practice social worker with more than 25 years experience in serving couples and adults. Social work has become my profession through a natural process of being a confidant and advice lender during my early teenage years and progressed into a fascination with human behavior and impacts of large, systemic social dynamics on micro, macro, and mezzo levels. This passion has driven me to progress throughout my educational career and has led me to serving a population dear to my heart, the youth of Oakland, CA where I was born and raised.
Q. If you were able to make one lasting impact on the world, what would it be and what would be your strategy for achieving it?
If I were to make a lasting impact on the world (larger than the ones already accomplished supporting different lives and situations throughout my burgeoning career!) I would assist in organizing a strategic redistribution of wealth to those who currently live on less than $2.00 a day.
The unnecessary suffering and struggles of many could be addressed by a strategic intervention aimed towards the unhealthiest example of hoarding I've ever encountered, namely the richest one percent of the world, who reportedly control over 56 percent of the world's resources. I believe this intervention would address a host of residual, societal dilemmas that drastically affect the quality of life for most of the people of the world. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology, which has contributed to my perspective about systemic influences of the masses of the world and I'd like to be part of the efforts to achieve a more balanced and equitable world.
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To find a social worker in your area, please click here.
Tags: African American social workers, Black History Month, L. Aaron Smith, social workers
Posted in
Black History Month Celebration |
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Introduction
To celebrate Black History Month, we asked African American social workers to talk to us about their career.
Joy L. Johnson, PhD, LCSW
Psychotherapist and Private Practitioner
Oakland, California
 Dr. Johnson Q. Dr. Johnson, were did you earn your social work degree, what is your area of expertise and where are you working?
I earned the Masters In Social Work from California State University, San Francisco. I am self employed as a Psychotherapist in Private Practice in Oakland, California.
My areas of expertise include services to individuals and couples with a focus on mood disorders, spiritual crisis, stress management, trauma, wealth issues, clergy issues, domestic violence, substance abuse assessments, discrimination, ethnic/ cultural identification issues, expert witness, along with intern supervision and training.
Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?
I choose social work as my profession because of my family origins. My father, a Bishop in the Church of God In Christ, and my mother, a homemaker, were committed to the welfare of children. In my years of growing up, they fostered 34 children, many of whom we still have contact. The combination of emotional and spiritual development demonstrated by my parents was appealing to me and lead to my work in social work. My Doctorate degree is in Religion. I am also happy to note that my son, L. Aaron Smith, MSW, followed me into the profession.
Q. If you were able to make one lasting impact on the world, what would it be and what would be your strategy for achieving it?
The lasting impression I would like to make is to remain a person of faith and humility while assisting others in meeting their goals. My strategy is to keep working on the growing edge of emotional and spiritual development and to trust God that it is all well.
To learn more about Dr. Johnson, please click here.
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To find a social worker in your area, please click here.
Tags: African American social workers, Black History Month, Joy L. Johnson, social workers
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Introduction
To celebrate Black History Month, we asked African American social workers to talk to us about their career.
Y. Mimi Ryans, MSW, LGSW, MBA
Owner, Lighthouse Advocacy and Consulting, LLC
Baltimore, Maryland
Q. Ms. Ryans, where did you earn your social work degree, where do you work, and what is your area of expertise?
I earned my MSW at Howard University and my area of expertise is child welfare mental health. In addition, I earned an MBA from Christian Brothers University in Memphis. TN.
I am the owner of Lighthouse Advocacy and Consulting, LLC, an organization that advocates for children within the child welfare system in Maryland, Washington, DC, and throughout the country. I created this agency to provide advocacy, training and consultation to those that work more directly with children in the child welfare systems at a state and local level and for those that are interested in addressing these populations using the established "best practices".
Prior to this, I was the Program Director for Boys Hope Girls Hope of Baltimore; an international scholarship-based residential program that supports scholars academically, emotionally, and socially through college graduation. In addition, I have been a Project Manager for Visual Fire, a website development company in Miami, Florida. Also I have served as the Program Director of WINGS, a group home for adolescent girls within the child welfare system, in Florida City, Florida.
Lastly, I have provided software training services throughout the United States to various orthodontic practices including the orthodontist and their staff.
Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?
After spending about 15 years in the business world, I pursued my passion of Social Work as a result of having personal experience with family members placed in foster care and the ultimate murder of one of my nephews.
Q. If you were able to make one lasting impact on the world, what would it be and what would be your strategy for achieving it?
I would like to change the child welfare policies in this country. While I know there are so many areas that need to be addressed, there is a serious lag in the mental health services received and the competence of those providing the services. I believe that children in the Child Welfare system are lacking good, evidence-based mental health services and as a result are contributing to the highest population of those incarcerated and homeless in this country.
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To find a social worker in your area, please click here.
Tags: African American social workers, Black History Month, social workers, Y. Mimi Ryans
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Introduction
We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.
Donald Chavez y Gilbert, MSW, LISW
School Social Worker
Belen, New Mexico
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| Mr. Chavez y Gilbert |
Q. What is your area of expertise and where are you currently working?
My area of expertise over the past thirty-four years has simply depended on the particular focus of my work. Undergraduate social work focused on the women's movement and ERA. In graduate school I worked for migrant farm worker champion Cesar Chavez, followed by protective services to children and adults for Hispanic and Indian populations in northern New Mexico, interrupted by a stint on the faculty of the College of Santa Fe School of Social Work.
On my own time serving on various boards and commissions my main focus was during the era of the father's movement. I was the president of the National Congress for Men, Washington DC and founding president of Dads Against Discrimination (New Mexico) which moved the state legislature to make New Mexico the second state to establish a presumption of joint custody for children of divorce. Most recently my focal point has been school social work and behavior therapy to rural populations in central New Mexico.
Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?
I come from a long line of rescuers and have always experienced a compelling propensity to be a helper of people less fortunate than myself. They taught me all about the origins of social work in the Elizabethan Poor Laws of jolly old England while enrolled at the University Of Michigan School Of Social Work just as they taught my fellow social workers. However, having lived and studied a considerable amount of history since then, it is clear to me that the first social workers date back even further; back to my ancestors of the Knights of the middle Ages in Spain.
In the Middle Ages knighthood was a very high station in society, and required swearing an allegiance, and vows of ethics. By his vows, the knight was required to swear to advocate justice and the protection of women, the innocent, elderly and the weak. He was in modern day lingo, a "change agent." The noble knight was a protector of the common people guided by a code of conduct and etiquette; an interesting parallel to the modern day social worker. As part of the knighthood ceremony, the knight was required to adopt an identifying coat of arms insignia, in ranching culture later evolving into the "brand." He then rode to all villages in the kingdom, and publicly recited his vows of knighthood so that all would witness his devotion to the King and his people. This part of the ceremony was to enable all in the Kingdom to recognize the knight, and if the knight faltered in his duties, he endured public shame and dishonor. A knight's honor was a virtue for which many knights defended to the death.
It should be noted also that the first cowboys/vaqueros and the whole American Western Ranching culture also evolved from the valiant Knights of the Middle Ages, a second interesting parallel to the culture we work with here in rural New Mexico. As a contemporary social worker and sheep rancher myself, it is clear now that these penchants to do social good have had at least a thousand years to work into our DNA. I must say in closing, that my DNA misses the romantic old fashioned version of making things better.
Q. What are the challenges to serving our growing Hispanic population?
Helping people learn to help themselves. Aside from the obvious battles against common foes such as poverty, unemployment, abuse of the innocent and defenseless, my biggest challenge has been to help the community of Hispanics to organize a healthy collective self concept.
Restoring the pride and nobility of our culture, language and family traditions is a monumental task. This goes beyond serving individuals and families one at a time to educating whole communities. I have approached this task via a regular Op Ed column in our local news paper to tying Hispanic history, pride, and tradition in guest appearances on National Geographic.com, the History Channel, and National Public Radio.
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To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.
Tags: Donald Chavez, Donald Chavez y Gilbert, Hispanic, Hispanic heritage month, profile, social worker, social workers, spanish
Posted in
About Social Workers |
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Introduction
Dr. Geri Adler is Assistant Professor in the Graduate College of Social Work at the University of Houston. She has over twenty years of clinical experience working with individuals with Alzheimer's disease and their families. A Hartford Geriatric Social Work Scholar, Dr. Adler's funded research focuses on driving and dementia. She has multiple publications in this area including recent manuscripts in Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice, Traffic Injury & Prevention, The Gerontologist and Health and Social Work.
Q. Why is driving and dementia a concern?
Over five million Americans are estimated to have Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementias and 30% to 50% of persons with dementia continue to drive. Although some individuals with mild dementia can drive safely, for almost all, driving will become impossible at some point as the disease progresses.
Research has found that drivers with dementia have a higher crash rate, become lost in familiar areas, and make more frequent errors in performance than other older drivers. In addition, because of poor judgment, lack of insight and a loss of reasoning ability some drivers with dementia may not even realize they having any problems. Therefore, individuals with dementia continue to drive when they are no longer able.
Being unable to drive is a serious loss of independence and mobility. It is not unusual for drivers with dementia to become upset, angry and even depressed when driving concerns are raised.
The sheer numbers of persons with dementia who continue to drive, the seriousness of the issue, and its effect on mobility, underscores the importance of addressing driving and dementia.
Q. What are some warning signs of driving problems?
It can be difficult to determine when a driver with dementia is no longer safe to drive. However, there are several warning signs or red flags that may indicate driving skills are declining and need to be evaluated.
Warning signs to watch for include:
- becoming lost in familiar areas,
- incorrect signaling,
- improper speed – driving too slow or too fast for conditions,
- driving the wrong direction on roadways,
- decreased understanding of traffic signs,
- confusing the break and gas pedals,
- reliance on a co-pilot,
- making poor or slow decisions while behind-the-wheel,
- moving violations, tickets or police warnings, and
- crashes or near misses.
Another indicator of problematic driving occurs when family members refuse to ride with the driver or do not allow others, such as grandchildren, to ride with driver.
Q. What are some ways to assess driving fitness and resources for driving decisions?
It is important to discuss driving concerns with a physician and to also have the individual with dementia's driving evaluated. Many physicians are comfortable beginning the discussion about driving reduction and cessation and to start the driving assessment process. The physician may ask the driver and family questions about the frequency, distance, circumstances of travel, familiarity with roadways used, use of a co-pilot, and any recent crashes and episodes of getting lost. Family may also be asked if they have any concerns about their relative's driving.
If there is any question about the individual's ability to drive safety, he or she will benefit further from a formalized evaluation. Testing can be conducted by a certified driver rehabilitation specialist (CDRS), a professional trained in driver education and training, or the State Department of Public Safety. An assessment may include a knowledge test as well as a behind-the-wheel evaluation. There is usually a fee for an assessment completed by a CDRS. Unfortunately, Medicare and private insurance are unlikely to reimburse for this service.
If the evaluation shows that the individual with dementia is able to continue to drive safely, his or her performance must continue to be revisited. Because many dementias are progressive, ongoing management and discussions about driving are needed. Driving modifications may also be suggested such as limit the individual's driving to off-peak or daylight hours, in familiar areas or in less complex driving environments.
If serious driving errors are apparent, the driver will be advised to stop driving. Discussions about "retirement" from driving must be handled sensitively. In order to be successful, family need to be supportive and participate in creating a workable transportation plan for their relative.
If a driver is reluctant to quit driving, different approaches can be considered to facilitate voluntary cessation. First, it is important to explore with the driver, his or her reasons for resistance. A conversation with a person whom the driver respects, such as a clergy or a police officer, may be able to persuade the driver to quit. Insurance ramifications are also important to consider. For some drivers, individual or group support can diminish the loss and provide opportunities to discuss concerns. For others, a prescription stating that the individual should no longer drive can add leverage.
If all fails authoritarian approaches are needed. In those situations, family members may need to disable the vehicle, move it to another location, hide or replace the keys, or even the sell the vehicle.
When an individual can no longer driver, resources for alternative transportation must be identified. Often friends and relatives can provide necessary transportation or can help to locate other options. Conversations with a social worker to identify community supports can be helpful, too. Finally, the person's driver's license should be replaced with an identification card.
Online Resources:
Several helpful booklets and online resources, designed to help family, friends and caregivers of older drivers with driving discussions and decisions include:
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Related Articles:
Tags: Alzheimer's disease, dementia, Dr. Geri Adler, driving, driving and dementia, driving problems, Geri Adler, social work, social workers, social workers and alzheimer's disease, Three Questions About Driving With Dementia
Posted in
Alzheimers Disease/Dementia, Seniors And Aging, Tip Sheets |
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