Dementia Beyond Drugs: Changing the Culture of Care

by G. Allen Power, MD

In a moving wake-up call to geriatrics professionals and caregivers, G. Allen Powers delivers a blueprint for the effective care of aging dementia patients in his book Dementia Beyond Drugs: Changing the Culture of Care. He calls for a sea change in the approach to dementia care, replacing the use of drugs with compassion, caring, and genuine efforts to treat patients with dignity and respect.

Through case studies and personal accounts, Powers discards the pervasive model of dementia care utilizing antipsychotic medications that alter patients’ behavior and attempt to promote compliance. He encourages practitioners to embrace a cultural change in dementia care that focuses on the patient as an individual. He suggests that in many cases where communication and interaction can identify a source of confusion or agitation, drugs become unnecessary.

Powers’ insider’s view of the need for sweeping changes in institutional care captivates readers through his vivid descriptions of experiential encounters and practical, humane solutions. Thought-provoking anecdotes prompt readers to evaluate situations and draw parallels to similar patient concerns.

To effect the changes Powers proposes requires attitudinal modifications aimed at empowering caregivers to seek solutions that improve dementia patients’ quality of life and ability to navigate their environments without medication whenever possible. And Powers makes a powerful case for practitioners to ascertain that the possibility exists for the great majority of dementia patients.