Find the friction, not the diagnosis
Write down what genuinely went wrong in the last fortnight. Usually it is a very short list: a missed appointment, a forgotten call, a bill left in a pile. Fix those specifically.
Broad support for everything communicates that everything is failing, which is both untrue and corrosive.
One system, kept boring
- A single wall calendar in the kitchen, written by them where possible.
- A hook by the door for keys, and nowhere else.
- A notebook by the phone for anything said on a call.
- Repeat prescriptions and bills on automatic where the provider allows it.
- Appointments confirmed by text as well as letter.
Prompts that leave the decision with them
'Dentist at 2pm today' is a prompt. 'Have you left for the dentist yet?' is management. The first is welcome, the second grates within a week.
You Care Reminders sends the first kind: short, on time, in your wording, with one button to say received if you want the reassurance.
Review it every few months
Needs change slowly and in both directions. A prompt that helped in spring may be unnecessary by autumn, and removing it matters as much as adding it.
The wider picture
1 in 10 to 1 in 6
people with mild cognitive impairment go on to develop dementia within a year, and many stay stable or improve.
Source: Alzheimer's Research UK