Joyce Simard

Caring.com Expert

About

A social worker and geriatric consultant, Joyce Simard specializes in dementia care. Based in Land O' Lakes, Florida, and Prague in the Czech Republic, she is an adjunct associate professor at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Western Sydney.

During her 30 years in the healthcare industry, Simard has developed quality-of-life programs for people in all stages of dementia, including a memory-enhancement program for those with mild memory loss, a program called the Club for nursing home residents in the moderate stage of dementia, and Namaste Care for people with advanced dementia. Known as "Grandma Joyce" to her seven grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and other kids all over the U.S. and the Czech Republic, Simard gives presentations in elementary schools that help children understand aging and memory loss -- and how to be helpers for people going through those issues. She has written about her educational work in her book The Magic Tape Recorder.

Why I Care "I believe we are here for a reason, and mine centers on the care of people with dementia. I love being able to use my creativity to help them live well despite the disease. My daily prayer includes the line, 'Allow my soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love.'"

Links

Recently Published on Caring.com

  1. Monday January 30, 2012

    1. My husband and I look after my 89 year old father with Alzheimer's and care is become more and more demanding. How do I handle this?

      Answer - To begin with, bless you for trying your best to care for your father. What is happening is not unusual; your husband feels a bit neglected. Can you take your father to a day program so you have time without him? About getting someone to care for your father while you and your husband go on a date night...

  2. Tuesday November 08, 2011

    1. What is stage 4 dementia and how long does it last?

      Answer - According to the Alzheimer’s Association stage 4 is the following:

  3. Friday October 21, 2011

    1. How do you determine which stage of dementia a person is in when their symptoms overlap stages?

      Answer - Dementia symptoms are as individual as each person who has the disease. For instance, a person with dementia usually can walk until they reach the moderate stage of the disease and then I meet someone who can still walk without assistance and they cannot speak more than a few words and need extensive assistance with eating...

  4. Sunday September 11, 2011

    1. What is dementia and what causes it?

      Answer - Dementia is a group of symptoms that include short term memory loss, changes in personality, and problems with word finding, poor judgment and problem solving. Dementia is not a diagnosis but may be part of a disease like Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease...

  5. Thursday August 11, 2011

    1. Would my mom with Alzheimer's benefit from moving to a smaller facility?

      Answer - Your mother needs to be in a facility that has a good activity program designed for people with dementia as they rarely if ever self initiate activities. The facility must be aware of this and offer appropriate “meaningful activities” for her. Sitting in her room is isolating and can lead to deprespression while doing nothing to keep her brain active...

    2. How can I get my mother to change her underwear when it gets wet?

      Answer - One of the "symptoms" of Alzheimer's disease (I prefer not to use a negative term like difficult) is incontinence. She is not going to remember you telling her to change when she is wet so don't even bother to remind her. I wish one answer would be THE ANSWER but of course we don't have one answer just a variety of suggestions...

  6. Monday August 01, 2011

    1. Can coconut oil can really help with the affects of Alzheimer's?

      Answer - Research is not well done and leaves more questions than answers. I don't think it is harmful but probably not beneficial either. Wouldn't it be lovely to have such an easy cure or treatment?

  7. Monday July 18, 2011

    1. What is the time frame for Alzheimer's disease to follow a dementia diagnosis?

      Answer - The progression of Alzheimer’s disease is as individual as the person who has it. I usually talk about the progression of dementia in three stages. During the first stage recent memory, what just happened or was said has disappeared. In this stage, the person can be reminded, gently of course, ababout what they have forgotten...

    2. Should I put my mother with Alzheimer's on a sleeping schedule?

      Answer - If you can get your mother on a sleeping schedule, life will be easier for her and you. Routine (ritual) is very important to most people who have dementia as it is comfortable and familiar. Try to have a bed time and ritual for her for instance, say the same thing every night. "Mom, it's getting late and I think we should go to bed now"...

  8. Tuesday July 05, 2011

    1. How can my dad with dementia remember something that happened less than a week ago, but can't remember what I told him minutes ago?

      Answer - Dementia is a strange disease and what you described is not unusual. I think that having his license revoked was a pretty dramatic event. It's is usually more difficult for men to give up driving than it is for women...perhaps something to do with being the head of the family.

  9. Friday July 01, 2011

    1. What age group does is affected by Alzheiemr's disease?

      Answer - Age is the greatest risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD). At the current time, 1 in 8 over 65 has this disease. The most frightening fact is that as our life expectancy increases so does the risk factor with 50% over 85 impaired by the disea...

  10. Monday June 27, 2011

    1. What can I expect after an Alzheimer's patient refuses to eat or drink?

      Answer - When a person with Alzheimer's disease refuses to eat or drink and they are in the advanced stage of the disease when they also need all of their personal needs cared for by others, it is a natural stage where the body is getting ready to "transition"...

  11. Wednesday June 15, 2011

    1. How can I help my mother-in-law find the bathroom in the day time?

      Answer - Finding the bathroom when you have memory loss is not uncommon and as with many “interesting” situations that occur with people who have dementia, there is almost never one answer to solve a concern. Here are a few ideas I came up with:

  12. Thursday May 12, 2011

    1. How can I ease my mom with Alzheimer's and her neck discomfort?

      Answer - This question had me puzzled so I asked my husband who is a physician to help with the answer. He responded

  13. Thursday May 05, 2011

    1. Why is my Aunt forgetting how to use the toilet properly?

      Answer - Urination trouble with people who have dementia is not that unusual. Now to problem solve. If she happens to urinate in "inappropriate" places many times within a short period of time, she may have a urinary tract infection, so have her see her physician...

  14. Monday April 18, 2011

    1. How should you deal with night time hoarding?

      Answer - I must say this "nighttime hoarding" is a new one for me. So,I will do what I tell every care giver to do with "problems"they encounter..keep trying different options. I would think the major problem is with the "pull ups". Have you tried getting her to wear a "jump suit" with the zipper in the back so she cannot get the pull-ups pulled down at night...

  15. Friday April 15, 2011

    1. Where can I find someone who'll give me a break from caring for my mother with dementia?

      Answer - Your mother is fortunate to have you as a daughter. You did not say if she had been diagnosed with a dementing illness and if she is on one of the medications to help slow the progression of AD. Make an appointment with her physician but make sure you talk to him or her before the visit so they will know what is really happening...

  16. Sunday July 25, 2010

    1. Should Mom know her cancer is terminal?

      Answer - Telling your mother that she has a terminal illness will just cause her and you unhappy times. You are going to have to monitor her discomfort/pain. When she complains about pain make sure she has medication to help her. Then......just enjoy the time you have with her. Eat lot's of ice cream, laugh over old pictures and movies...

  17. Friday April 09, 2010

    1. How long will it take for her to die in her condition?

      Answer - When a person dies is sometimes not easy to determine until they are actively dying. Their is no way to predict exactly when someone will die. Your hospice nurse can usually tell when it will be a matter of hours. Rather than focus on her death, spend time celebrating her life. Talk to her even though she seems not to respond...

  18. Thursday December 17, 2009

    1. How can my mother, who has Alzheimer's, and my pet safely live together?

      Answer - Interesting question and one I have not heard asked before. So pets and Alzheimer's disease (AD), they are usually are a good fit as people with AD usually love babies and pets. Right now however she doesn't understand that feeding a dog people food is not the best thing for the dog. so, you might try to store all food in cabinets with child locks...

  19. Friday November 13, 2009

    1. Is Alzheimer's hereditary?

      Answer - There is no test for Alzheimer's disease unless the cause of their AD is caused by a "bad" gene and you know what the bad gene is. My best advice is to make sure that you keep your blood pressure under control, exercise to maintain a healthy weight, wear a helmet if you go bike riding and keep you mind active...

  20. Sunday November 08, 2009

    1. How do we control Dad's grunting and strange bathroom habits?

      Answer - You and your mother are going to need a lot of patience with these problems. He has a dementing illness that is incurable and is effecting his brain. His short term memory is severely effected. He is unable to remember what you are telling him about his bathroom habits...

  21. Saturday November 07, 2009

    1. How do I get my Alzheimer's mom to eat?

      Answer - You did not say what stage of her disease she is in. If she is in the early or moderate stage, have her evaluated for depression. Often people don't eat when they are depressed so you want to rule that out. Also their are medications to stimulate the appetite. Make sure you know what she wants to eat...

  22. Wednesday October 21, 2009

    1. Can we get Mom to accept adult day care?

      Answer - It sounds as if you are all doing your best to manage a difficult situation. Your mother is not making rational decisions because of her disease not because of anything you are doing. Adjusting to adult day care is difficult. Have you met with the staff at the day center and explained the problem...

    2. How do I best handle communication issues with my husband who has Alzheimer's?

      Answer - Speech problems are not that unusual especially if he had had a "mini stroke"; that is also not unusual for people with AD. Do make an appointment with a speech pathologist to see if they have any suggestions.