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My grandmother (85) has pretty severe dementia. Recently we got her into a care facility which we thought would be a big help for us. She is a very sweet and caring person, especially to her family and loved ones. But when she is in a environment that she is not used to, she gets nervous and angry. This is something she obviously can't help. She has been at the new center for less than a week (we knew the first week would be the hardest) and we just got word that she has been sent to a psych ward. This has made me extremely angry. I feel as though if she was sent to a dementia care facility, they should know how to deal with her when she acts out. Putting her in a psych ward would only make things worse and more confusing for her. She doesn't weigh more than 100 pounds, she's not going to be able to hurt anyone! Does anyone have any advice on this topic, or even similar experiences. If you knew my grandmother, you would know that there is no reason what so ever that it should have escalated like this.

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Agree with the above. Grandma needs the proper combination of psych meds to improve her quality of life. Very often, the only place that the proper monitoring for this sort of medication management can be done is in a specialty psychiatric facility.

Unfortunately, this is often necessary when placement in a facility is left until the patient is not able easily to adjust to a new living environment. I'm not in anyway trying to say that you delayed too long; many times, there are extenuating circumstances. But we often point out to posters that earlier placement is better, and this is one of the reasons.
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I don't know your grandma, but I've known other people with dementia and I know that many of them have improved quality of life on an appropriate drug combination. This can be best evaluated in some cases in a psych ward, where all side effects can be closely monitored. This is not a punishment but an opportunity to help her be sweet caring self more consistently.
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Normally the patients don't become assaultive. When they do, they go for a psychiatric evaluation. Don't be angry, be relieved she is finally getting the help she needs. Things will get better.
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