When to stop part-time work at a children's healthcare facility?

As long as he is safe around others, his Alzhemier's disease should not impact his "job". I would talk with his doctor about when and how to discuss his issues with his supervisor at the healthcare facility.

I live in California, that might make a difference in another state. As hubby's doctor said, once he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, if he gets into an automobile accident and injures someone, and they sue, his medical records can and usually are subpoenaed. Once they find out he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's you wouldn't have a leg to stand on, because he is diminished.

BarnabusB: HE, and not you, is the individual to convey his illness to his supervisor or whomever is in charge of the volunteerism. Of greater concern is his operating a motor vehicle with any stage of Alzheimer's, albeit early.

What does your husband say? How does he feel about discussing his diagnosis with the immediate staff?
Personally I think keeping him involved and active for as long as possible will do him more good than anything.
Art therapy is also good for people with dementia so it is possible that by doing this he may be helping himself in the long run.
Let me ask you a few questions...
What made you or made him suspect something and go for testing?
The reason why I ask is very often others notice a change sooner than immediate family. It is possible that the other volunteers and the teacher he assists noticed subtle and maybe not so subtle changes for a while.
I have often said that it is like one of those pictures that you see from a distance and it looks like any other picture but when you look at it closely you see that it is made up of hundreds of other pictures. Dementia is like that it is not until we put all the little things together, all the mistakes, the forgetting a word, making a wrong turn, forgetting a name and when you put it all together you see that there has been "something wrong" for a while, sometimes years.

If your husband is comfortable talking about what is going on ask him how he wants to handle it.

I find that kids are VERY understanding, more so than some adults. When little kids used to ask why my Husband was making noises, or why he was sad (his noises sounded sad) I would ask them if they had any friends in school that had Autism. They would say yes. I would then ask if they made noises or had a blanket or toy they kept, or if they did other things that other kids did not do. They would all say yes. I then said my Husband did the same thing. The noises were a way for him to comfort himself, to calm himself down because sometimes when he was out with me he would get nervous.
They all got it. They were happy with the answer, they just wanted to make sure he was not sad.
You have to know your husband and how the dementia will effect him and his personality. That will change as he declines.

Side note...
Next appointment should be with Elder Care Attorney make sure you are protected and he is as well if something should happen to you.
And if he is a Veteran contact your local Veterans Assistance Commission and find out what benefits he may qualify for.

Talk to the school counselor. Anyone working with childen is usually required to hsve a background check. As far as I know, ALZ is considered a disability covered by the ADA. I might also talk to an attorney about your liability should something untoward occur. Disclosure of a challenge ideally should come from the patient. Working with children may have a stabizing effect.d

BarnabusB, regarding the Art, if hubby has a huge passion for Art, his brain may still retain all the information for a longer time. Since he assists another teacher, wait until that other teacher notices some changes. Some changes may just be age related, something we all experience.

I would be more concerned about his driving and less about his teaching art. I would bet his art skills are still very much on point but his driving skills are not.

One of my first clues something was up with my husband was when he couldn’t remember how to turn off the headlights after driving my car that we’d had for 10 years. When he began having memory issues bad enough to see the doctor, one of the first things we were told was he needed to stop driving. He wasn’t driving much at that point & I let it slide a bit. Once he had the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, the doctor asked if he were still driving. He pointed out that because memory loss, the diagnosis and doctor recommendation to stop driving were in his medical record if he caused an accident & we were sued, that information would be brought out in court & our insurance may not cover us. Everything could be on the line. That was enough for me.

Have you ridden with your husband lately? That was an eye opener for me. It wasn’t that he seemed to be a danger, but he was laser focused on driving - no radio, no conversation, but he was driving so slowly, traffic backed up behind him. Clearly, he was losing those skills.

If he insists on driving (mine doesn’t now), our state offers a driving simulator to test driving skills & determine whether or not to renew licenses for elderly/cognitively impaired drivers, but this isn’t done automatically. I’m also told it’s about $300. If my husband insisted on driving, I’d insist he take the exam, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. There are other options available for transportation. There is just too much at risk and heaven forbid he injure someone or worse.

As to volunteering, whomever he works with has probably already noticed issues, but as long as he doesn’t behave inappropriately, art might be one thing he holds on to for some time. Yes, he should address his decline with them. It doesn’t need to be some in-depth discussion, but address it. When I mentioned it to my husband’s employees & others, they were already aware of it, but “didn’t want to bring it up”. They told me things he was doing that I had no idea about. Let him volunteer as long as he is able to, but find an alternative to him driving.

I believe it's best to work collaboratively with people who are in contact with your loved one with Alz. You could try speaking with the director at the facility and tell them what you know. They also can help alert you to when things seem to be changing.

Volunteers in a children's facility will be just as closely screened and observed, though. There should be a Co-Ordinator or Administrator responsible for managing their needs and records, it's only a question of finding out who.

He is a volunteer not an employee. Your kind of between a rock and a hard place. Is there someone who oversees this art time? I may mention to her/him that your husband is in the early stages. That he enjoys what he does and you would like him to continue to work with the children. But you feel they should be aware of his diagnosis. Children I think are very perceptive. They know when something is just not right. As long as any symptoms he may show don't bother or effect them, then I see no problem in him continuing.

The driving is another thing. To have a diagnosis of Dementia the signs have to be there and an MRI done. As said on this forum in the early stage MRIs don't always show Dementia. By the time they do, Dementia has pretty much progressed and noticeable. IMO, once a formal diagnosis is made, drivers license should be revoked and the Dr giving that diagnosis is mandated to inform DMV. My Uncle got lost, in a bordering state, trying to get home from a place he went to every week. A client was coming out of our driveway and pulled out in front of a car. Both had a Dementia and family thought they could drive. That client also ended up taking a wrong turn and ended up on a interstate. TG she pulled into a rest area and a nice couple saw she got home. The family still didn't think they should take her keys away.

Maybe talk to his neurologist and see what he/she says.

You don't convey anything to anybody. Your husband should tell his line manager, who should refer him to Occupational Health (or the equivalent department, usually found within HR).

Seeing as we're talking about a children's healthcare facility with at least enough forward vision to appreciate the importance and value of art to the children's wellbeing, it seems reasonable to assume that they will also encourage him to participate for as long as he is able and willing, and provide low-key support.

Looking ahead, where does your husband's interest in art come from? - see if you can find additional activities and perhaps groups so that he can continue to engage even once he isn't able to work safely and comfortably with children.

Disclose.   I'm not very familiar with labor laws, but that's what "popped into my mind", i.e., that a condition exists which could affect others, but hasn't been disclosed so precautions, if necessary, can be taken.

And kudos to your husband for helping others realize the benefits of art!

Quite honestly, if working with children I would disclose. I imagine there is really no time there are not others around, but when you work with children (I have volunteered as reading help for little ones) you go through a mill in disclosing and in even getting fingerprints done in my case. I think that you would say essentially just what you have said here, and you will do that WITH your husband present. If the two of you can do that it will be clear to them you are concerned with letting them know everything. I think I would also tell only one person, whomever is "in charge" and tell them this is private medical information you are sharing with them and not something they can share unless they must to ascertain their "rules". I would indeed be difficult to be shut out of this, but as you describe him I think he would not. If he is then consider teaching for elders. I still have all the art work my aunt did in her Nursing home, and the art of elders is as free in spirit as that of children. I always love best the work of the very young and the very old. There is something free in them where art is concerned that we clamp down on through living the "middle distance".
I sure wish him luck. The kids aren't going to notice any deficits at all. It is the adults we worry about, and have to worry about. I hope you will update us. This can only be your own decision. Talk it over with hubby and present a united front whatever your choice.

That it's at a healthcare facility might make your decision easy--since it is a healthcare environment.

I was senior staff in an accredited zoo. We had lots of volunteers.

From the volunteer end of things, it is very helpful to know what is going on instead of wondering why a volunteer does something, behaves a certain way, etc., and/or why the sudden change(s) that might eventually surface.

From the paid employee end of things, it is helpful but legally, there are issues.

Bias can enter into things, over which the employee or volunteer has no control.

On more than occasion, I remember being told by other staff: You know he/she has (fill in the blank). No...I didn't. It explained some things sometimes, other times it didn't make a difference at all.

I didn't like being surprised, but the same token, I understand why someone who wants to volunteer or get a paid position isn't going to say they have dissociative personality disorder, or early Alz, or Asberger's, or anything I else I learned someone had.

Either now or when you see the next change in his behavior, you might want to speak with either the director of volunteer services, if he's a volunteer, or if not (and I cringe to say this), HR. I believe it's better they understand why something may be happening, and of course, then they alter work if need be as the need arises.

What are your thoughts about talking this over with your husband before you approach someone at the facility?

I’m not sure what the correct or legal answer is for your question about his working in this capacity at the healthcare facility. I would worry that there might be some legal implications for not disclosing his condition. Possibly a question for a trusted lawyer?

I’ve seen several posts from people mentioning that their LO is still driving after a diagnosis of some sort of cognitive impairment. This might also be a good question for a lawyer?

I really feel for you having to make these big decisions. My family is going through it, too. It’s a whole lot of hard.