Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi Abbey Healthcare is a former director in the United Kingdom. He is well known and represented as Prabhi Sodhi, Praby Sodhi, and Prabhy Sodhi. Prabhi Sodhi’s real name is Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi. Being a dementia care specialist and helping old aged people by offering top-class care home services in the United Kingdom has made him an upraising personality.
Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi is a support system who leads to offer fulfilling life support to people suffering from dementia. Through his experience and life journey, he shares tips with the patients for bathing and dressing. The complexities linked to dementia can be such that sooner or later, a patient may require help with bathing. Thus, that person may not be in a position to take care of himself or herself. When the age of the person is such that bathing or dressing in the presence of someone is not easy, the situation can be more complex. Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi has observed that even such challenges can be resolved when simplified. In order to do so, thorough guidance should be given to a patient. For caregivers, certain tips are recommended in this regard. They can help ease the situation for them as well as patients.
Challenges Associated with Bathing and Grooming
For every person, taking a bath is a highly personal activity. As is well-known, it requires cleaning the entire body. When a person has grown, letting someone else clean the body may be a matter of dignity. In addition, it may disrupt the comfort of that person.
Given that intellectual abilities can decline with the onset of dementia, simple activities like bathing, dressing, and grooming may become challenging.
In the words of Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi, when a patient is very old, doing such things all by himself/herself may further be difficult. Due to memory loss, this difficulty can arise. The same can be the case with a patient whose condition has progressed regardless of age.
Maintaining Hygiene during Dementia
Medical experts believe that maintaining hygiene is a good practice. For every person, it should hold relevance. When an individual has been diagnosed with dementia, this practice will be important for him/her as well.
During this condition, the body can go through multiple changes. From within, its condition may begin to worsen over time. This may have certain effects on a patient’s immunity as well. The physical condition of the body can add to these effects. But to prevent the same, Prabhi Sodhi opines that it will be useful to properly take a bath.
Maintaining good hygiene levels is favorable in 2 ways, supports Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi. It can ensure that problems like infections do not take place to further damage immunity. Secondly, bathing and grooming can have positive mental effects.
Making Bathing Easier for Patients
An activity as simple as bathing can be made difficult by dementia. Prabhi Sodhi’s suggestion is to break it into several small steps. The guidance should be thoroughly provided so that the difficulties associated with it can be removed.
- Gather All the Essentials
The patient should be guided to collect all the things crucial for taking a bath. Rather than directly providing all these things, caregivers can help them in collecting the same.
- Provide Directions to the Person
Without the direct or complete presence of the caregiver, steps regarding bathing can be shared. As Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi says, in case partially locking the door and not fully seeing the person seems suitable, this should be implemented.
When the full presence of a caregiver is needed, the private parts of the patient can be covered. This will help in ensuring that he/she does not feel fully exposed or uncomfortable.
- Guidance for Drying
After the patient has cleaned himself/herself, directions to pat dry should be shared. You may enact how this has to be done so that the body is properly dried. Otherwise, irritation or infections may occur when clothes are put on wet parts.
In addition to the above, it should be remembered that various ways to take a bath are available. Sponge bath, shower, bathing in a tub, etc., are some of these. While preferring one, the safety and comfort of the patient should not be ignored.
7 Practical Tips for Dressing and Grooming
Just like bathing, other related activities like dressing can also be made simpler. From deciding the clothes to wear to using products for an appealing appearance, a series of steps can be prepared. When practiced every day, Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi believes that the major complexities relating to these can be altered.
- Letting the person choose what to wear without providing any options can be confusing. This should be avoided.
- Rather, options should be placed in front of him/her. Undergarments should be placed first. Then bottoms and topwear can be provided.
- Adding too many options may also confuse the person. Hence, only limited choices are to be given.
- Sodhi advises that comfortable clothes, preferably loose ones, should be considered.
- The choice of socks and shoes has to be given after this. Anything tight, uncomfortable, or pain-inducing should not be preferred.
- For grooming, daily-use products are recommended. How they have to be applied must be shared through directions so that no harm is inflicted.
- In the case of female dementia patients, makeup products can be provided. They need to be comfortable. Also, anything in relation to eye makeup is to be ignored. Such products may cause damage while being applied.
An Essential Tip for Caregivers
From bathing to grooming, a lot of steps are involved. Completing all of them can be time-taking. Moreover, planning proper guidance to carry out every step can require investing not only time but effort as well.
Based on the advice of dementia experts like Prabhdyal Singh Sodhi Abbey Healthcare is a former director, caregivers need to remain calm and careful. Any step that can put the patient at unease should be carefully planned. This will help the patient to smoothly execute the activities. Hence, caregivers will not have to witness unlikely situations.
In relation to the above, when these activities are regularly/timely done, both patients and their close ones may not undergo complex challenges every day.
Taking Everything into Account
When a dementia patient has to be cared for, bathing and dressing cannot be avoided. They are essential for both physical hygiene and mental relaxation. Through simple tips, caring can become better and more effective as well. While the dignity and comfort of the patient will be maintained, proper care will also be observed.
