EP 164 :: Maintaining Dignity in People Living with Dementia :: Dr. Steven Sabat :: Part 2

As Dr. Steven Sabat says, “Look at those with dementia as people, rather than patients – just because they have certain difficulties doesn't mean they cease to be a person.” Amen! In part two of our interview, we continue our talk about the gross underestimation of the capacity of people with dementia. These are people with significant remaining social and cognitive strengths that can be engaged by care partners to the advantage of all. To paraphrase Maya Angelou: people might forget what you said and what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. This includes those with dementia.

Steven R. Sabat has been at Georgetown University since earning his doctorate at the City University of New York, where he specialized in Neuropsychology. The main focus of his research has been the intact cognitive and social abilities (including aspects of selfhood) of people with Alzheimer’s disease in the moderate to severe stages of the disease, the subjective experience of having the disease, and the ways in which communication between those diagnosed and their caregivers may be enhanced. In addition, his interests include the epistemological basis of our understanding of the effects of brain injury on human beings. He has explored all of these issues in numerous scientific journal articles, in The Experience of Alzheimer’s Disease: Life Through a Tangled Veil (Blackwell, 2001), and in his co-edited book, Dementia: Mind, Meaning, and the Person (Oxford University Press, 2006).

Follow Dr. Sabat on LinkedIn.

Don't forget to subscribe, download, and review to share your thoughts about the show!