Checklist and Daily Care Plan for Dementia

Dementia care is made easier with this comprehensive checklist for a daily routine. This dementia care checklist includes considerations, activities, an example daily care plan, and questions to assess whether your plan is working. 

Caring for someone with dementia involves not only keeping track of the daily routine for a care recipient, but also seeing the daily routine from their perspective. A daily care plan can keep you both organized to help them maintain comfort and health.

Use it to define the small tasks that add up throughout each day to transform them from an overwhelming to-do list, to a healthy routine for both you and the person you care for.

Considerations for Daily Care

One of the leading educators on dementia and dementia care, Teepa Snow provides helpful tips for assessing people’s personalities and experiences to inform how to care for dementia patients. In this video, she describes five steps to get familiar with both yourself and the person with dementia, to understand how you can work well together.

At The Kensington Falls Church, our certified Positive Approach to Care trainer follows this methodology closely and helps others learn the techniques and this approach to memory care.

The following steps can be considered from your perspective and from the person’s perspective of the person who has dementia:

• Step 1: Assess what your top priorities are. What do you need to thrive?
• Step 2: Remember the last time you felt really good. Why did you feel so good?
• Step 3: Remember a time you were miserable. What helped you cope with it?
• Step 4: Does your day have balance? Are you supporting your brain, body, and spirit?
• Step 5: How do you feel now? If you feel good, how do you continue it? If you don’t feel good, what can you change to feel better?

After assessing the current state of the care recipient and yourself, consider other personal preferences and capabilities for you both, including physical and mental ability, interests, likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses, morning person or night owl, what was normal for the care recipient before dementia, and how welcomed spontaneity is.

Activities to Consider

After gaining an understanding of both you and the care recipient’s current condition, think through what activities should be included in each day.

The following types of activities could be a helpful starting point when you’re determining how to build daily care plans:

• What meals to eat and when
• How to prepare meals
• When medication needs to be taken
• Hygiene routines, including bathing, brushing teeth, etc.
• Physical exercises, such as stretching, walking, and occupational therapy
• Mental exercises, such as puzzles, reading, and education
• Chores including cleaning, dishes, laundry, etc.
• Sorting responsibilities, such who will do what throughout the day
• When rest is needed and how much
• Creative activities, such as coloring, listening to music, and making crafts
• Joyful activities, such as hobbies, spiritual work, and exploring interests
• Socializing through planned visits with family and friends
• Spontaneous activity, such as calls from family, visits with neighbors, etc.

Example of a Daily Care Plan

This example of a daily care plan breaks down activities based on time of day and centers its transitions around meal times.

Morning

1. Wake up and do morning hygiene routine, including using the bathroom, washing up, and brushing teeth.
2. Make and eat breakfast. Clean up after breakfast.
3. Have a conversation over coffee or tea, check in for the day, discuss the news, etc.
4. Do a pleasant activity, such as a hobby, craft, or other creative task.
5. Take a break with some quiet time.

Afternoon

1. Make and eat lunch. Clean up after lunch.
2. Visit with a friend.
3. Get physical activity such as taking a walk, gardening, or stretching outside.
4. Take another break or a nap.

Evening

1. Make and eat dinner. Clean up after dinner.
2. Look through old photos and reminisce while eating dessert.
3. Have down time with entertainment. Watch TV, a movie, or listen to music and play a game or do a puzzle.
4. Do a nightly hygiene routine, including brushing teeth, taking a bath, and changing into pajamas to wind down.
5. Read a favorite book before bed.

Assess and Adjust Daily Care Plans

After trying your own daily care plan, take time to assess what worked throughout the day and what didn’t.

It may help to ask yourself the following questions:

• Was the care recipient irritable, bored, restless, or anxious?
• Was it during a specific time of day or specific activity?
• What can you do to plan something different or adjust your timing to avoid this?
• Did the overall day feel too busy or too slow?
• What went really well during the day and why?
• Did you or your care recipient feel overwhelmed at any point in the day?
• Was there enough time throughout the day to rest?
• Was there free time for spontaneous activity?
• Did spontaneous activity go well or did it cause discomfort or confusion?

Support for Those Dealing with Dementia

The Kensington Falls Church offers state-of-the-art dementia therapies on-site. Not only are daily care needs met, but those with dementia are also in regularly scheduled, customized routines and therapy in a home-like environment. We take into account the physical, cognitive, and spiritual aspects of each individual’s health.

If your loved one has dementia and is experiencing memory loss, The Kensington Falls Church is here to help make a positive difference. Reach out to us today to learn how we can be your partners in memory care.

Recommended Additional Reading:

Caring for Someone with Dementia: Things to Know

Normal Caregiver Emotions and When to Ask for Help

Communication Strategies for Dementia