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DayBreak Adult Day and Respite Services Program (an example of adult day-care at its best.) I offer specific information about Day Break Adult Day and Respite Services Program as an example of adult day care at its best. I hope you will use this description as a measure of excellence when exploring the day care options in your community. Susan Walker, is the Director of DayBreak, a comprehensive adult day care program located in the Metro Denver area. She is the past president of the Colorado Respite Care Coalition, a frequent speaker at seminars and training programs, and is an advocate for continued care in the home. I was asked to do a question answer session on Incontinence Care with some of the late-stage caregivers who use this center. My visit was part of many programs that are run regularly for caregivers who’ve come to see this center as a source of information, training, and comradeship as well as a source of respite for the caregivers. This program offers an open dialogue with caregivers about the tools and procedures available to them, and the program works with participants and caregivers as incontinence needs increase. DayBreak operates under the auspices of Seniors’ Resource Center of Jefferson County, Colorado.Susan is an advocate for continued care in the home. She believes that many people who are incontinent and have behavioral management challenges can be cared for at the adult-day-center well into the disease process. She feels people are too often discharged from day programs and directed prematurely toward nursing home placement. In her observation of working with people who have Alzheimer’s Disease, most combative episodes are triggered either by misinterpreted events in the environment, such as unexpected noises, voices, movements of others, or by a professional caregiver who doesn't realize the impact of her/his behavior on the participant. Ignorance about how Alzheimer’s Disease affects reasoning and insight, and lack of adequate training of staff are the greatest obstacles to maintaining the status quo with people experiencing the effects of this illness, particularly those in the mid-stages. This facility offers a most diverse program for all levels of care of an Alzheimer’s person in a positive and nurturing environment. They have extended hours, evening care, weekend hours, over nights, and extended stays from 1 night - 3 weeks. They provide bathing and incontinence management and provide counseling and social activities for caregivers. To meet the different challenges of mid and late stage disease process as well as the early stage needs, the Wheat Ridge Day Center location has three levels of care where participants can feel comfortable, whether their main need is for socialization, or for personal care and maintenance.
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