SPECIAL CARE AVAILABLE FOR PEOPLE WITH ALZHEIMER'S

Edward Pawlisch remembers his wife, Bernice, as an enthusiastic teacher, a loving mother and wife and a cheerful travel companion.

He remembers her before Alzheimer's Disease robbed her of the things she enjoyed.

"I've never seen anything like this," said Pawlisch, who lives in Tamms, Ill. "It's a horrible thing.

"She is a good girl," he said of his wife. "She has changed so many kids around. When she was teaching, they gave her the kids that didn't want to learn.

"She went back to school in her thirties and earned a teaching degree," Pawlisch explained. "I always say she got two educations -- an education from books and an education from our girls.

"When we retired we had a beautiful time," he recalled. "We went on cruises and to New York. We got baptized in the Jordan River."

Pawlisch said the disease progressed fairly rapidly. "The summer of 1991 was the last time she was home," he said. "She would go out and pick up sticks and make a little fire. She would get up at all times in the night, and when she was ready to get back in bed I'd help her sit down; she'd say `What do I do next?'"

Then she refused to take her prescription medication on schedule so he decided he needed help.

Today, his wife, who is 70, is a resident of one of the special Alzheimer's units in a Cape Girardeau nursing home.

She doesn't recognize her husband or her children. She rarely responds to conversation or activities.

"She loves kids," Pawlisch said. "Sometimes when somebody brings their kids in, she will respond."

Pawlisch visits his wife often, almost daily. "Some days she's better than others," he said. But usually she sits and stares. "Conversation just goes by her."

"You just don't realize what can happen," he said. "The hardest thing is being alone. It's 52 years we've been married."

Persons with Alzheimer's disease can receive special attention at designated units in three Cape Girardeau nursing homes.

The Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau has operated a special unit since December 1989 for its residents with Alzheimer's and related diseases.

The 22-bed unit puts the residents more at ease. "They are afraid of being lost. In a small place, they can see from end to end," said Marge Fichter, the registered nurse in charge of the unit.

"They don't like to be out in the whole building. We found they like the security of a small unit," she said.

Staff members read to the unit's residents, play music and supervise other activities.

Persons with Alzheimer's disease have very short attention spans. "Some don't have any," said Fichter.

"You can't just show a movie," she pointed out. "For them to register the words, sometimes it may take 30 seconds or more."

The residents of the unit, however, will watch "Fantasia," Disney's classic cartoon with its symphony of music and color.

Fichter said that's because there's no dialogue in "Fantasia."

The Cape Girardeau Nursing Center opened its 22-bed Alzheimer's unit in August of last year.

"We call it `special needs' because we work with (people with) Alzheimer's and related diseases," said Lori Bainter, the center's administrator. "It's more of a one-to-one concept back there."

Bainter said, "We have a special feeding program so we can assure they eat."

Weight loss is a common problem with Alzheimer's patients. To combat that problem, residents of the unit receive their food a little at a time as opposed to a full tray of food.

"If we set the whole thing in front of them with dessert and everything, then they don't eat anything, because they get confused and don't know where to start," said Bainter.

She said it's less confusing for Alzheimer's patients to be around other people with the same symptoms rather than wandering into the rooms of other residents of the nursing home.

"Back in this unit, it's more of a home-type setting for them. The confusion just doesn't seem to be as big of a problem," said Bainter.

"We do not regret opening this unit at all. We have seen such a change," she said.

At the Missouri Veteran's Home, the Special Care Unit for Alzheimer's disease and related disorders includes 50 beds and has special security measures to help keep patients from wandering off, a frequent occurrence with Alzheimer's patients. The staff is specially trained.

"Quality of life is the focus of all `A Wing' staff activity," said Sheila Halstead, coordinator of special programs at the Veterans Home.

"What constitutes quality of life for the veteran who is experiencing memory loss, confusion, failing motor skills and loss of independence? It is secure freedom," said Halstead. "We want to give each veteran maximal control of his life according to individual ability."