In 1987 Mary Cochran was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. Her only son and his wife, without any knowledge of the disease took on the task of caregiving for Mary. For the next six years, they learned a great deal. Mary died in 1994 from the disease. Since then Elizabeth, Mary's daughter-in-law has studied Alzheimer's and it's effects on care givers. She created the Alzheimer's Workbook Holsitic Health & Problem Solving for Everyday Care to meet the needs of family caregivers and used it as the intervention in her dissertation.The Alzheimer's workbook is dedicated to the Memory of Mary Cochran who taught us so much.

The Alzheimer's Workbook uses standard ADLs and IADLs and expands them into the 5 domains of Holistic Health: Mental, Physical, Emotional, Social and Spiritual The workbook is a systematic care management tool intended to help caregivers bring order and sense to what is too often a chaotic "through the looking glass" experience.

Caregiving for a person with Alzheimer's is a long haul proposition with many ups and downs. The Alzheimer's Workbook provides a roadmap for caregivers from first diagnosis to the last stages of the disease.

Behavior Based Solutions

There are over 1500 behavioral strategies listed in the Alzheimer's Workbook arranged from the least invasive to most invasive that can aid in the problem solving process needed in everyday care.