What does cueing for an elderly mean?

Answer 1

From what I learned this afternoon about problems my 81-year-old mother is having, her cognitive skills are somewhat diminished. She fell in early December, fracturing her right ankle and a bone in her right foot. The transitional care facility she is at has been working with her to learn how to bathe, get in and out of a wheel chair, how to use a walker, etc. The term "cueing" was used to describe the directions and instructions provided by an aide to my mother. A cue is a reminder, "Don't forget to lock the brakes on the wheelchair before trying to get in our out." "Don't rush. Take your time." Absent those cues, my mother lunges forward while using the walker or getting out of the wheelchair. We've been advised that because she is not able to safely get around with out cueing from staff, she should be in an assisted living environment. Her inability to learn the patterns for safely getting into bed, into the bathtub or work with the wheelchair without verbal cues from someone presents a safety issue. They said she doesn't make good judgments. Example. After instruction on how to go from the wheelchair to the tub, they brought her to the bathroom to apply what she learned. She disregarded everything and tried to step in to the tub like she always did. If someone is there to provide cues..."Now get a little closer to the tub. Lock your brakes. Ok, now ...." she does fine. What I don't know, yet, is can an elderly person who needs cueing going to eventually learn the new way of getting on the toilet or are they bound by their prior training. Hope this helps.