Model of permanence of incidental memory in a first degree relative of alzheimer's descendant

Abstract

Introduction. Incidental memory refers to the capacity of human beings to remember information without consciously intending to do so; however, as age increases, they are more vulnerable to the inability to encode and retrieve relationships between individual units of information, a situation that is aggravated by Alzheimer's disease; that is, older adults tend to present problems especially when retrieving proper names and their association with the faces to which they belong, as opposed to names of objects.

Objective. To develop a situation-specific theory that contributes to the explanation of the phenomenon of incidental memory permanence in first-degree relatives with Alzheimer's disease.

Methodology. The theoretical derivation methodology proposed by Jaqueline Fawcett, described in five steps, was used: Identification of concepts; 2. Classification of concepts; 3. Identification and classification of propositions; 4. Hierarchical ordering of propositions; and, 5. Formalization of the Theoretical-Conceptual-Empirical Structure.

Results. Based on Callista Roy's Adaptation Model, the concepts of biological risk, cognitive functioning, learning codification, meditative intervention and incidental memory permanence were derived; the prepositions: 1) The meditative intervention induces the fractalized sequence of internal movements in the organism, generating the permanence of incidental memory in the first degree relative, 2) The meditative practice guided by the nursing staff, can generate awareness in people about their context thanks to the physical (breathing) and mental (emotions) control.

Conclusions. Situation-specific theories provide frameworks for understanding complex phenomena and situations within nursing practice, such as the process of incidental memory retention in persons with risk factors for progressive degenerative brain syndromes.