Exploring why memory loss is a misleading descriptor of people living with dementia and can lead to dysfunctional care

Amidst goals for prevention and improved treatment for people living with dementia, much remains needed to enhance the quality of life of those currently diagnosed, especially the transfer of accurate information from professionals to the public. Although many healthcare professionals understand the various types of memory and which are likely to be more affected than others during the progression of dementia, lay persons are more frequently unaware of that important information. The terms used to describe the symptoms of dementia can have a great impact on perceptions of faculties that are absent, compromised, or preserved. Understanding the nuances of preserved memory faculties and other cognitive abilities retained by persons with dementia is important in this regard. The term memory loss as a descriptor of the syndrome of dementia and ascribing it to persons with dementia connotes an inability to form new memories and participate in meaningful social interactions, which is detrimental to their personhood. From a multidisciplinary approach drawn from neurology, neurobiology, psychology, and case vignettes, we aim herein to highlight the ways in which the term memory loss can be inaccurate, counterproductive and potentially promote dementia-related misperceptions, malignant positioning and malignant social psychology. Persons with dementia unequivocally struggle with explicit memory, or recalling on demand, but retain implicit memory, as evidenced by research and everyday actions. Therefore, we propose the use of alternative medical language to reflect accurately memory impairment and preservation of some important memory capabilities

The 'demented other' or simply 'a person'? Extending the philosophical discourse of Naue and Kroll through the situated self

This article presents a critique of an article previously featured in Nursing Philosophy (10: 26-33) by Ursula Naue and Thilo Kroll, who suggested that people living with dementia are assigned a negative status upon receipt of a diagnosis, holding the identity of the 'demented other'. Specifically, in this critique, we suggest that unwitting use of the adjective 'demented' to define a person living with the condition is ill-informed and runs a risk of defining people through negative (self-)attributes, which has a deleterious impact upon that person's social and relational personae. Moreover, use of the locution 'demented' reinforces a divide between the 'demented' (them) and the 'healthy others' (us). Social constructionist theory, malignant positioning and viewing people with dementia as semiotic subjects are the philosophical pillars through which we construct the main arguments of the critique. The article concludes with the voice of one of the authors, a younger person with dementia, asking for language in dementia care to be carefully reconsidered and reframed and for the recognition of the diagnosed person's agency in the conduct of their day-to-day lives. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Facile and Regioselective C H Bond Activation of Aromatic Substrates by an Fe (II) Complex Involving a Spin-Forbidden Pathway

Article discussing facile and regioselective C H bond activation of aromatic substrates by an Fe(II) complex involving a spin-forbidden pathway

Facile and Regioselective C–H Bond Activation of Aromatic Substrates by an Fe(II) Complex Involving a Spin-Forbidden Pathway

The Fe­(II) complex Cp*Fe­(CO)­(NCMe)­Ph (Cp* = η⁵-pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) is shown to mediate facile and highly regioselective C–H activation of aromatic substrates including benzene, furan, thiophene, thiazole, and 2-methylfuran. Experimental and computational evidence suggest a mechanism for C–H activation that involves NCMe dissociation, multiple spin intersystem crossings, C–H bond coordination, and C–H bond cleavage by a σ-bond metathesis reaction

Oxygen Atom Insertion into Iron(II) Phenyl and Methyl Bonds: A Key Step for Catalytic Hydrocarbon Functionalization

Oxy-functionalization of metal–alkyl and −aryl bonds is a key step in potential hydrocarbon oxidation catalysis. However, well-defined examples of M–R to ROH conversion are rare, especially for first-row transition metals. Cp*Fe­(CO)­(NCMe)­Ph reacts with oxygen or hydrogen peroxide to produce benzoic acid. Removing CO from the Cp*Fe­(L)­(L′)­Ph framework allows simple oxygen atom insertion into the Fe–Ph bond. Cp*Fe­(P­(OCH₂)₃CEt)₂Ph reacts with Me₃NO in THF to produce PhOH in high yield when Brønsted acids are added. Studies show that light promotes P­(OCH₂)₃CEt dissociation from Cp*Fe­(P­(OCH₂)₃CEt)₂Ph, which facilitates the conversion to PhOH. The methyl analogue Cp*Fe­[P­(OCH₂)₃CEt]₂Me reacts with oxidants to produce MeOH