An elderly patient admitted from a skilled nursing residence to a medical-surgical unit is exhibiting confusion,distractibility,memory loss,and irritability.She has a medical diagnosis of Dehydration.Which of the following should lead the nurse to suspect that dementia,rather than depression or dehydration,is the source of the symptoms?

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In dementia,a patient's language is disoriented,rambling,and incoherent; and the patient responds to questions inappropriately or with "near misses." Speaking slowly and being slow to respond to verbal stimuli are signs of depression; in depression,the patient usually answers questions appropriately.Awakening early and sleeping constantly during the day are signs of depression; in dementia,sleep is fragmented and the person awakens often during the night.Difficulty concentrating on details is a thinking pattern seen more often in depression; in dementia,there is difficulty finding words,difficulty calculating,and decreased judgment.

An Elderly Patient Admitted from a Skilled Nursing Residence to a Medical-Surgical