A ministry of memory: spiritual care for the older adult with dementia.

The primary focus of research related to spiritual and ministry needs of older people, historically and in the present, has been on those whose cognitive abilities are only minimally impaired. The older adult with a dementia like Alzheimer's disease, however, has not received as much attention. This may be related to a lack of any theoretical framework from which to understand what may be happening to a markedly confused person spiritually, and how a person with progressive cognitive impairment might still be able to maintain a relationship with God and be ministered to by a God who may only be remembered vaguely, if at all.