Should We Take a Person with Severe Dementia to the Funeral of a Loved one?

A common and heart-breaking question I receive in forums and in e-mail notes is, "Should I take my parent to their spouse's funeral?" When someone is in the later stages of dementia and there seems to be no real memory left, people often feel that to take the person to the funeral of a spouse or other loved one may be at best, a waste of time, and at worst, cruel. There are as many situations like this as there are families who have an elder with dementia. However, I, personally, have some opinions on this issue that I can pass on.

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