Hi Stephanie
first of all, a huge thanks on behalf of all family of any Alzheimer's patients, anywhere! The work that you, and others like you, do round the clock to care for our nearest and dearest is fantastic.
Now, the boyfriend.
Let's look at this from his angle.
He sees you as going into a place and just playing games with a bunch of people. Seems simple, doesn't it?
Does he appreciate that many will not be able to communicate sensibly? Or that they may be frail and that you have to watch them all the time to make sure they don't injure themselves, or others. Or that the condition is cyclic - so the person who was really nice last week may be the Devil Incarnate this week?
Does he know that some of these people trained Steve McQueen for his role in "The Great Escape"? Just blink and they are gone.
Does he know that Alzheimer's presents in different ways to different people. I think of the problem as a wiring loom - a huge bunch of elecrical wires - that connect the TV, the video camera, the garbage disposal, the heating and aircon, the lights, the central computer, the transport, etc. The wiring is kind of old and some wires just don't work at all, and in some conditions wires work perfectly; other times [in the damp maybe] the power is reduced or lost, or even shorts across to the other cables, taking them out too.
Every person - you and me too - has a different set of wires, and they are all affected in different ways. So each of your 60 patients has, in effect, a different manifestation of the illness, and you have to appreaicte, and react to that in your work. That's being professional.
Oh yes, and does he realise you do this work in addition to attending school? Course he does, but he is not thinking on a practical basis.
You ask "I don’t know how to explain to him that it’s hard "
Hey, that's easy. Just say to him that he's correct! It is so easy that he would really enjoy going with you for a whole week's [month's?] worth of visits to the ward. Let him be there to do it.
Then if he still thinks it is easy, well perhaps he is a potential recruit to the care business. If he does it well, and still thinks it easy, then hang on to him - he is a very special person!!
Best of luck!