Making prompting or cueing work

Prompting or cueing is defined as "Prompting refers to giving a verbal, physical, or gesture cue to indicate what the person with dementia is expected to do next".

https://www.brookdale.com/en/brookdale-life/blogs/2021/use-the-prompting-technique-with-loved-ones-with-dementia.html

I try to use that with a PWD when distraction or redirection does not work, and PWD insists on doing something. I find it difficult since it presupposes that what the PWD thinks what to do next agrees with what you think happens next.

Example: If I guess that PWD wants to make tea but is randomly opening and closing cabinets and drawers looking for something, I can point to where tea is, and then where sugar is, and so on. That assumes I can guess that PWD wants tea, and if you can guess that from earlier steps, such as getting a cup, then it's going to succeed. If you have no clue what PWD wants, then it's bound to fail.

If left alone with no prompting, PWD can get frustrated as their activity will fail. If prompting is seen as too aggressive, PWD can lash out with a "leave me alone". If you ask PWD "what are you trying to do", one can get no response. Of course, if PWD starts doing something dangerous, one has to intervene strongly.

Going back to the example of making tea, I try to limit things like utensils or cups laid out to just a few familiar items, so that you get a better idea what PWD wants. i.e. this is my cup used for tea. If a PWD sees too many different cups or mugs in the cupboard, it can get confusing. In other words, limit choices to just a few, preferably one.

Anyone have experiences to share?