Are your therapists providing optimal care for your patients and family members with dementia?
The article “Speech therapy is beneficial to people with dementia” post by the Fremont Tribune, explains that each person with dementia is affected differently by the disease. Speech therapists have the ability to design a unique plan of care for dementia patients and can also provide adequate training with caregivers and families. The following are listed as behaviors that can be indicators of dementia and that should also trigger a referral to speech therapy:
* Difficulty selecting appropriate words and remembering names.
* Exhibits socially inappropriate behavior.
* Difficulty with concepts of time or money.
* Difficulty counting to 10.
* Difficulty anticipating consequences of own actions.
* Limited eye contact.
* Limited social behaviors (e.g., expressions of courtesy and facial expressions).
Read more of indicators here.
At Therapy Center it is our mission that our therapists are properly prepared to assess and stage dementia patients. This training ensures that the highest level of independence is maintained for these patients and ultimately reduces the burden of care on loved ones or staff. Therapy Center provides in-house training for our staff in an effort to have all of our therapists aware of and utilizing appropriate staging and intervention strategies. Appropriate dementia care and documentation of those services is critical to maximizing patient dignity and independence, reducing level of assistance required by caregivers, and capturing appropriate reimbursement for services provided.
For more information on dementia staging, visit the Alzheimer’s Association website at
http://www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_stages_of_alzheimers.asp
This article was written by Rachel Manuel, Mentor & Speech Therapist for Therapy Center.
