Healthcare professionals such as California occupational therapists and occupational therapist assistants are always on the hunt for quality, approved professional development units to meet their biennial license renewal. Here at HomeCEUConnection.com, we take the greatest care in securing the best continuing education content in the country. Each month for the rest of the year, we'll be highlighting one of our top selling occupational therapy courses.
This month we're proud to feature "Creative Interventions for Dementia" by Heather Goodwin, MS, OT/L. As CEO and founder of Vital Spark LLC, an occupational therapy and life coaching company, Heather provides top-notch therapy consulting services and clinical education for health care practitioners on dementia care.
Creative Interventions for Dementia
Many costs related to dementia include pharmaceutical interventions such as Acetylecholinasterase inhibitors and glutamate antagonists, that essentially preserve 6-9 months worth of cognition overall. Other costs are associated with pharmaceutical management of behaviors.
There are a number of non-pharmaceutical and creative interventions for dementia that can delay progression of the disease, reduce incidence of injuries associated with falls, reduce sundowning behaviors and creative interventions for behaviors that could limit the utilization of restraint use such as chair alarms, your voice, merry walkers and chemicals. This course is designed to meet those goals.
An Overview of Dementia
Heathers four hour course begins with an examination of current demographics and the cost of care for those who are diagnosed with dementia. She breaks down the most common medical and pharmaceutical interventions that are currently a staple of patient treatment plans before delving into compensatory, remedial, and palliative strategies available.
Interventions
As the disease progresses, plans of care must change to adapt to changing behavior and new symptoms. Heather skillfully guides occupational therapists through early-stage interventions including reality orientation, adult daycare, client support groups, behavior, and financial interventions.
Heather also addresses the most commonly occurring issues that face therapists with such as refusal, non-compliance, social isolation, depression and paranoia, and recommends effective mid-stage interventions to deal with these issues.
Late-stage interventions discussed as the course continues provide therapists with tools face increasing behavioral challenges like hoarding, wandering, yelling, eating difficulties, and aggression. The course concludes with end-stage interventions, specifically creating an incremental sensory stimulation protocol unique to the patients occupational and medical profile.
Here's a small sample of what you can expect from this exceptional occupational therapy continuing education course:
Search the Occupational Therapy Continuing Education Course Catalog