Preparing the Care Workforce to Address Interpersonal Demands Across the Dementia Trajectory

Chair(s)

• 

  Scott Trudeau, PhD (he/him/his)

  Director of Practice Engagement
  Workforce Capacity Building
  American Occupational Therapy Association
  Stow, Massachusetts, United States

  Slides Handouts

Discussant(s)

• LG

  Laura Gitlin, PHD, FGSA, fAAN (she/her/hers)

  Dean Emeritus and Distinguished Professor
  Dean's Office
  Drexel University
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

  Slides

Individual Symposium Abstract First Author(s)

• 

  Gina Tucker-Roghi, OTD, OTR/L, BCG (she/her/hers)

  Associate Professor
  Occupational Therapy
  Dominican University of California
  San Rafael, California, United States
• MG

  Megan Gately, PhD, OTR/L

  Occupational Therapy Health Scientist
  Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center
  VA Bedford Healthcare System
  Bedford, Massachusetts, United States
• 

  Scott Trudeau, PhD (he/him/his)

  Director of Practice Engagement
  Workforce Capacity Building
  American Occupational Therapy Association
  Stow, Massachusetts, United States

  Slides Handouts

This symposium posits that student learning experiences in professional programs are a direct pipeline to impact workforce readiness to address the needs of people living with dementia (PLWD). The presentations will share data and experience with three innovative learning activities that have been implemented with graduate students in occupational therapy. PLWD often face social isolation due to declines in domains such as memory and communication. This estrangement can extend to the care team, as cognitive declines can lead care professionals to focus increasingly on caregivers. While partnering with caregivers is often essential to optimize the health and well-being of the dyad, this may have the unintended consequence of minimizing the voice and perspective of the person with dementia. Similarly, in institutional settings, custodial care may be prioritized over attending to quality-of-life due to staffing challenges and a lack of creativity regarding person-centered practice for those with later stage dementia. These abstracts present three programs, generated to address identified care needs, focused on increasing person-centered approaches for PLWD. First, students engaged in preventive approaches to proactively increase the voice of older adults using the My Life Profile. Second, remote delivery of the My Life, My Story (MLMS) program at Department of Veterans Affairs allowed community-dwelling Veterans with cognitive concerns to share their stories with the care team. And lastly, The Reading Buddies program for individuals in later staged dementia will be shared. Providing experiential learning opportunities empowering care workers is critical to improving the future of dementia services across the continuum.

Presentations:

• 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM PST

  My Life Profile: Empowering Community-Dwelling Older Adults to Advocate for Age-Friendly Health Care
  

  Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Gina C. Tucker-Roghi, OTD, OTR/L, BCG (she/her/hers) – Dominican University of California
• 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM PST

  Increasing Connections Between Persons With Dementia and Care Teams: My Life, My Story
  

  Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Megan Gately, PhD, OTR/L – VA Bedford Healthcare System
• 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM PST

  Service Learning to Prepare Occupational Therapy Students to Meet the Needs of Veterans With Late-Stage Dementia
  

  Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Scott A. Trudeau, PhD (he/him/his) – American Occupational Therapy Association