Errorless Learning and Other Effective Interventions for People Living with Dementia
65
About the Course:
Treatment for the functional deficits associated with dementia should address the specific needs and interests of the individual. Such treatments can be most effective when utilizing a strength- based approach and incorporating evidence-based strategies to compensate for losses of explicit (declarative) memory. Research has supported the fact that procedural (non-declarative) memory may remain relatively intact until the late stages of dementia. Therapists have subsequently found errorless learning and other related interventions to be most effective for teaching skills for safety and function.This course will review factors to consider when planning and implementing the most optimal therapies to improve safety and functions for people living with dementia. Supporting research and protocols will be shared for skilled interventions utilizing external memory aids, Errorless Learning, Vanishing Cues, Spaced Retrieval training and Montessori approaches. Applications will be shared throughout the course to help the learner envision how to effectively use these approaches in their therapeutic setting.
Course Objectives:
1. List diagnostic and staging factors to consider when planning treatments for people with dementia
2. Identify external strategies found to be effective for facilitating memory deficits
3. List examples of external memory aids that may be effective for individuals with memory impairments
4. Cite evidence supporting the errorless learning instructional method
5. Identify functional examples for utilizing the vanishing cues instructional strategy
6. Recognize how the Spaced Retrieval Technique has been found to be effective for teaching new functions for people with memory impairments
7. Cite examples of successes found by utilizing the Montessori approach
About the Author:
Lisa Young Milliken, MA, CCC, FNAP, CDP received her bachelor's degree from Louisiana Tech University in 1985 and her master's degree from The University of Memphis in Audiology and Speech Language Pathology in 1987. She has since served adults and geriatrics as a clinician, manager, vice president, consultant, compliance manager and education director, and is most passionate about mentoring healthcare professionals in the post-acute facilities across the country. She currently providescontinuing education support to therapists in over 950 sites nationwide as Education Specialist for Select Rehabilitation. She has authored and lectured at the state and national level with over 200 professional continuing education courses on a wide range of topics of importance to the healthcare professional who works with the older population.Lisa is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), where she currently serves as a State Advocate for Medicare Policy (StAMP) for Texas. She serves on the Texas Speech-Language and Hearing Association (TSHA) Executive Council as well as on numerous other TSHA committees. She is a Certified Dementia Practitioner and is a Distinguished Fellowship of the National Academies of Practice. She is a prior board president of the Louisiana Speech-Language and Hearing Association (LSHA) and a past member of the Council of State Association Presidents (CSAP). Through her leadership positions on the Louisiana and Texas Association boards, Executive Council, National Academies of Practice and other organizations, she has purposed to advocate services of these associations’ members as well as for the clients and families served by the members.
Treatment for the functional deficits associated with dementia should address the specific needs and interests of the individual. Such treatments can be most effective when utilizing a strength- based approach and incorporating evidence-based strategies to compensate for losses of explicit (declarative) memory. Research has supported the fact that procedural (non-declarative) memory may remain relatively intact until the late stages of dementia. Therapists have subsequently found errorless learning and other related interventions to be most effective for teaching skills for safety and function.This course will review factors to consider when planning and implementing the most optimal therapies to improve safety and functions for people living with dementia. Supporting research and protocols will be shared for skilled interventions utilizing external memory aids, Errorless Learning, Vanishing Cues, Spaced Retrieval training and Montessori approaches. Applications will be shared throughout the course to help the learner envision how to effectively use these approaches in their therapeutic setting.
Course Objectives:
1. List diagnostic and staging factors to consider when planning treatments for people with dementia
2. Identify external strategies found to be effective for facilitating memory deficits
3. List examples of external memory aids that may be effective for individuals with memory impairments
4. Cite evidence supporting the errorless learning instructional method
5. Identify functional examples for utilizing the vanishing cues instructional strategy
6. Recognize how the Spaced Retrieval Technique has been found to be effective for teaching new functions for people with memory impairments
7. Cite examples of successes found by utilizing the Montessori approach
About the Author:
Lisa Young Milliken, MA, CCC, FNAP, CDP received her bachelor's degree from Louisiana Tech University in 1985 and her master's degree from The University of Memphis in Audiology and Speech Language Pathology in 1987. She has since served adults and geriatrics as a clinician, manager, vice president, consultant, compliance manager and education director, and is most passionate about mentoring healthcare professionals in the post-acute facilities across the country. She currently providescontinuing education support to therapists in over 950 sites nationwide as Education Specialist for Select Rehabilitation. She has authored and lectured at the state and national level with over 200 professional continuing education courses on a wide range of topics of importance to the healthcare professional who works with the older population.Lisa is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), where she currently serves as a State Advocate for Medicare Policy (StAMP) for Texas. She serves on the Texas Speech-Language and Hearing Association (TSHA) Executive Council as well as on numerous other TSHA committees. She is a Certified Dementia Practitioner and is a Distinguished Fellowship of the National Academies of Practice. She is a prior board president of the Louisiana Speech-Language and Hearing Association (LSHA) and a past member of the Council of State Association Presidents (CSAP). Through her leadership positions on the Louisiana and Texas Association boards, Executive Council, National Academies of Practice and other organizations, she has purposed to advocate services of these associations’ members as well as for the clients and families served by the members.