Alzheimer's Disease: Challenges, Interventions, and Approaches to Care

Alzheimer's Disease: Challenges, Interventions, and Approaches to Care is organized by Western Schools and will be held from Oct 30, 2017 - Sep 30, 2020. This CME Conference has been approved for a maximum of 10 Contact Hours.

Description:
This course focuses on the nurse's role in assessing and intervening to address communication challenges, nutrition, incontinence, falls and restraint use, and pain and hospitalization for the person with Alzheimer’s disease. Because it is important to think beyond the physical care of the person with dementia, the course examines spirituality, palliative and end-of-life care for the person with AD. Pharmacological and nonpharmacological interventions are also discussed.

Course Objectives:
• Discuss nursing best practices for communicating with older adult patients, including patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD).
• Describe how to provide patient-centered care, including the use of touch therapy and humor therapy, to patients who have AD.
• Discuss nutritional concerns in patients with AD.
• Discuss the nursing process for incontinence in patients with AD.
• Discuss falls, fall prevention, and restraint use in patients with AD.
• Explain the assessment and management of pain in patients with AD and the reasons for hospitalization.
• Recognize the need to incorporate holistic nursing care into practice, discuss the concepts of spirituality, and formulate the special palliative care and end-of-life needs of people with AD.
• Recognize common principles and models for understanding, preventing, and responding to the challenging behaviors of patients with AD.
• Recognize common nonpharmacologic interventions for managing the behavior of patients with AD and how these interventions can be incorporated into nursing practice.
• Identify and apply the pharmacologic principles that guide the care of older adults with AD.