Aug. 9, 2018—When the Alzheimer’s Association convened dementia care providers and thought leaders from across the country in Chicago July 26, Kendal President and CEO Sean Kelly and Stacy Terrell, Kendal at Oberlin’s Chief Health Services Officer, were at the table. They are founding members of the Alzheimer’s Association’s new Dementia Care Provider Roundtable (AADCPR).
“The Alzheimer’s Association is committed to improving care for people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias across care settings and by bringing together dementia care leaders we know we can make improvements in care,” said Beth Kallmyer, vice president, care and support, Alzheimer’s Association. “The AADCPR members are leaders from companies on the front lines providing care, and together we can develop and advance needed solutions and strategies that result in better person-centered care for people living with dementia.”
A major emphasis for the AADCPR will be facilitating implementation of the Alzheimer’s Association 2018 Dementia Care Practice Recommendations released in January. The 56 recommendations, developed by 27 dementia care experts, emphasize person-centered care across 10 content areas and are based on a comprehensive review of current evidence, best practice and expert opinion. They are intended for professional care providers who work with individuals living with dementia and their families in long-term and community-based care settings.
In addition, the AADCPR will address cutting-edge and emerging issues facing dementia care providers, including:
- Challenges of person-centered care implementation.
- Evaluating person-centered care practices and outcomes.
- Working better with diverse families.
- Gaps in psychosocial research.
“One of our goals will be to come to a common understanding and appreciation for a definition of person-centered dementia care that is easy to say, easy to understand, has an inspirational tone and is embraced by health care providers of all stripes, including hospitals,” Sean said. “We might also want to identify the optimal caregiver profile for the delivery of person-centered dementia care.”
It is estimated that nearly 60 percent of older adults with Alzheimer’s or other dementias reside in the community (outside a hospital or clinical setting). About 25 percent of these individuals live alone, but the remainder receives care from family members, unpaid caregivers and community-based and residential care providers. By age 80, 75 percent of people with Alzheimer’s dementia are admitted to a nursing home. The AADCPR and its members will address current and emerging issues guiding care in these settings.
“It is essential to focus on fostering a culture of respecting, valuing and seeing the individual with cognitive change as a whole person with feelings, choice and rights—not disease,” Stacy said. “Those living with cognitive changes should not be ignored, spoken over or around, but treated as adults and provided with the supports to empower them to live their most resilient lives.”
The Roundtable will convene in-person twice a year and by conference call as needed to tackle topics identified by members as the most critical. Task forces and work groups comprised of participating members may also be used to focus on specific issues impacting dementia care providers. Information and insights developed by the AADCPR may be shared in white papers and articles in academic journals to further advance learnings from the group.
Besides Kendal, current AADCPR members, are:
- Bayada Home Health Care
- Brandywine Living
- Brightview Senior Living
- Brookdale Senior Living
- Comfort Keepers
- Genesis HealthCare
- HCR Manor Care
- Home Instead
- Life Care Services
- Right at Home
- Seniorlink
- Senior Star
- Silverado
- Sunrise Senior Living