by Tim Gieseke MD, CMD, Chair, Education Committee

In 2012, CDPH sponsored a collaborative partnership with multiple stakeholder organizations to improve dementia care and reduce unnecessary use of antipsychotics in SNFs.  CALTCM has been a part of this partnership and sponsored a half-day workshop on Dementia Care as a pre-conference addition to our April 2013 annual meeting.

All participants in this partnership realize there is still much work to be done.  California Culture Change Coalition (CCCC) has become the lead organization in this effort and has obtained some funding to help facilities implement the necessary changes.  Members of our BOD will be participating this summer in further meetings to assist stakeholders in specific next implementation steps.

In the interim, I have created a summary presentation identifying the elements of a comprehensive dementia care program.  This presentation is now posted on our web site.

 As you review this presentation, consider the elements of your dementia care that might be improved.

As an example of what might be done, one of my facilities recognized that it commonly received patients from the acute hospital with newly prescribed antipsychotics without a clear indication.  Our DON decided to contact the patient’s decision maker to make sure they were aware of the Rx, the potential serious side effects, and to insure that informed consent had occurred. In both instances, informed consent had not occurred.  After further discussions with the family and the attending physician, the Rx was canceled and ultimately proved not necessary to their management.

We anticipate the development of other educational materials and programs in the near future as member of this partnership.

In the interim, please let CALTCM know of your successes in this area so that we can share them with our members.

Click here to view the presentation.