A special “pinning ceremony” was held at Wayne Country View on Oct. 25. Five staff members at the facility completed training to become an “Abilities Care Expert.”
"Here at Wayne Country View we have spent the last two years training our therapist and building our Abilities Care Approach program., said Marci Woehler, PTA, Therapy Program Manager/Chief Therapy Officer at the facility.
The five graduates include: Katie Talbot, LPN; Jazmine Duhsmann, CNA/CMA/transportation; Oliva Thompson, CNA; Shelby Brodkorb, dietary; and Liz Schlamann, CNA/CMA.
The Abilities Care Approach provides patients with Alzheimer’s disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) the opportunity to achieve and maintain their highest level of functional independence. Determining how mental, physical and psychosocial capabilities interact with task demands and caregiving approaches, allows caregivers to impact functional performance in activities of daily living, functional mobility, communication, and engagement in meaningful activities.
The Abilities Care Approach results in a comprehensive understanding of resident’s remaining abilities, as well as an understanding of their life story and history. This comprehensive understanding of the resident guides caregivers in developing interventions and approaches that match the individual’s preferences and interests, and are adapted to his or her best ability to function.
This approach to treatment is taken from Claudia Allen’s Cognitive Disabilities Model and focuses on a habilitative approach to care. Once a resident’s abilities and needs are fully understood, the caretaker can identify successful approaches and adaptations to caregiving / communication and the environment to promote function. The final phase of the intervention is focused on teaching and training those who interact with the resident (staff, caregivers, and families) the strategies and adaptations that facilitate a best ability to function.
"We have successfully trained five staff members outside of the therapy department who have applied, interviewed, and completed a 6.5 hour training provided by our own OT, Kim Cooper who is a TEACHA (Therapy Expert of Abilities Care Holistic Approach)," Woehler said.
"We couldn’t be more proud and excited to have gotten our program to where it is to be able to provide this additional training to our staff to best care for our residents and improve our residents interaction with their loved ones," she added.
