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“Don’t try to be young. Just open your mind. Stay interested in stuff. There are so many things I won’t live long enough to find out about, but I’m still curious about them.”
—Betty White
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LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this chapter, readers will be able to:
13-1. Evaluate the factors of normal cognitive aging that impact a person’s occupational participation.
13-2. Choose and justify best practices for facilitation of cognitive function in normal aging including lifestyle, activity, and stimulation.
13-3. Design and support cognitive interventions using knowledge of theories of cognitive aging.
13-4. Compare and contrast assessments of cognitive functioning including assessments at level of body function and performance-based assessments.
13-5. Identify assessments and design interventions for an older adult with cognitive changes after a stroke.
13-6. Identify assessments and design interventions for older adults with dementia.
13-7. Identify assessments and design interventions for older adults with depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and substance use disorder.
13-8. Compare and contrast cognitive functioning in normal cognitive aging and cognitive functioning in persons with dementia.
13-9. Using knowledge of foundations of cognitive health, create treatment environments and programs for optimizing cognitive health for healthy older adults and those with neuropathologies.
13-10. Compare the different roles of interprofessional health team members working with older adults and considerations for a referral.
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Mini Case Study
Henry Webster is a 70-year-old white male who lives alone after the recent death of his wife of 40 years. Henry has lived in the same home for 45 years in a large metropolitan city in the Midwest region of the United States. It is a single-story home with a basement. Before her death, Henry’s mother lived with him and his wife. She had cancer and Alzheimer disease. Henry has three children: two sons and a daughter. One son and daughter live in the same city as Henry. They work full-time and have children age 4 to 16 years old. Both of these adult children visit their father regularly but are busy working and involved with their children. Henry retired 1 year ago from his career as a plant manager of a large production company. He and his wife enjoyed playing golf and taking trips to visit family and friends. Before the sudden death of his wife 8 months ago, they were planning on selling their home and living in an RV for 2 years before settling on where to live. Since his wife’s death, he has joined a men’s golf league but is not playing regularly. He has lost interest in swimming and does not enjoy walking in the park, only walking around his neighborhood. He is reconsidering selling his home and has not traveled to see family or friends in the past 8 months. Henry’s children are concerned about Henry’s occupational performance. He is missing appointments and is having difficulty following conversations. Other issues include poor housekeeping, including ...