STARS - Student Therapy and Resource Services

Mental Health Issues in the Classroom: Practical Strategies for Helping Children & Adolescents Succeed - Tucson
2020-05-20 08:00 - 16:00 (America/Phoenix) | DoubleTree Tucson Airport, 7051 S. Tucson Blvd., Tucson, AZ, 85756, United States
Join child/adolescent behavior expert, Jay Berk, PhD, and learn how to best manage the students at your school diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), mood disorders, anxiety and depression. You will walk away with concrete, yet practical, strategies to successfully intervene with their serious behavioral issues, such as:

Anger and outbursts
Cutting and self-injury
Defiance
Impulsivity
Sensory issues
Meltdowns and tantrums
Obsessive compulsive
Truancy
Rigidity
Electronic addiction

Through case studies, video clips and dynamic class discussion you will learn:

30 second teacher strategies to manage challenging and disruptive behaviors
New ways to reduce the costs of out-of-district placements
How to engage students in class, increase productivity and reduce truancy
Behavioral assessments and strategies for the IEP team
Side-effects of common psychotropic medications
How skill deficits from mental health conditions create behavioral difficulties
Characteristics of at-risk students’ mental health problems
Strategies to gain collaboration with clinicians

Leave the day with the “magic dust” you have been looking for to expedite rapid and effective changes in these children and adolescents!

High-Functioning Autism: Proven & Practical Interventions for Challenging Behaviors in Children, Adolescents & Young Adults - Live Webcast
2020-05-15 10:00 - 18:00 (America/Denver)
This intensive, full-day seminar provides proven intervention strategies, essential treatment tools, and behavioral techniques to help you analyze behaviors and actions, identify consequences for behaviors, and teach new skills to children, adolescents and young adults with high-functioning autism (HFA). Walk away with practical intervention techniques for social success, behavior changes and overcoming challenging co-occurring behaviors that deliver success through adulthood. The challenging co-occurring issues to be addressed are:

Social skills
Sensory
Depression
ADHD
Psychotropic medications
Communication
Anxiety/Rigidity
Meltdowns
OCD
Non-compliance

Get valuable insight into common psychotropic medication, including both the helpful effects and potentially problematic side effects, that these individuals are prescribed. We will explore HFA and the new DSM-5® diagnosis of Social-Pragmatic Communication Disorder. You will receive the necessary tools to gain effective collaboration between clinicians, educators and parents. Through case studies, video clips and class participation you will leave this seminar with the confidence to identify actions that cause impediments in change, utilize more successful consequences for behaviors, and teach new skills to children, adolescents, and young adults with HFA. Don’t just manage these individuals; provide interventions that can lead to successful independence into their adult years!

High-Functioning Autism: Proven & Practical Interventions for Challenging Behaviors in Children, Adolescents & Young Adults - Phoenix
2020-05-15 08:00 - 16:00 (America/Phoenix) | Hilton Phoenix Airport, 2435 S. 47th St., Phoenix, AZ, 85034, United States

Neuroplasticity and Neurological Disorders
2020-05-14 08:00 - 17:00 (America/Phoenix) | A facility has yet to be booked for this course but registration is open. You will be notified via email after a facility is selected.
This course provides a commonsense perspective of the immediate and long-lasting effects brain diseases have on the human brain. Presented are new resources, research, and ideas to leverage brain plasticity with the aim to reverse brain damage, and promote recovery. Included will be a discussion of the tools, and techniques therapists have to ameliorate pain, and reduce or halt potential brain damage caused by Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Acquired Brain Injury (incl. TBI and stroke), phantom limb pain, spasticity and headache. These populations, cumulatively, represent over 10 million diagnoses per year- in the U.S. alone.
Participants of this one-day interactive course will haveglobal insight as to the profound plastic nature of the human brain, and plasticity’s effect on both amplifying as well asameliorating these diseases and their sequelae. The brain iscommand and control of every one of the trillions of cells in the human body. Most clinicians have a little training that provides insight into this wondrous organ. The aim of this course is to equip clinicians with tools, strategies, and treatments to work in tandem with the patient’s brain to reduce pain and increase function. At the core of thesetreatment options is the melding of bleeding edge neuroscience with clinical practice.

High-Functioning Autism: Proven & Practical Interventions for Challenging Behaviors in Children, Adolescents & Young Adults - Scottsdale
2020-05-14 08:00 - 16:00 (America/Denver) | Courtyard by Marriott, 17010 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, AZ, 85255, United States

Evidenced-Based Evaluation and Treatment of the Cervical Spine - Live Webinar
2020-05-13 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Denver)
Neck pain is a common complaint among the general population and studies indicate that the overall incidence of neck pain is increasing worldwide. Clinicians need up to date, evidenced based, assessment and intervention tools to effectively treat this common condition. Evidence shows that a classification framework to identify which patients respond best to certain treatments results in superior outcomes when compared to a non-classification approach. Therapists can learn these newer models of classifying and treatment of the impairments associated with neck pain.
This workshop will outline the various classifications of patients who present with neck pain and identify which interventions are most effective for each stage of the condition. The assessment and reasoning skills gained from this course will allow the clinician to immediately apply evidenced based treatments to their practice setting and improve not only functional outcomes but patient satisfaction.

Neuroplasticity and Neurological Disorders - Tucson
2020-05-13 08:00 - 17:00 (America/Phoenix) | A facility has yet to be booked for this course but registration is open. You will be notified via email after a facility is selected.
This course provides a commonsense perspective of the immediate and long-lasting effects brain diseases have on the human brain. Presented are new resources, research, and ideas to leverage brain plasticity with the aim to reverse brain damage, and promote recovery. Included will be a discussion of the tools, and techniques therapists have to ameliorate pain, and reduce or halt potential brain damage caused by Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Acquired Brain Injury (incl. TBI and stroke), phantom limb pain, spasticity and headache. These populations, cumulatively, represent over 10 million diagnoses per year- in the U.S. alone.
Participants of this one-day interactive course will have global insight as to the profound plastic nature of the human brain, and plasticity’s effect on both amplifying as well as ameliorating these diseases and their sequelae. The brain is command and control of every one of the trillions of cells in the human body. Most clinicians have a little training that provides insight into this wondrous organ. The aim of this course is to equip clinicians with tools, strategies, and treatments to work in tandem with the patient’s brain to reduce pain and increase function. At the core of these treatment options is the melding of bleeding edge neuroscience with clinical practice.

High-Functioning Autism: Proven & Practical Interventions for Challenging Behaviors in Children, Adolescents & Young Adults - Tucson
2020-05-13 08:00 - 16:00 (America/Phoenix) | DoubleTree Tucson Airport, 7051 S. Tucson Blvd., Tucson, AZ, 85756, United States

Best Practice in Managing Patients with Dementia - Live Webinar
2020-05-12 17:00 - 19:00 (America/Denver)
Older adults with dementia are 9 times as likely to require a stay in a skilled nursing facility as their cognitively intact counterparts. Skilled rehabilitation (including physical therapy,occupational therapy, speech therapy, and nursing) is an integral part of an older adult’s return to the optimal functional level of independence following an injury or illness. Patients with dementia pose unique challenges to rehabilitation professionals. Severe deficits in attention, judgment, memory, communication, and language are common in individuals with dementia. The progressive nature of dementia results inincreased dependence on caregivers as well as cost to the healthcare system with worldwide costs of $604 billion in 2010.
It is commonly thought that patients with dementia cannot benefit from rehabilitation services because of behaviors, lack of communication, or difficulties in learning. However,current literature indicates IWDs can benefit fromrehabilitation as much as adults without dementia. With the proper knowledge and training, rehabilitation clinicians areable to provide dementia-specific, person-centered care, which can maximize rehabilitation outcomes by maintaining oreven improving physical performance and function and thereby reduce healthcare costs. This course will provide you with best practice and evidence-based approaches to overcome these challenges to improve functional outcomes for these patients.

Pediatric Teletherapy - Live Webinar
2020-05-08 12:00 - 14:00 (America/Denver)
Telehealth is a viable option for therapeutic intervention. In this presentation participants will learn what pediatric telehealth entails including standards of practicerecommended by AOTA and APTA associations. Teletherapy evidence will be discussed in relation to efficacy for implementation. Participants will learn the `How To’s’ of teleintervention from start to finish, including what technology and equipment is needed. This presentation will focus on practical application of therapy services and brain storm challenges that may occur, including how to deal with difficult behaviors when you are not there in person, and how to be creative with treatment activities when you don’t have a “therapy bag”. Join us in this 2-hour presentation and learneffective approaches for teletherapy and go away with practical resources you can implement immediately.

Strength Training in Geriatric Rehabilitation - Live Webinar
2020-05-07 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Denver)
Sarcopenia (muscular atrophy related to aging and sedentary lifestyle) is one of the most common geriatric syndromes compromising the function of up to 40% of the aging population. Sarcopenia contributes to decreased gait speed, reduced grip strength, increased fall risk, and functional decline. This muscular dysfunction is best treated through the prescription of progressive resistance exercise. The individuals best positioned in the health care system to treat this health issue are rehabilitation professionals, especially those who are encountering these individuals while managing injury, illness, or long-term declines in function.
This webinar will improve your understanding of how to prescribe strength training for the geriatric patient. Participants will learn how to immediately apply these strategies to improve functional tasks like stair negotiation, walking endurance, bed mobility, and transfers. Differences in types of strength prescription and types of strength exercises will be defined to help understand the application in rehabilitation. Attendees will be able to immediately take this information and apply it in their existing rehabilitation programs to improve the outcomes for their patients.

Neuroplasticity & TBI - Live Webinar
2020-05-01 12:00 - 14:00 (America/Denver)
Following brain injury, the recovering patient requires dynamic and ongoing assessment and treatment to facilitate maximal recovery. Neuroplasticity, the ability to form new connections or reorganize existing connections, is a critical process in healing that takes the expertise of a skilled rehabilitation therapist to nurture. Dual tasking, whenconsidered carefully and implemented appropriately, can be apowerful method of stimulating neuroplasticity and maximize functional improvement. This webinar will provide the rehabilitation therapist with decision-making tools to determine when dual tasking is appropriate and how it can beincorporated into treatment. Clinicians will receive tools to immediately incorporate dual tasking into treatment activities and home exercise programming for patients following brain injury to help them reach their goals.

Telehealth Ergonomics for Healthcare Professionals - Live Webinar
2020-04-29 17:00 - 19:00 (America/Denver)
For years, the American Physical Therapy Associationhas been telling us as practitioners: “Telehealth will not replace traditional clinical care – but it will give flexibility to provide services efficiently. Quicker screening, assessment and referral can improve care coordination within collaborative delivery models.” They go on to further admit what’s now undeniable: “In physical therapy, patients /clients are asking for more time-efficient and less costly care models. Busy lifestyles make it difficult for greater numbers of people to attend traditional BIW / TIW appointments. Applications of telehealth in physical therapy already allows PT’s to better communicate with patients / clients and provide more flexible care.” These statements were all made prior to the new realities of a post-COVID-19 clinical landscape.
Telehealth Ergonomics is a novel approach to computer workstation ergonomic assessment and modification whosetime has come – especially with the current pressures made starkly clear by the new COVID-19 reality. This emerging wayto work effectively and efficiently will reduce the personalcost of obtaining expert ergonomic assessments andinterventions and provide an evidence-based and systematic program of completing ergonomic assessments remotely. It will also offer the scrupulous practitioner a new area of expertise and commerce. It couldn’t come at a better time.

Development of Executive Function in Children
2020-04-24 12:00 - 14:00 (America/Denver)
Executive function development begins at a young age and progresses into early adulthood, allowing a person to be independent, efficient, and successful in an ever-changing world. Executive function skills are the foundational blocks of learning and academic success that help drive our behaviors and emotions, allowing us to have successful relationships. Development of these skills involves a gradual process that is individualized for each child, based on the maturation of the prefrontal cortex. Genetics and environment have an interactive and dynamic role as well. Executive function skills are crucial for our children to meet today’s academic demands and navigate the social expectations.
This course will provide an understanding of executive function, the core dimensions, and how to support overall skills with practical strategies which can be used in a variety of environments. Neuroplasticity allows for the development and enhancement of executive function so that children can understand expectations, follow rules, control emotion, have social relationships, school readiness, and academic success. Participants will review how to modify existing activities by making them more motivating and enjoyable, while providing challenges to promote and enable enhancement through active learning and novel play schemes. The goal is to support children to be able to plan,resist temptations, regulate emotions, and stay on tasks to achieve independent success in their daily lives.

Special Education Law in Arizona - Scottsdale
2020-04-24 08:00 - 15:45 (America/Denver)
One of the greatest challenges that you face today is ensuring compliance and implementation of the IDEA. With the many recent changes in both federal and state special education regulations, it is essential that you not only have an awareness of the changes taking place, but also have an understanding of how these changes impact your day-to-day activities and the students you serve. A cursory knowledge of the law or applying common sense does not begin to protect school districts and professionals against the potential legal and financial consequences of misinterpreting special education regulations. Attend this seminar for the latest information on developments in the reauthorized IDEA and gain practical advice on how to effectively implement IDEA requirements in order to ensure compliance with the regulations while meeting the needs of students with disabilities. Find answers to the following questions and many more.
What are the current Best Practices?
How can data assist in IEP defense and litigation?
How can I better support our schools, teachers and special education staff?

Distracted and Disorganized Kids in a Digital Generation: Techniques to Influence Neuroplasticity, Manage Screen Time & Implement Sensory Smart Movement - Scottsdale
2020-04-23 08:00 - 16:00 (America/Denver)
Gen Z is the first generation to grow up with smart technology. The use of screens is not just impacting social skills and human interaction, it’s compromising neurosensory development!
As learning and leisure time becomes increasingly screen-based, children are over-using their visual systems at the expense of exploring the environment and activating their senses for learning through movement. While the impact of screens on social interactions and self-esteem are being increasingly recognized, clinicians and educators need to understand the potential implications as it relates to neurosensory development.
As clinicians and educators, we are equipped with many programs and interventions based on neurodevelopmental principles. Now, we need to apply them in the context of an increasingly digital world.
Treating requires a new framework to ensure we activate the senses for learning and model the habits of success. This is especially true for children with ADHD, Autism, LD, sensory processing, and motor deficits, who, at baseline, require more opportunities for multi-sensory integration to increase attention and enhance brain development for learning than their neurotypical peers.
In this program, you will enhance your existing therapeutic techniques to:

Determine a child’s digital and sensory-learning profile to inform treatment planning
Identify the influence of smart technology and screen time on neuroplasticity in children with ADHD, LD, Autism, and SPD
Rebalance the brain-body connection through controlled activation of multiple senses
Optimize connection and cognition while supporting recovery from dysregulation and digital overload
Instill the habits of success: mindset, state regulation, and movement

Assessment & Treatment of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo - Live Webinar
2020-04-17 12:00 - 14:00 (America/Denver)
Dizziness accounts for 5.6 million clinic visits a year in the US. Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is the most frequent single cause of isolated positional vertigo, accounting for nearly one-half of patients with peripheral vestibular dysfunction. Approximately 17-41% of patients seen in dizziness clinics and 25% of patients sent for vestibular testing have BPPV. Most often, BPPV can be easily diagnosed and treated with 100% resolution of symptoms in clinics within 1-2 treatment sessions. However, there has been an increasing number of cases with atypical presentation of BPPV needing clinical expertise in recognition, assessment, and treatment. As a practicing healthcare professional, no matter what your expertise is, adding knowledge and treatment methods to your toolbox for this disorder is imperative for supplementation of a complete therapeutic skill set.
Practicing healthcare professionals will leave this workshop with a clear understanding of the normal functioning of the inner ear’s vestibular system, pathophysiology of BPPV and its variants, and application of a simple clinical algorithm to help make differential diagnosis of BPPV. A review of current clinical practice guidelines will be included to strengthen the differential diagnosis process and clinical application of treatment of both typical and atypical BPPV. A case study in the end will include participant’s participation to recognize signs and symptoms of typical and atypical BPPV, make a diagnosis, and then prepare a treatment plan. In addition, participants will learn to recognize when a patient is not presenting with BPPV and when to refer to a neurologist or another medical specialist. Multiple videos will be used to demonstrate clinical assessment and treatment maneuvers of BPPV and its variants.

Utilizing Effective Skilled Maintenance Therapy - Live Webinar
2020-04-14 17:00 - 19:00 (America/Denver)
Because of a landmark court case: Jimmo vs. Sebelius (2011), whereby the plaintiffs argued the federal guidelines that Medicare was required to cover skilled care for those who needed it to maintain their current level of performance, or to slow a decline in health and/or function, maintenance therapy was formally proposed as a reimbursable service. In 2013, a settlement was put into place that effectively removed the “improvement requirement.” In 2018, according to the Center for Medicare Advocacy, despite the established guidelines, many people are still being denied access to maintenance care and therapy – “in part because many health care providers have not been properly educated, and in part because many providers are still skeptical that Medicare would alter its coverage practices”.
This essential course will provide an overview of “Maintenance Therapy”, how and when it is appropriate, what environment it can be performed in, what type of interventions can be maintenance, how to DOCUMENT interventions, including goals and dispel the myth that improvement and/or progress is necessary! Participants will learn how to document “skill”, determine frequency and duration of services and be compliant with the LAW.

Wound Care Essentials - Live Webinar
2020-04-09 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Denver)
Wound Care. These two words often produce anxiety and dread within the healthcare community. The contributing factors to this response typically are related to limited exposure to this area of practice. This lack of exposure may create a sense of apprehension or uneasiness in making the appropriate clinical decision for these types of patients. The focus of this 2-hour interactive webinar will be to alleviate this apprehension and help every healthcare clinician increase their confidence in proper wound identification and intervention.
During this course you will learn essential wound identification and assessment skills, understand the key principles in selecting appropriate topical wound interventions, and be able to make appropriate decision for recommending other services and interventions. By the end of the course you will be able to identify and classify wound types and establish an initial treatment plan to help the patient on the road to successful wound healing.

Discharge Recommendations in Acute Care Live Webinar
2020-04-03 12:00 - 14:00 (America/Denver)
With the increasing utilization of acute care hospitals, there is increasing need to improve patient outcomes and improve interdisciplinary communication for discharge planning. Therapists play an important function in these multidisciplinary teams to provide input on each patient’s current functional status and potential improvement. The focus of this course is to present evolving evidence to help provide consistent and appropriate discharge recommendations from a therapy perspective.
This course will help the individual therapist provide discharge recommendations based not only on clinical judgement, but on support from current research. Following the completion of this course the therapist will demonstrate and increased understanding of the discharge process, improved clinical decision making for next level of care, and streamline interdisciplinary communication. Participants will also leave with a greater understanding of the bundle payment care initiative program.

Evidence-Based Assessment & Treatment of Dementia
2020-03-20 08:00 - 15:30 (America/Denver) | Residence Inn Phoenix Glendale Sports & Entertainment District, 7350 N. Zanjero Blvd., Glendale, AZ, 85305, United States
It is estimated that 50% of all adults aged 85 years and older have some form of dementia and each year 7.7 million new cases are diagnosed. As our population ages these numbers will continue to increase. The one-year total cost for treating Alzheimer’s dementia is $277 billion with $102 billion paid out of pocket. Dementia is also the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. As the disease progresses it creates functional and cognitive deficits and puts caregivers under emotional and financial stress. It is essential these patients receive adequate treatment and caregivers receive proper training in management of dementia to keep these patients at home as long as possible. As unwanted behaviors develop, motor control deteriorates and the ability to interact with the environment is lost, effective treatments need to match the level of cognition. As memory and cognition decline the ability to participate in therapy declines. It is critical that therapists are equipped to treat these medically complex patients to prolong a decline in functional motor control, ADLs, and cognition.
This interactive one-day course will improve the participants’ knowledge of treatment for cognition and memory. It includes a review of the stages of dementia with appropriate intervention strategies for each stage. The role of behaviors and use of redirection with be discussed with examples provided. Participants will use case studies to apply these principles to develop a plan of care for each stage of dementia. Participants will gain beneficial exercise strategies, activities and other rehab interventions to improve overall quality of life and functional goals.

Breathing, Digestion, & Swallowing: Best Practices in Dysphagia Management
2020-03-20
What’s the safest diet? Is he aspirating? Can she swallow these pills? He hates the pureed food – what else can we do? She’s refusing the thick liquids! Is he going to get pneumonia? Does he need a feeding tube?
These are issues that we face every day in our work with children and adults with dysphagia. How do we keep our clients safe, while making sure they’re well hydrated and well nourished, and normalize eating as much as possible?
Sometimes, it’s about more than just swallowing.
This live webcast will examine the inter-relationships between respiration, gastro-intestinal function, and swallowing to allow clinicians to better identify the underlying causes of their client’s swallowing difficulties. We’ll look at specific respiratory and GI diagnoses and their impact on what, when, how much, and how safely our clients eat. Using clinical case studies, we’ll examine the evidence to provide you with the tools you need to perform a thorough assessment and implement a comprehensive treatment plan that takes into account all of the potential contributing factors.

Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT) - Live Webinar
2020-03-18 17:00 - 19:00 (America/Denver)
Since stroke is one of the leading conditions seen by therapists and considering stroke is the leading cause of sensorimotor disability, this is the strongest evidence-based approach to helping an individual regain motor functioning and skills. The effectiveness of this approach is well- established yet the formal structured use of this “vehicle” for stroke recovery is seldom used due to the barriers within the traditional rehabilitation model, such as insurance reimbursement. Consequently, this webinar will go over ways to implement this approach with adults and children through the modification of the traditional approach to CIMT. This workshop will give the participant another approach to add to their stroke toolbox so they can immediately implement this within the clinic or as a home program.

Practical Techniques to Address Pediatric Gait Dysfunction
2020-02-26 15:00 - 17:00 (America/Phoenix)
Pediatric gait dysfunction affects a child’s ability to explore their environment and engage easily in activities with their peers. Identifying the major structural impairments and muscular imbalances which contribute to gait dysfunction is an essential skill for the pediatric physical therapist in order to maximize the child’s functional mobility. While more invasive interventions such as Botox injections or surgery are an option, physical therapists are charged with providing more timely interventions for improved functional outcomes to optimize reimbursement for therapeutic intervention. Physical therapists need to develop biomechanical expertise in order to assess such imbalances and work cooperatively with orthotic providers to come to a team decision on progressiveorthotic intervention for improved ambulation outcomes.
This course will introduce the clinician to assessment techniques for the lower extremity as to the requirements for optimum muscle and biomechanical function for efficient gait. Participants will learn how to perform these assessments and will gain knowledge of the requirements for efficient gait. Attendees will be able to return to the clinic with a clear treatment plan for interventions and/or orthotic intervention, and when to make an informed decision to recommend moreinvasive strategies such as Botox injections or surgery.

Google Chrome for Curriculum Construction
2020-02-25 08:00 - 15:30 (America/Denver) | ADE Central Office, 3300 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, AZ, 85019, United States
From the G Suite to Chrome extensions to built-in accessibility settings, Google can support all learners in your classroom. Join us as we explore tools to assist students in the areas of reading, writing, and math, as well as with executive functioning skills that include time management, organization, task completion, and focus. We will not only explore the tools, but we will dive into effective technology implementation. We are focusing on ways to provide effective coaching to students, staff, IT, and administrators to lead to success with technology.
Mike Marotta, 2017 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Inclusive Learning Network Outstanding Educator will be your host for this one day exploration.

A Multisensory Approach to Kindergarten Readiness (Pre-K full day)
2020-02-21 08:00 - 16:30 (America/Phoenix)
This active workshop covers implementation best-practices on our new Get Set for School complete Pre-K curriculum. During this full-day center-based workshop, you will experience how to teach play-based lessons that will build students’ readiness, pre-writing, social-emotional, sensory motor, numbers, math, science, social studies, language, and literacy skills through a variety of child-friendly manipulatives, music, movement, and rhymes, as well as digital technology.

Strength Training in Geriatric Rehabilitation
2020-02-20 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Denver)

Distracted and Disorganized Kids in a Digital Generation: Techniques to Influence Neuroplasticity, Manage Screen Time & Implement Sensory Smart Movement - Prescott
2020-01-30 08:00 - 17:00 (America/Denver) | Hassayampa Inn, 122 E Gurley St, Prescott, AZ, 86301, United States

Medications: Drug-Induced Dysphagia, Complications, and Potential Treatments
2020-01-24 10:00 - 12:00 (America/Phoenix)
The therapist can have a tremendous impact in this area of adverse drug reactions, potentially preventing or reducing drug-induced dysphagia and complications from side-effects of medications. Part of our job is to dig through a patient’s medical record to uncover what could potentially be the underlying cause(s) of the symptom of dysphagia (Sheffler, 2014). Dysphagia is not a disease in-and-of-itself; therefore, ittakes a collaborative effort with the medical team to revealwhat is causing the dysphagia. One common cause could be iatrogenic (unintended adverse complications or side-effectsfrom a treatment, such as intubations or medications). Medications may be an overlooked reason for iatrogenic complications such as dysphagia, pneumonia, confusion, and falls.
A medical record review should include the potentialimpact of medications, according to the clinical guidelines set forth by both the American Speech-Language HearingAssociation (per ASHA’s Practice Portal), as well as the clinical guidelines set by the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (per RCSLT.org). Our thorough medical record review has a big impact. The Health and Social Care Information Centre in England found that 15% of hospital admissions of people with dementia with dysphagia could be prevented by contributions from a speech-language pathologist. Part of our prevention is identifying at risk patients who are on medications that could be contributing to aspiration and/or choking risks. Ruschena, et al. (2003) noted that the risk for choking in people with schizophrenia is higher due to the combination of the disease itself and the use of antipsychotics. When SLPs are aware of the risksacross a wide variety of diseases and disorders, steps can be taken to maximize patient safety (including trying to make oral intake potentially safer).

2020 Psychopharmacology 2-Day Conference
2020-01-23 08:00 - 2020-01-24 16:00 (America/Phoenix)
Spend two action-packed days learning about the newest advances in psychopharmacology and contemporary trends in medication management. From his unique perspective, Dr. Perry Buffington teaches psychopharmacology thoughtfully, with an emphasis on the experience of the client. Dr. Buffington’s years of experience in mental health and passion for clients, shines through in the detail and thoroughness of his presentation.
Clients often only have a few minutes with their prescriber and require additional support. It’s vital that you are able to answer their questions, help manage side effects and understand reactions. Designed for counselors, nurses, psychotherapists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals, Dr. Buffington provides the information you need in order to best help your clients.
This conference allows time for exploration of underrepresented areas, including ADHD, substance use disorders and psychopharmacological ethics. Take home specialized guidelines for geriatrics, and clients with chronic pain. Discuss how the DSM-5® and the Affordable Healthcare Law have impacted prescribing patterns and the use of psychotropics in newly defined diagnoses. In addition to a general ‘nuts and bolts’ review of medications, you will examine case examples, discuss medication controversies and how to effectively collaborate with prescribing practitioners. You will find this conference to have the most up-to-date medication information and how to use it most effectively with your client.
