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Courses Offered Professional seminars provided by Marcie Cooper have been approved for continuing education credit by the New Jersey Board of Social Work Examiners for Social Workers and the Commission for Case Manager Certification for Case Managers (CCM). They are also recognized by the National Commision for Certifying Agencies for Registered Nurses and Licensed Practical Nurses continuing education requirements. Licensed Nursing Home Administrator (LNHA) credit and/or Certified Assisted Living Administrator (CALA) credits are available upon request. Please note that if the program is approved for clinical content, that will be designated by a (C). If the program is approved for ethics content, that will be designated by an (E). 1. CONTROVERSIES IN HEALTHCARE ETHICS (E) There is a growing interest in medical ethics stemming from an increase in complex decision-making and other ethical dilemmas. This seminar will assist health care professionals who struggle with questions concerning what is right when facing difficult situations. Participants will explore case examples and discuss realistic circumstances that health care professionals face in today’s health care environment. We will explore ethical approaches to issues involving confidentiality, conflicts of interest, deception, disagreements over care, self-determination, informed consent, refusal of treatment and capacity. 2. SELF-NEGLECT OF OLDER PERSONS: Challenges for Health Care Professionals Self-neglect represents the highest percentage of elder abuse cases. The Public Policy Institute of AARP estimates that self-neglect represents 40 to 50 percent of cases reported to Adult Protective Services. Self-abusers do not fit a uniform profile as there are many factors that may lead to self-neglect. Particpants in this seminar will learn of indicators of self-neglect, ways to assess for this complex problem and intervention strategies. Participants will become knowledgeable of the challenge of balancing the individual's right to autonomy with society's obligation to protect at-risk adults.
3. THE THERAPEUTIC LIE: Ethics and Truth-Telling (E)Health care professionals often times use "white lies" to redirect clients with dementia; clinicians may withhold the truth in an effort to hold out hope for terminally ill patients. Participants in this seminar will learn of philosophical principles of lying and how to apply them to ethical issues that are faced in health care today. The pros and cons of using the therapeutic lie to reframe a message to clients will be discussed. Participants will also learn to apply the ethical principles of benefience and non-malificence when dealing with clients who lack mental capacity.
4. IMPROVING CLIENT SERVICE IN HEALTH CARE Health care professionals often face competing challenges from clients, families and the agencies in which they work. Client treatment outcomes are often a reflection of the client’s perception of the care they receive and the satisfaction they experience from the services provided. This seminar will enable health care providers to identify the client in a broad context including the family system and the facility, hospital or agency. Participants will understand the dynamics affecting the difficult, non-compliant client and learn ways to deal with challenging behaviors. Strategies will be taught to improve service delivery, client satisfaction and client care. 5. RECOGNIZING SOCIAL BIAS: Bringing Equality to Health Care
There is a challenge for health care professionals to affirm a commitment to social justice. This affirmation challenges the health care provider to recognize widespread and inherent justices that are present. Significant strides have been made toward protecting the rights and dignities of our clients but portions of the population are still less than optimally treated. This seminar will deal with biases that are present in our health care system. Populations discussed will include the “difficult” “non-compliant” patient. In this seminar, participants will gain an understanding of the emotional and psychological needs of all patients. Participants will learn the processes involved in adapting policy and program changes to deal with social bias in their agencies and practice. 6. THE MANY FACES OF DEMENTIA (C) There are different types of dementia and the type depends on the medical condition that causes the impairment in cognitive functioning. The most common are Alzheimer's Disease and Vascular and Multi-Infarct Dementia, but there are others as well including Pick’s Disease, Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease, Huntington’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease. Certain dementias, because of their cause, are sometimes reversible. This course will help participants recognize the symptoms of dementia, learn of ways to evaluate for the disorder and identify causes of various dementia processes. Treatment options and caregiver support services and programs will be discussed. 7. BIOETHICAL DECISION-MAKING: Considerations for Advance Planning (E) As the American health care system grows more complex, especially in the wake of the Terri Schiavo case, there is a growing public awareness of the need for advance planning involving end of life decisions. Conflicts among health care professionals, patients, families and payors are almost inevitable given the growing number of choices available, particularly when it comes to terminal prognoses and death. Participants in this seminar will learn of the controversy surrounding the living will, the use of the out-of-hospital do not resuscitate order and legal considerations of capacity that impact the individual’s right to voluntary decision making. Issues of voluntary versus involuntary approaches to ethical decision making will be explored using clinical examples. 8. ELDER CARE-PLANNING The process of linking the appropriate antidote to problems facing older adults in today's healthcare environment can be a daunting task. As helping professionals, we are often called upon to guide older adults and their families through complex systems. The medical, legal, financial, housing and social work professions have created independent areas of expertise that often leave the older adult and professional unsure as to where to begin. This course will alleviate the confusion and provide a perspective to elder care that addresses the biological, psychological, financial and social needs of older adults. A framework for assessment, care planning, and negotiating the options will be provided. Participants will learn of services, products and resources available to help elderly individuals remain in the least restrictive setting. From early planning, to home services, to residential healthcare facilities, attendees will be able to help frail and vulnerable adults maintain the highest quality of life. 9. ASSESSMENT IN GERONTOLOGY (C) Healthcare professionals are being called upon to assess a wide range of problems experienced by older adults. Assessments are required in a variety of settings including hospitals, rehabilitation centers, adult day care, hospice, assisted living and skilled nursing facilities. This seminar will discuss principles of geriatric assessment, psychopathology in later life, behavioral disorders in older adults, assessment of cognition and evaluating aspects of everyday functioning. Assessment of depression, anxiety disorders, dementia, delirium and capacity will be discussed. The geriatric clinician will gain tools necessary to evaluate the individual needs of their elderly client. 10. BIOETHICAL MEDIATION: Conflict Resolution in Health Care (E) Bioethics mediation is a guide to the resolution of difficult decisions about appropriate health care. Bioethical mediation embraces all the interests of the parties and assures that decisions are based on respect for all the people affected and on the rights of the patient. This seminar will provide a theoretical framework for understanding how mediation can be used effectively to resolve conflicts that arise in health care settings. Participants will learn basic mediation techniques and how they can be helpful when dealing with complex family and institutional dynamics. 11. ETHICAL DILEMMAS FOR PROFESSIONALS IN GERIATRICS (E) Ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, justice and fidelity are five of the values geriatric professionals practice to guide moral decision-making. This course will provide an overview of these ethical principles and learn how they inform our work. Critical issues of self-determination, informed consent, confidentiality and end-of-life decisions will be explored. Through case examples and a discussion of bioethical literature and research, participants will learn how ethics are the framework of geriatric clinical work. 12. GUARDIANSHIP and ALTERNATIVES: Protecting & Preserving the Rights of Vulnerable Adults To effectively work with adults who are vulnerable and at risk, it is important to understand the clinical and legal implications influencing mental competency. This course will offer an understanding of social work and legal aspects involved when working with individuals who lack the capacity for decision-making and are at risk for harm or exploitation. An overview of options to be considered when determining capacity will be provided. Assessment and evaluation skills will be obtained from a clinical perspective. Participants will gain an appreciation of how social service providers and the legal system can effectively work together to address the needs and enhance the lives of vulnerable adults. 13. HOARDING BEHAVIOR: From Clutter to Chaos (C) The traditional definition of hoarding is the acquisition of, and failure to discard, a large number of possessions that appear to be useless or of limited value. While this definition provides a general description of the phenomenon of hoarding, it does not provide a basis to distinguish hoarding as a behavioral phenomenon from hoarding as a clinical symptom. Many healthcare professionals have faced clients whose living spaces have become so cluttered as to preclude activities for which those spaces were designed. This course will teach professionals to help their clients who have significant impairment in functioning caused by compulsive hoarding. Participants will explore the health, safety and mental health implications of hoarding by older adults and implications for treatment. 14. DEMENTIA, DELIRIUM, DEPRESSION: A Differential Diagnosis (C) The prevalence of dementia, delirium and depression in the elderly has been recognized, researched and treated with varying degrees of effectiveness. Many of the causes for these pervasive disorders are reversible. It is incumbent upon the geriatric care giving community to be knowledgeable of assessment tools, evaluative procedures and diagnostic criteria so that treatment modalities can be explored and utilized appropriately. Through this course, participants will learn the features that differentiate dementia, depression and delirium. They will gain skills in identifying behavioral disorders that often accompany these diagnoses and learn of interventions and treatment, both pharmacological and non-pharmacological, that have proven to be effective in treating these behaviors. 15. SUICIDE IN THE ELDERLY (C) The elderly have the highest rate of completed suicide of all age groups. In the United States, white males aged 80 and older have 6 times the overall national rate. Diagnostic and therapeutic programs designed specifically for the depressed elderly are now being developed. Geriatric practitioners need to be aware of the methods of suicide assessment, treatment and prevention. Participants in this session will gain an understanding of depression in the elderly and discern trends, causes and motives for suicide specific to this age group. Suicide treatment methods and prevention will be explored, including the recognition and response to suicidal behavior. Attendees will learn how suicide in the elderly differs from other age groups, be able to identify those at risk for suicide, and learn appropriate responses to suicidal ideation and gestures.
16. THE SPIRITUAL DIMENSION OF AGING (C) Spirituality and religion can provide individuals with a framework through which they see, interpret and comprehend the world, others and themselves. This course will provide an overview of the role of religion, faith and belief systems that have an effect on the bio/psycho/social aspects of life as we age. Participants will explore psychological models of development, including Jung, Erikson and Maslow, and learn how they effect spiritual growth in the aging process. All areas will be viewed in a clinical context, providing program participants with assessment tools and critical thinking abilities to help them understand the complex needs of the aging population. 17. SUBSTANCE ABUSE AMONG OLDER ADULTS (C) Researchers are only beginning to realize the pervasiveness of substance abuse among people aged 65 and older. Until relatively recently, prescription drug misuse and alcohol abuse, which effects as many as 17 percent of older adults, was not discussed in either the substance abuse or the gerontological literature. Health care providers tend to overlook substance abuse and misuse among older people, mistaking the symptoms of those of dementia, depression or other problems common to older people. In addition, older adults are more likely to hide their substance abuse and less likely to seek professional help. Many relatives of older individuals with substance use disorders, particularly adult children, choose not to address it. The result is that thousands of older adults who need treatment do not receive it. In this seminar, participants will learn of risk factors, barriers to identification, and appropriate referral and treatment approaches.
18. ELDER ABUSE: Age Old Problem, New Perspective (C) Abuse of older persons has gained public attention with an increased awareness of the need to respond decisively to this complex problem. Detection of elder abuse is dependent on awareness, knowledge and understanding of the problem as well as the recognition of indicators and effects of mistreatment. This course will provide an opportunity to consider effective responses to abuse and violence. Participants will learn methods of prevention, identification and treatment of elder abuse. The subject will be viewed in a clinical context, providing participants with assessment tools and critical thinking abilities to help them understand this growing problem that faces our aging population. 19. SEXUALITY, INTIMACY AND AGING (C) The growing numbers of older adults have resulted in the increased focus in the areas of health, housing and economics. However, little consideration has been given to the emotional needs of older adults for intimacy, love, and sexual fulfillment. This seminar will provide a clinical overview of the physical, behavioral, psychological and social aspects of sexuality as is pertains to the aged. Normal sexual functioning will be explored as well as sexual dysfunction, sexual behavior in residential and healthcare facilities and sexual expression in specific populations, such as those with dementia. Participants will learn how to assess for sexual problems, gain an understanding of treatment options and learn effective interventions. 20. MUSIC THERAPY FOR THE NON-MUSICIAN (C) Music, the universal language, possesses qualities that can impact people emotionally, physically and socially. In this seminar, the use of music in therapy will be explored from a clinical perspective. Participants will gain an understanding of the effects of music in neurological and physical functioning and the goals and responses to music in treatment. Musical activities that are effective in working with individuals and groups with diagnoses of dementia, Parkinson’s Disease and aphasia will be discussed. The non-musician will learn techniques that they can apply to their clinical work with populations with physical, cognitive and emotional impairment.
21. COPING WITH TRANSITIONS IN LATER LIFE (C) Transitions occur throughout the life cycle. The experience of aging is one of living with life-altering experiences. Successful aging and adaptation to new situations requires coping with inevitable losses, accepting one’s new life positively and beginning again to create a meaningful life. By taking a proactive approach, we can help the elderly achieve a successful adjustment to new life experiences. Participants will learn the effect that life transitions have on older adults. They will be able to identify individual coping responses and acquire the skills necessary to help elderly individuals successfully adjust to new life situations. 22. RESPONDING TO MAJOR DISASTERS: Mental Health Intervention for Older Adults (C) Mental health intervention is a crucial component of a disaster response and recovery program. A clinical response to crisis, disaster and trauma is important to provide counseling, debriefing, treatment and case management. The vulnerabilities experienced by older adults are likely to become exacerbated during times of disaster and during the recovery process. In fact, disaster mental health training literature classify older adults as an “at-risk” group. This course will provide professionals with the knowledge and tools to appropriately respond to the needs of older adults in the time of crisis and disaster. | ||
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