New Ecumen White Paper Offers 5 Key Steps to Reducing Antipsychotics in Dementia Care

Senior care professionals and nursing homes are challenged to conform to the 2012 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services initiative to decrease off-label use of antipsychotics. In many cases, the struggle comes from within – initiating change and formulating an integrated and personalized approach to dementia care.

Ecumen, a pioneer in changing the culture of care for those with Alzheimer’s and related dementias, recently released a white paper titled, “Reducing Antipsychotics in Dementia Care: 5 Key Steps to Success,” based on its award-winning Awakenings™ program.  The white paper can be downloaded at www.EcumenAwakenings.org/5steps.

The five key steps outlined in the white paper are based on Ecumen’s five-year journey to reduce the use of highly-sedating antipsychotics in dementia care. Awakenings started as a small pilot in a remote northern Minnesota nursing home by two courageous and determined women who decided they could no longer tolerate the national norm of excessive use of chemical restraints on the nursing home residents.

Between 2010 and 2013, Ecumen Awakenings decreased the dosage or discontinued use of more than 1,000 psychotropic medications and reduced the use of antipsychotics among people with a diagnosis of psychosis by 97 percent.

Ecumen’s Awakenings program, which won the 2014 LeadingAge Excellence in Dementia Care Award, is used in all 15 Ecumen nursing homes. It is now being introduced to 14 assisted living communities.


BYU Radio Explores Awakenings in Interview with Ecumen Nurses

Brigham Young University's Morning Show featured a 30-minute interview with Ecumen nurses about the Ecumen Awakenings program.

Shelley Matthes, RN, Director of Quality Improvement, and Maria Reyes, RN, Awakenings Project Director, were interviewed live on the air Wednesday about the history and accomplishments of the program in reducing the use of antipsychotic medications on dementia patients.  The interview is at this link and begins about 5 minutes into the program.

The Morning Show is heard on the BYU Campus and online around the world by students, alumni and friends of the University. The station broadcasts to a nationwide audience of more than 56 million listeners on SiriusXM satellite radio, mobile apps and Dish TV Network. Learn more at http://www.byuradio.org/about.


Top 5 Most-Popular Blog Posts - December 15

Did you miss last week's most-read Changing Aging blog posts? Ecumen's online visitors found these articles most interesting:

NPR Story Highlights Ecumen Awakenings Approach to Dementia Care
Ecumen Awakenings once again received national attention for its innovative approach to dementia care. National Public Radio (NPR) aired a three-part series on the dangers of medicating elderly dementia patients with antipsychotic drugs. The third segment - titled "This Nursing Home Calms Troubling Behavior Without Risky Drugs" - focused entirely on Ecumen Awakenings as an example of a better way to care for those with Alzheimer's. Read more...

Top 10 Gifts for Seniors: Ecumen Staff Offers Advice
Because the following was one of our most popular posts last holiday season, it's here for a return engagement. We recently polled staff at several Ecumen communities for their advice on holiday gift-giving for seniors, particularly those who are in assisted living or care centers. Here are the top ten suggestions... Read more...

Ecumen Nurse Maria Reyes' Personal "Awakenings" and Triumph Over Adversity
Ecumen Quality Improvement Nurse Maria Reyes learned valuable lessons taking care of her grandmother as a young teenager in Puerto Rico - lessons that still guide her today as she teaches other professionals about honoring and empowering the seniors in their care. Read more...

Ecumen Employee Gabbi Langan: "I Love Every Single Day"
Outside the main office at Ecumen Prairie Lodge in Brooklyn Center, several people are trying to load a large television set into a small car. One of them is Gabbi Langan, who is the new manager in charge of Prairie Lodge. It's an insight into her management style. Gabbi is a hands-on problem-solver, and no problem is too big or too small. Read more...

Home for the Holidays: Red Flags That Aging Parents Need Help
It's not at all unusual for adult children to come home for the holidays and see signs their aging parents are in declining health - a messy house, unopened mail, unwashed clothes. It's also not unusual that the first response is one of panic. The Star Tribune offers some advice from experts on what to do if you see things that concern you... Read more...

You can read these articles and more at www.ecumen.org.

 

 


NPR Story Highlights Ecumen Awakenings Approach to Dementia Care

Ecumen Awakenings™ once again received national attention for its innovative approach to dementia care.

This week National Public Radio (NPR) aired a three-part series on the dangers of medicating elderly dementia patients with antipsychotic drugs.  The third segment — titled “This Nursing Home Calms Troubling Behavior Without Risky Drugs” — focused entirely on Ecumen Awakenings™ as an example of a better way to care for those with Alzheimer’s.

NPR Reporter Ina Jaffe visited Ecumen Pathstone Living in Mankato to take a first-hand look at how Awakenings works.  “It seems residents can always find something to do around here,” she reports. “That can help to relieve the agitation common in some people with Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia — agitation that in other nursing homes might be managed with antipsychotic drugs.”

Click on the audio report below, or go to NPR for the written report.  Also click here to see more stories on Awakenings that have appeared in the media.

 


Top 5 Blog Posts - October 6

Baby Elsie, our youngest volunteer, topped Ecumen's list of most popular blog posts last week. In case you missed out, here are the stories our online visitors found most interesting.

Elsie Williams, 9 Months Old, is Changing Aging as Ecumen's Youngest Volunteer

"Smile" on Ecumen When You Shop on Amazon

Dr. John Brose on Dementia Care: It Doesn't Have to Be This Way

Adeline Carlson, a Gold Star Mother Living at Ecumen Detroit Lakes, Remembers That Day - Always 

Star Tribune Highlights Ecumen's Efforts to Make Communities More Age Friendly

To read more Changing Aging stories or Ecumen news, please visit www.ecumen.org. 

 

 

 


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St Croix Hospice Wins Annual Golf Outing, Helps Raise Money for Alzheimer's Care

Ecumen hosted its annual golf outing on Monday, Sept. 8, at Midland Hills Country Club in Roseville. Over 80 golfers came out to support Ecumen Awakenings, a nationally honored care approach that significantly reduces the “chemical restraints” and sedating medications often prescribed to people with Alzheimer’s and dementia.

Read more


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Ecumen and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Form Partnership to Address Rural Senior Care Shortage

New nursing education partnership and workforce development partnership launched by Ecumen and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities supported by $1.9 million Margaret A. Cargill Foundation grant.

Read more


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National Senior Living Publication Highlights the Ecumen Awakenings Program

Senior Housing News (SHN), the leading source for news and information about the senior housing industry, recently highlighted the Ecumen Awakenings™ approach to dementia care that focuses on reducing the inappropriate us of antipsychotic drugs to address behavioral issues.

Read how Awakenings has improved lives and, at the same time, saved significant Medicare/Medicaid costs in the story headlined How Ecumen’s Dementia Care Program Ditched Meds and Saved Millions.”


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Ecumen Named One of Minnesota's Best Workplaces for Ninth Time by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal

Ecumen has been named for the ninth time among the 2014 Best Places To Work in Minnesota by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. 
 
Ecumen is one of 53 companies that received the honor, out of about 200 companies vying for the award. Ecumen, the only senior housing and services company on this year’s list, was honored in the large-company category along with organizations such as U. S. Bancorp, Polaris Industries, Ameriprise and HealthPartners. Rankings are based on employee surveys in a variety of categories such as work environment, teamwork, embracing innovation, people practices, and personal growth and development.
 
“We are so pleased that our employees voted Ecumen a Best Place To Work for the ninth time, especially because our workplaces are the homes of the thousands of residents we serve and are major employers in many of their local communities,” said Robin Dunbar Balck, Ecumen’s senior vice president of human resources and strategic alignment. “Caring for our residents is such important work, and our dedicated employees fully embrace the Ecumen culture of innovation, empowerment and honor.”
 
Ecumen employs nearly 4,000 people, primarily in Minnesota and also operates in Wisconsin, North Dakota, Nebraska, Michigan, Tennessee and Idaho, serving more than 10,000 seniors. Click here to see the Business Journal’s profile of Ecumen
 
Jobseekers are encouraged to learn more about Ecumen and to view current job openings at www.ecumen.org/careers
 
 
 

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Last Week's Top 5 Blog Posts - August 25

In case you missed out on the latest Changing Aging news, here are the blog posts our online visitors found most interesting last week, including: How I'm Preparing to Get Alzheimer's, Bremer Grant at Pelican Valley, Art at Lakeshore and Century Birthdays.

Follow the links below to read these great stories:

TED Talk Video: How I'm Preparing to Get Alzheimer's

Pelican Valley Health Center Receives $65,000 Grant for New High-Tech Alert System from Otto Bremer Foundation

Ecumen Century Club: Guthrie Theater Legend Annette Garceau Celebrates Her 101st Birthday

Ecumen Century Club: Happy 102nd Birthday Muriel Swenson

The Pure Enjoyment of Art at Ecumen Lakeshore

To read more Changing Aging blog posts or to learn more about Ecumen, please visit www.ecumen.org!