Person-Environment-Occupation-Performance: Promoting Engagement, Preventing Excess Disability and Enhancing Quality of Life in Persons with Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias

While much has been done to decrease or eliminate barriers to participation in life for individuals with disabilities, individuals with Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia have fared less favorably. Declines in function frequently attributed to the natural progression of the disease may, in reality, be preventable excess disability due to lack of knowledge or limited resources to facilitate the individual's engagement, and maintain his/her quality of life. Given that Alzheimer's patients may survive as many as many as 15 or more years from the time of diagnosis, it is imperative that we address health promotion, wellness and quality of life for individuals with Alzheimer's and other dementias and their caregivers. We must move from a position of “waiting to die from Alzheimer's” to “learning to live” with these conditions. The first step, is to have an understanding of the process of retrogenesis, cognitive and functional losses; the second step is to understand the role that the person's environments (physical, social, economic, cultural, etc.,) play on their functional performance and their ability to engage in life; the third step is to make a commitment to address these issues from a public health perspective. This presentation is based on clinical experiences and the application of an occupational model of practice to prevent excess disability in this population, and promote the highest possible degree of wellness for individuals living with Alzheimer's disease and other related dementias and their caregivers.