Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or COPD, is a prevalent diagnosis in patients admitted to nursing homes. The Global Initiative for COPD, or GOLD, defines COPD as a disease that: is characterized by airflow limitation that is not fully reversible; is usually progressive; and is associated with an abnormal inflammatory response of the ...

One of the more difficult experiences a family faces is choosing to place a loved one in a Skilled Nursing Facility for long-term care. SLPs in long-term care meet families almost daily who are experiencing worry, fear, guilt, anxiety, and possibly even anger - at themselves, at loved ones, and at other causes of the need to seek long-term ...

Executive functioning goals can be addressed using mainstream apps when a skilled therapist adds coaching and cueing. Executive functioning is the highest level of cognitive function - encompassing the ability to set goals, plan, initiate, and self-monitor with self-awareness and self-correction. Commonly impaired in brain injured individuals and ...

The literature on the effectiveness of memory training in acquired brain injury is mixed, but there is some evidence that training memory strategies in people with mild impairments can improve functional outcomes.  Search the App Store for ''memory'' and you'll find an assortment of apps that recreate the children's matching card game ...

I think every SLP's goal for dysphagia patients is to have them eat and enjoy a ''normal'' diet. Depending on the etiology of the swallowing dysfunction, and the patient's response to treatment, there are various diet levels and liquid consistencies that can be considered. Patient preferences, and the willingness of the patient and their family ...

Short-term goals are our steps toward long-term goals and should be seen as milestones that we can use to help the patient to reach along the way to attaining a functional outcome. Therapists identify skills to target as short-term goals that can be learned in a specific time frame of three weeks or so, and these  should be updated as ...

When do you elicit a language sample? Certainly when you first see a child you would want to take a language sample. However, if the child is not comfortable on the initial assessment, there is nothing written in stone that says that it has to be completed the first time around. That in itself should tell you something. I feel that ...

Blog Comment: ''Please correct your meter from 'to loud' to 'too loud.''' - D. To D: So sorry about the error. That tells me you are a close reader, and I appreciate the correction. I have made the change to the Loud Meter, as you can see below. Please feel free to print it off and use it with your clients. Thanks so much for following my ...

Dear Kathie: ''Chad is 5 years old and ‘very' autistic and non-verbal. He covers his ears with his hands when there is a loud noise, such as a fire alarm, or even when he anticipates a loud noise, like a balloon that he thinks may pop. How can I help him, his classroom teacher, and his parents? - Payton, speech-language pathologist My ...

Dear Kathie: ''My question concerns Julie, who is a middle school student with ASD. She is bright, verbal, possibly Asperger's, and is included in the regular classroom for most academics. The problem is that she refuses to do any written classroom assignments when the other students are doing theirs. She says ''No,'' lays her head on her ...