× Home Calendar Courses Club CIAO Request A Course VitalStim® Info VitalStim® Registry Products eCourse Bundles About Us Our Mission Podcasts FAQs/Forms Toys & Tools Search Contact Login!
  • BACK

    Neurodegenerative Disease Series-ALS: Symptoms, Progression, and Therapy Approaches ecourse

  • RESOURCES & DISCIPLINES       Bring This Course to You!

    Resources

    Course Calendar


    Printer Friendly

    Appropriate Disciplines

    • Certified Occupational Therapy Asst
    • Occupational Therapist
    • Speech Language Pathologist
    • Speech Language Pathology Asst
COURSE MENU

Course Description

Therapists are challenged by patients diagnosed with ALS to provide appropriate therapies and work within our standard practice of care. We must know the impact ALS has on cognition and swallowing, the impact of medications and what therapy tools/techniques can make an impact on their cognition, swallowing and quality of life. This seminar will provide information on the diagnostic process, theories on development of the disease, symptoms that present in early ALS as well as the later stages. Medications may improve quality of life for our patients but may also become ineffective. Medication protocols will be discussed as well as CAM or complimentary alternative medicine. Numerous therapy techniques and tools available will be presented with rationale for their use. Recommendations for modified diets, liquids or even NPO may not be acceptable to the patient and/or family. As therapists, we need to know what options are available and educate/inform our patients and families to allow them to make decisions that work for them. Options will be addressed as well as concerns with waivers and need for appropriate, thorough documentation.



This is a recording of a live stream presentation.

Course Requirements:
  • Computer with internet and working speakers/sound are required for this course.
  • Course must be completed within 30 days of activation (activate course within 6 months of purchase).
  • An online multiple-choice quiz (80% passing score) and submission of an online evaluation form are required for successful completion.
  • A certificate of completion will be available to print immediately after course is successfully completed.
  • SLPs - ASHA CEUs may be obtained by completing the online ASHA form and checking the "Report to ASHA" box.

Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:

  • list specific symptoms of ALS and the impact these have on cognition and swallowing
  • identify possible adverse side effects of medications and CAM
  • analyze exercises and tools to construct an appropriate therapy plan for the ALS patient
  • educate and explain options for nutrition/hydration to assist patients and family in their decision making for modifications and quality of life

Denise Dougherty

MA, CCC-SLP

Denise Dougherty, MA, CCC-SLP
Denise owns and operates a private practice in Indiana, PA, where she conducts therapy with both children and adults. She is a legal consultant/expert witness in wrongful death/negligence lawsuits involving dysphagia. Denise is a co-editor of Private Practice Essentials: A Practical Guide for Speech-Language Pathologists, published by ASHA Press. She has presented workshops and written numerous articles appearing in the ASHA Leader on the topic of private practice. Denise served as a consultant for The Arijah Children’s Foundation in Anguilla, BWI, providing evaluations and therapy programs for special needs children. Ms. Dougherty was an adjunct faculty member at York College of Pennsylvania and Wesley College in Dover, Delaware. She is a past President of the American Academy of Private Practice in Speech Pathology and Audiology (AAPPSPA), and received the Academy’s 2007 Honor Award and 2014 Award of Excellence for her achievements. Ms. Dougherty is a member of the Technical Experts Panel for Quality of Insights of Pennsylvania, working on initiating quality measures for CMS to improve effectiveness, efficiency, economy and quality of services delivered to Medicare beneficiaries. She received her bachelor’s degree in communication disorders from Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania; a master’s degree in communication disorders from St. Louis University. Ms. Dougherty is certified in VitalStim® therapy and is a VitalStim® instructor, has completed additional training in orofacial myology, is a member of the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association and has received numerous ASHA ACE Awards. For more information, please visit www.dldspeechpath.com.

Financial Disclosure Denise receives honoraria from CIAO for the presentation of her live courses and royalties for the sale of her online courses. Denise is in private practice and receives legal consultant/expert witness fees
Non-Financial Disclosure: There are no non-financial relationships to disclose.

19 Minutes
Overview of Neurodegenerative Disorders
65 Minutes
Diagnosis, ALS, Symptoms and Co-morbidities
80 Minutes
The M’s! Mouth care and Medications including CAM, Side Effects and Medication Review
40 Minutes
Assessments for Cognition and Swallowing
46 Minutes
Literature Review, Studies and Take-Aways
37 Minutes
Nutrition, Hydration and Therapeutic Interventions
4.8 Hours
Total

Delivery VIA:

  • Online - This course is offered in an online, on demand format.
  • Club CIAO - Club CIAO: This course is also part of Club CIAO, our all-you-can-eat buffet of online courses for one low price. Club CIAO Members also receive 25% off of all Live Stream courses!

Contact hours pre-approved for:

  • 4.5 Hours
  • CIAO is an ASHA Approved Provider (0.45 ASHA CEUs) bubble sheet required
  • CIAO is an AOTA Approved Provider #4119 (0.45 AOTA CEUS)
  • This course meets PDU requirements for NBCOT (4.5 PDUs)
  • Approved for:
  • 5.0 Hours OT/COTAs in FL (CE Broker #20-975948)

Course meets requirements for:

  • AOTA Classification Codes: Domain of OT: Activity Demands OT Process: Evaluation, Intervention

    • The assignment of AOTA CEUs does not imply endorsement of specific course content, products, or clinical procedures by AOTA.


    Intermediate Level
    0.45 ASHA CEUs


    CIAO is recognized on the NBCOT Provider Registry (meets PDU requirements for NBCOT)


    Reviews

    The instructor was great, informative, easy to listen to!

    - Bowling Green, KY / Nov 2022

    Thank you. Good course.

    - Weehawken , NJ / Aug 2022

    I enjoyed this course!

    - Union, MS / Jan 2022

    excellent course!

    - Bluff City, TN / Aug 2021

    good info

    - Forney, TX / Jul 2021

    Great class!

    - Summit Station, OH / Oct 2020

    Learned a lot ….very practical and valuable information. Great lecture notes and resources.

    - Honolulu, HI / Mar 2020

    It would be useful to have more time to access the course..

    - Blacklion, NY / Dec 2019

    I thought the course instructor was absolutely excellent. I have a very hard time sitting still and paying attention in general, and with her I made sure I set aside time where I could sit and listen intently vs. multi-task because I felt her knowledge, explanation, application, was very compelling and informative.

    - St. Louis, MO / Nov 2019

    Nice presentation

    - Jacksonville, FL / Aug 2019

    I am a pediatric OT. I took this course because my father was recently diagnosed with ALS and I was intrigued. My suggestion is that the quiz follow along more with the power point as it took me quite a bit of time to find the answers as I have never worked with an adult, so some questions were difficult to answer off the top of my head, even though I had just watched the webinar. Great information and resources I can pass on though!

    - Spring , TX / Jul 2019

    Great course!

    - Springfield, VA / Apr 2019