Interprofessional insights in Agitation in Alzheimer's disease: An interview with the experts from Emory Integrated Memory Care.

Agitation in Alzheimer's disease (AAD) is a troubling condition experienced by many of the 6.9 million people living with Alzheimer's disease in the United States. The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) initially published an evidence-based care pathway to treat this condition, Agitation in Alzheimer's Disease: A Decision Tree for Healthcare Providers, in 2022 and updated this resource in 2023 with the International Psychogeriatric Association (IPA) consensus definition of agitation. A new, research-informed screening tool launched in November 2023, the Agitation in Alzheimer's Screener for Caregivers (AASCTM), supports care teams in identifying individuals with AAD who can benefit from the evidence-based care outlined in the decision tree. This column features an interview with interprofessional dementia care experts from Emory Integrated Memory Care who share their insights into AAD, the significance of the condition, and how care teams can use the AASCTM and other strategies to detect AAD. By detecting AAD and implementing person-centered care to address the condition, care teams can improve quality of life for the individual with the condition and their caregiver.

Caring for older adults with obesity: Applying an innovative framework to a complicated disease.

Obesity is a chronic and all too often untreated disease that contributes to diabetes, hypertension, liver and kidney disorders, and a variety of other conditions. Additionally, for older adults in particular, obesity can cause functional limitations and decreased independence. In order to support primary care teams to implement a comprehensive and contemporary approach to caring for older adults with obesity, The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) applied its KAER-Kickstart, Assess, Evaluate, Refer-Framework, initially developed as a framework to promote well-being and positive health-related outcomes for people living with dementia and for their families, to caring for older adults with obesity. Informed by an interdisciplinary expert advisory panel, GSA developed The GSA KAER Toolkit for the Management of Obesity in Older Adults. This freely available, online resource provides primary care teams with tools and resources to support older adults to recognize and care for their body size challenges and improve their overall health and well-being. Additionally, it supports primary care providers to evaluate themselves and their staff for potential biases or false beliefs so that they can provide person-centered, evidence-based care for older adults with obesity.

Nurses leading the way to age-friendly care using the 4Ms model.

The older adult population is growing in number and diversity, and this population has unique care needs that the current healthcare system is ill prepared to meet. In order to ensure older adults receive safe, person-centered care that supports their goals, the John A. Hartford Foundation has developed and, with their partners at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the American Hospital Association, and Catholic Health Association of the United States, is implementing across the United States the Age-Friendly Health Systems Initiative. This article provides an overview of the Age-Friendly Health Systems Initiative and how within it nurses can serve as leaders in ensuring age-friendly care for older adults.