Describe neuropsychological therapies.
Neuropsychology is a relatively new area of psychological study. Neuropsychological therapies are primarily concerned with evaluating conditions that affect brain health that are caused by injuries. The injury can be caused by concussions or head trauma, degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, and differences in brain structure, such as those differences found in individuals with dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism. Neuropsychological therapies can treat an individual’s thinking, memory, judgment, emotional functioning, and behavior. The brain conditions are evaluated by psychometric evaluations, brain scans, neurofeedback, medical reports, and laboratory tests. In the past, little was done to help individuals with brain injuries other than to treat like symptoms. Now, neuropsychological rehabilitation is used to help the brain use its own ability to heal and adapt to restore some function that might have been lost. Different methods of rehabilitation include neurofeedback training, cognitive retraining, and computerized cognitive retraining.
Describe nutrition therapy.
Nutrition therapy is used to treat a medical condition. Nutrition therapists design a plan for nutritious meals to help restore an individual to health, to help an individual change unhealthy eating habits, or to manage the effects of an illness on an individual’s health. Nutrition therapy is used to treat digestive problems such as irritable bowel syndrome, food allergies or intolerances, diarrhea, constipation, and diverticulitis. It is also used with bariatric patients who have an inability to lose weight, sugar cravings, or blood sugar imbalances. Many women’s health issues benefit from nutrition therapy, such as reoccurring urinary tract infections or yeast infections, endometriosis, and polycystic ovary syndrome. Skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and acne can also be helped with nutrition. Poor nutrition can also play a part in worsening the effects of a mental health condition. Individual with seizure disorders can be helped by nutrition therapy. There are many conditions that often don’t respond to conventional medicine that are helped with nutrition therapy. These conditions include fibromyalgia, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic fatigue syndrome.
Describe behavioral intervention services.
Behavioral therapies target specific behaviors and skills to improve an individuals’ behavior, learning, and social skills. Behavioral therapies can target educational, learning, daily living, self-care, behavioral, and communication skills. The behavioral interventionist works on discrete skills, shaping the behaviors that lead to achieving the goal through a reinforcement schedule that rewards appropriate behaviors and extinguishes aberrant behaviors. Before beginning therapy, the interventionists observes the individual while he or she performs the target behavior and determines the function of the behavior and relationship of the function to the environment. The interventionist determines the antecedent to the behavior, which is the environmental stimulus that precedes the behavior. Then he or she define the behavior in specific terms and uses specific techniques to change the behavior to a more functional, acceptable behavior. Some techniques used are task analysis, chaining, and prompting methods. The interventionists also plans a fading of supports so the individual can perform the behavior independently and determines methods to help the individual generalize the behavior to other environments and situations.
Describe psychological intervention services.
Psychological interventions are meant to help bring about a change in a person’s behavior by using different methods that apply to the individuals needs. There are many different strategies that exist that can be used to help the individual. Psychological interventions can be used to treat mental illnesses, or they can help individuals learn healthy thought patterns to prevent problems. Psychotherapy can help individuals improve or overcome compulsions, negative thoughts, undesirable behaviors, fear, and anxiety. Psychotherapy can also improve social relations, thought patterns, and self-efficacy. There are many different psychotherapy techniques, and sessions can either be one to one with the therapist or group therapy. Educational psychology is primarily concerned with a student’s ability to learn and how to adapt the academic environment and curriculum to meet the individual needs of the student. It uses psychological measures to determine the student’s cognitive abilities, adapted behavior, intellect, motivation, and self-concept.
Describe the types of nursing services.
Nurses play a significant role in healthcare services and form the largest group of health care providers in the country. A nurses job is to communicate between patients and doctors, administer medicines, and care for patients. They can work in hospitals, clinics, private practices, and care homes. Nurse specializations include surgical, obstetrics, anesthesia, dialysis, neonatal intensive care, and oncology. A registered nurse holds a nursing diploma from a nursing school or an associate degree in nursing. Registered nurses perform a wide range of duties in many different healthcare settings. Licensed practical nurses perform healthcare duties under the supervision of a registered nurse. Licensed practical nurses often provide care for young children with health conditions in the home as respite for parents. A clinical nurse director has an advanced degree and can diagnose and treat illnesses as part of their care services. Nurse practitioners work under the supervision of a physician. They have more responsibilities than other types of nurses and diagnose diseases, prescribe medications, and initiate treatment plans. Nurse case managers work with long-term care patients, coordinating their services so that they remain healthy. Home care registered nurses work with patients in their homes. Often, these patients will be geriatric or young people with developmental disabilities or mobility issues.
Describe palliative care.
The purpose of palliative care of individuals with chronic health conditions or illnesses is to improve their quality of life, help them to understand and make choices in their treatment options, and provide an extra layer of support above the curative medical help they are receiving. Palliative care specialists work with the individual, the caregivers, and the medical team. They spend time talking with the individual, understanding his or her needs, the difficulties he or she might be facing, and answering questions about different therapies, treatments, and care options. Palliative care teams can work with individuals who have severe or chronic diseases. Some of these conditions include cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, amyotrophic lateral scoliosis, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s. congestive heart failure, multiple sclerosis, and dementia.
Describe occupational therapy.
An occupational therapist helps people participate in the things they want and need to do through therapeutic use of everyday activities or “occupations.” Occupational therapist help individuals across the life span. They look at the individual’s ability to function in many different environments, doing many different activities, while at the same time incorporating knowledge about the individual’s cognitive, physical, and emotional well-being. They can help individuals with completing activities on three levels: occupation based, purposeful based, or preparatory based. An occupation-based activity has specific relevance to a client. It might be a goal that supports the individual’s health, needs, interests, and participation in daily living activities. A purposeful-based activity might be used to allow the client to develop skills that enhance his or her ability and engagement with a specific occupational task. A preparatory-based activity can strengthen, increase endurance, help with relaxation before a demanding task, or prepare the body or mind before a purposeful task, for instance, a stretching routine before typing tasks or heat packs for arthritic joints before a walking task.
Describe how intervention services compliment the acquisition of assistive technology.
The services associated with assistive technology devices are an important consideration because most devices will not be ideal without some level of practitioner involvement in training individuals in their use. Other interventions can also be important regarding the provision of assistive technology for an individual. Interventions can help keep the individual healthy, problem-solve other issues that occur because of the use of the assistive device, or maintain the individuals ability to use the device over time. Rehabilitation is an educational, problem-solving intervention that focuses on activity limitations and aims to optimize patient social participation and well-being. It is a complimentary service to assistive technology abandonment. For instance, an individual might receive a wheelchair, a period of teaching, and practice using it. Rehabilitation might focus on reducing spasticity or overuse injuries of the shoulders, back, or wrists. Intervention services can benefit the individual and help him or her realize the full advantages of an assistive technology device.
Describe alternative and culturally sensitive interventions.
Some indivudals with physical, developmental, and mental disabilites may seek alternative treatment options, either because of their own beliefs or the beliefs of the culture in which they live. They may want to pursue less invasive treatment options, or they may want complimentary treatments that are outside of typically prescribed medical, therapeutic, or rehabilitation treatment options. In some cases, alternative therapies are integrated with traditional therapies. Many people use complementary and alternative treatment methods to help with recovery. Traditional interventions are often enhanced when accompanied by alternative practices. Some complimentary interventions include exercise, yoga, meditation, massage, tai chi, and acupuncture. Many individuals with certain disabling conditions find that specialized diets, vitamins, and mineral supplements improve their symptoms. Individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, and mental disorders may find that equine therapy is a beneficial alternative treatment. It is important for the clinician to have effective communication with a client who wishes to pursue alternative interventions. In some cases, the alternative intervention can complement traditional therapies. However, there are also many unproven interventions that might be contraindicated or dangerous.
Describe social services
Social workers help people solve and cope with problems in their lives. They can help individuals, families, couples, and groups at all stages of life and for many different situations. They help individuals with disabilities, mental illness, serious illness, or drug and alcohol addiction. A social worker can be assigned to a situation by a medical professional, by a therapist, or through social programs like Head Start for infants, school districts, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). An individual can also contact social workers directly. The types of assistance a social worker can offer include help for families who have a child with a serious or life-threatening illness or a family member with a disability or mental disorder. They can act as intermediaries between medical providers and families and help determine if the therapies are sufficient and reasonable. They can help with aging members of the family, help with placement if an individual is no longer able to live at home, or connect families to services that provide help for families coping with the death of a loved one. Social workers are also concerned with matters of social justice, and many work on a larger scale to lobby for laws that help marginalized and vulnerable groups of people.
Describe recreational therapy.
Recreational therapy, also known as therapeutic recreation, is a systematic process that utilizes activity-based recreational intervention to restore, remediate, and rehabilitate an individual’s level of functioning in leisure and daily living. The activities address the assessed needs of an individual with a health issue or disabling condition that might reduce his or her quality of life and independence in recreational activities. Recreational therapy aims to reduce isolation by helping individuals participate in activities with other family members, members of their community, and social circles. After a life-changing illness or because of the effects of a disability, individuals may not be able to participate in the activities they were once able to enjoy. This can lead to anxiety, depression, and isolation. Recreational therapy helps individuals recover basic motor functioning and reasoning abilities, build confidence, and socialize effectively.
Describe educational and school-based therapies.
Educational and school-based therapies include speech and language, occupational, and physical therapy. All occupational, speech and language, and physical therapies that a child receives in a school-based environment must be supervised by a specialist licensed in his or her field. The therapists can also direct individuals, such as instructional aides, occupational therapy aides, or speech and language therapy aides, in providing services to students. Physical therapists can perform an assessment of a student, by they are unable to provide treatment to the student without diagnosis from a physician or other medical professional. The goal of school-based therapies is to provide educational benefit to the student. If the student is not able to meet the expectations of the curriculum due to the effects of a disabling condition, the evaluation determine that specific therapies are needed, and the Individualized Education Program team agrees that the therapies are necessary for a free and appropriate education, the therapies are integrated by the multidisciplinary team.
Describe durable medical equipment
Durable medical equipment (DME) is a device, such as a wheelchair, cane, ventilator, or speech-generating device that provides a benefit to an individual with a medical need and not for convenience. If the device is not useful to the individual in the absence of illness, disability, or injury, it would not be considered a medical necessity. It usually cannot be used partially as medical equipment and have other convenience features. For instance, a speech-generating device that also allows access to the World Wide Web or wheelchair controller that acts as an electronic aid for daily living (EADL) would not be considered DME. As the name implies, the device or equipment must also be durable, withstanding normal daily use. DME does not cover parts or equipment that is disposable, such as batteries, nor does it cover decorative or specialized materials that are not medically indicated or enhance functionality. DME must be prescribed by a licensed provider. Separate delivery, setup, and training costs are not eligible for reimbursement under DME.
Describe bioengineering of prosthetics.
Bioengineering, or biomedical engineering, uses engineering to solve medical or biological problems. Prostheses today are designed by biomedical engineers, and they offer more adaptability and functional use than the solely cosmetic prostheses of the past. An individual with an arm amputation can choose from myoelectric or body-powered prosthetics, depending on their needs. A myoelectric prosthetic captures the electrical signals of residual muscles to move the prosthesis. A body-powered prosthesis uses a system of cables that are harnessed to the body to move the prosthesis. Myoelectric prostheses generally have a greater range of motion and more natural looking. They don’t provide the amount of strength of a body-powered system; and body-powered systems are more durable and easier to learn how to use. Advances in bioengineering are helping invent prostheses that have the function and sensations of a natural limb. Bioengineers are working on prosthetic technologies that provide sensory feedback by providing sensory interfaces with the peripheral nerves. A promising newer technique is targeted muscle reinnervation (TMR), in which nerves are transferred to provide sensation to intact muscles and overlying skin.
Describe how vocational rehabilitation needs are met.
Every state has a federally funded agency for vocational rehabilitation (VR) for individuals with physical or mental disabilities. The services offered include vocational counseling and assessment, case management, job training, and job placement. Other services sometimes include independent living services. The organization and administration of the services differ from state to state. Some states have separate services for individuals who are blind or visually impaired, and a few state VR agencies offer separate programs for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. Vocational rehabilitation services usually pick up after educational services for a student end, offering important programs for students with disabilities who may be leaving high school without employment skills. There are also services for individuals who are already out of school but find it difficult to find or keep a job without additional training. The individual is first assessed for eligibility for VR services. If it is determined that he or she is eligible, a counselor then helps the individual identify needed services and develop an Individual Plan for Employment.
Describe Complex Rehabilitation Technology (CRT)
Complex Rehabilitation Technology (CRT) is a medically necessary products that is individually configured to the unique needs of an individual with a disability. CRT is meant to provide a higher level of functioning for an individual with complex needs, leading to better health outcomes and a greater ability to participate independently in their community. CRT is usually highly configurable wheelchairs, power wheelchairs, and adaptive seating and positioning systems. This specialized equipment requires evaluation, configuration, fitting, adjustment, or programming to meet the individual’s medical needs and maximize function and independence. The individual must demonstrate a certain level of physical or functional need from specific medical diagnoses. They include medical conditions such as spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, osteogenesis imperfecta, arthrogryposis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, demyelinating disease, myelopathy, myopathy, progressive muscular atrophy, anterior horn cell disease, post-polio syndrome, cerebellar degeneration, dystonia, Huntington’s disease, or spinocerebellar disease.
Describe surgical and pharmaceutical services.
Surgery is the cutting of body tissues to repair or remove diseased tissue, biopsy suspicious tissue, or explore for diagnosis. Surgery is used for many different types of interventions: everything from complicated organ replacement to debridement of a pressure sore to stiches to close a wound. Surgeons, the medical doctors who perform surgery, can be general surgeons or specialized to perform surgery on different organs or body systems. For instance, thoracic surgeons perform surgeries of the chest, lungs, heart valves, and diaphragm. Cardiac surgeons perform surgeries of the heart. Orthopedic surgeons perform surgeries of the musculoskeletal system. Pharmaceutical services are medicines or drugs that are used in the prevention or treatment of diseases or illnesses. Pharmaceuticals can be mainline drugs from major drug companies, experimental drugs that are being developed, and generic drugs that are usually offered at a lower cost. Drugs can be administered intravenously, by mouth, or other ways such as with creams, through inhalation, and rectally.
Describe respiratory therapy.
Respiratory therapists help indivudals with pulmonary disorders or breathing problems. They are also required to diagnosis respiratory problems and determine what treatments might be needed. They can work in hospitals, acute care centers, sleep disorder clinics, convalescent homes, or in rehabilitation, long-term care, or acute care facilities. Respiratory therapists might work with premature infants because of their undeveloped lings. They also help individuals who have had heart attacks or strokes. Many chronic conditions may also require respiratory therapy. Cystic fibrosis (CF) patients benefit from respiratory therapy. CF is an inherited disease marked by an abnormality in the body’s salt-, water-, and mucus-making cells. It causes mucus and secretions to build up on the lungs and airways. Other conditions that receive respiratory therapy include chronic respiratory diseases like asthma, bronchitis, and emphysema. Many children with cerebral palsy have oral-motor dysfunction that can lead to aspiration of food or liquid, which can lead to pneumonia. Individuals with spinal injuries or paralysis may also have breathing or lung issues. A respiratory therapist would be involved in caring for these disabilities.
Describe speech and language therapy and audiology.
Speech and language therapy and audiology are performed by specialists in communication sciences and disorders. Speech and language pathologists (SLPs) work to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, social communication, cognitive communication, and swallowing disorders in children and adults. An SLP might work with individuals who are nonverbal, have a severe expressive language disorder, and/or have difficulty with language comprehension. This can include individuals with nonfunctional speech, such as echolalia, or individuals who might want help with a speech impediment. They can help individuals with voice disorders, such as hyper nasality, or problems with breath control, vocal tone, or vocal strain. They can also help individuals who have difficulties with swallowing because of a disorder. Audiologists are professionals who provide patient-centered care in the prevention, identification, diagnosis, and evidence-based treatment of hearing, balance, and other auditory disorders. They assess individuals who might be candidates for hearing aids and cochlear implants, provide the fitting, programming, and audiological rehabilitation. They provide otoscopic examinations, counsel individuals with hearing loss and tinnitus, and provide hearing assistive technology devices.
Describe physical therapy.
Physical therapy manages pain, disability, dysfunction and/or movement disorders using therapeutic exercise, range-of-motion movements, and manual therapies (massage, electrotherapy, and hydrotherapy). A physical therapist is an expert in how a body moves and functions. They can help individuals to either regain or improve their physical abilities. Physical therapy helps restore an individual’s ability to function through minimizing physical impairment, disability-related congenital and acquired conditions, and functional limitations. There are several different means for physical therapists to provide services to individuals. They promote the health and general well-being of individuals and society by emphasizing the importance of physical activity and exercise. They treat impairments and movement restrictions that prevent individuals from participating in functional activities due to health, maximize function, and improve independence in individuals with altered movement behaviors that result from disabilities and impairments. Physical therapists also help adapt and alter the environment for better access.
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Quizlet125
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Assessment of Need32
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Development of Intervention Strategies - Action Plan34
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Implementation of Plan (Once Funded)27
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Evaluation of Intervention11
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Professional Conduct and Standards of Practice11
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Assessment Procedures10
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Human Development Through the Life Cycle7
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Knowledge of Assistive Technology Devices46
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Fundamental Functional Abilities, Capabilities, Limitations (Including Etiologies and Pathologies)31
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Service Delivery and Outcomes20
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Psychology and Sociology21
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Intervention Services20
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Environmental Integration10
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Principles of Design, Development, and Application25
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Principles of Learning and Teaching18
