What do we do at The Ness Care Group?
Here at The Ness Care Group we support those individual’s living with dementia, or concerned about their cognitive health, as well as their families and care-givers, in communities across Devon. As a specialist cognitive health organisation, we offer a variety of services designed to improve and/or maintain the physical and mental health of those who attend. Empowering them to live well for longer with dementia.
Use of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST)
In order to support this mission, we champion the use of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST), which is proven to slow the progression of dementia and increase an individual’s quality of life. CST is recommended by NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence), as a dementia therapy which can be used to support an individual’s functional ability and promote wellbeing. We use this, alongside a variety of other activities and therapies, across our services.
How we measure the impact of our treatment
How we measure the impact of our treatment. As an organisation we are unique in using an NHS validated impact measurement tool to track the changes in someone’s disease progression and prove the impact of our therapies. We use an impact measurement system called The FIMFAM Impact Measurement Tool; this is an NHS validated global assessment tool which records an individual’s functional independence in the context of their disability. FIM-FAM focuses on an individual’s physical function, alongside both their cognitive and psycho-social function, producing an overall score.
The process of assessment
At the first assessment, an individual is given a baseline score, which all other subsequent scores are tracked against. This helps us to monitor and record the impact our therapy has on an individual’s decline and make comparisons against the predicted progression of the disease. For each session an individual attends, a FIM-FAM score is created by the facilitator. With weekly data points collated for each individual, as shown in each of the graphs. We have case studies of people that The Ness have supported and monitored over a period of time using the FIM-FAM tool. You will also see a sample Impact Measurement Data Sheet. This shows how the facilitators will decide upon a score based on a series of functional independence measurement questions. The scores from each functional assessment are added together to produce a composite score.
How it has helped us tailor our support
Using FIM-FAM scores has helped us to:
- Provide statistical representation and explanation of changes to and/or improvements in an individual’s function.
- Identify trends in the data and inform families when we notice these changes so the right care and support can be added
- Monitor the progression of the individual against that of the disease.
- Tailor our sessions to support each individual’s needs.
This combination of clinical assessment, evidence based therapy and the use of a validated measurement tool makes us a unique dementia organisation across the UK. Breaking new ground in helping those in the community to live fully and independently for as long as possible.
To find out more about the services we offer or for a free complimentary consultation, contact our friendly team.