SLUMS Cognitive Screening

                                                                

Today in my Neuro Aspects course in Occupational Therapy school, I got the opportunity to administer a cognitive screening in a simulation with a client that had a recent history of a stroke. When explaining what cognition is to someone without medical experience or schooling, I would start by describing it as how our mind works – our thoughts, memory, personality and problem-solving all encased in one. If someone asked me about the role of an Occupational Therapist working with those with cognitive disorders, I would make sure to reiterate that our scope of practice is based heavily on the mental aspect of a human’s life. To follow that phrase, we work on trying to mend their cognition through therapeutic services or trying to adapt their routines, hobbies, jobs, and interests to accommodate to their mind set.

SLUMS Cognitive Screening (free online)

When giving the screening, I was not able to finish the last question due to the time restriction. However, from my observations of the previous questions I was able to get through, it seems like my client would possibly have a mild cognitive impairment. The biggest indicator of this for me was the client was not able to draw a clock with the time set to 10 minutes to 11. This client pushed all the numbers to the right side, and this indicated to me that she has left neglect. Left neglect is a common after effect of a client who has recently went through a R hemisphere CVA. The types of challenges that a client with mild cognitive impairment may experience are forgetfulness, impulsiveness, and a sense of being overwhelmed. They may need some adaptations, cues, and changes in their routines to help the flow of their day-to-day experiences and to prioritize their safety. At the beginning of simulation, I explained to the client what Occupational Therapy is and I believe that I explained in a way that she was able to understand and relate. I adapted it by explained the overall purpose of our therapy, the population we work with and what are things that we do in sessions to help them get back to what they love. When I broke it down like this, I felt like she was able to understand the full picture of what Occupational Therapists do. 

I felt like I did a good job making the client feel comfortable around me. I was trying to communicate with her like a friend and I sat next to her, on her level, to establish rapport. If I was given the opportunity to do this again, I would try to take the first 5 minutes to get to know the client better one on one. I think this would allow me to understand her thought process, relate to her more, and make her feel safe with me. My biggest takeaway from this process is that no matter how much time we are restricted to with the screening, it is so important that we bring a comforting demeanor and lighthearted persona because this will allow them to feel much better around us, like they are cared for and heard. I have learned that I need to continue to practice my soft skills with patients to feel more confident about it when interacting.