Riverside Health System announces the launch of the Martha W. Goodson Center, which provides expanded memory care services to support patients and caregivers in navigating the difficulties of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological and memory conditions, before, during and after diagnosis. The Center encompasses five pillars – Memory Care, Caregiver and Loved One Support, Clinical Services, Education and Research – offering highly customized programs, resources and support to educate the community around healthy aging.
Dementia is not part of the normal aging process, and is often tied to other conditions like diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol. There are also many variations of the disease, leaving many who are diagnosed left wondering what their next steps should be. Early detection and diagnosis are key to ensuring the highest quality of life for memory care patients and their caregivers, but due to lack of education many of the signs go unnoticed and families are left without proper support.
The Martha W. Goodson Center takes a unique approach to guiding community members and their care partners – providing multidisciplinary support and care navigation that reaches across clinical, spiritual and pharmaceutical specialties while also working to educate and change people’s thinking around memory care conditions. Caregivers are offered their own set of support services, helping them to maintain their sense of identity while standing strong as a partner to their loved one throughout diagnosis and care.
“Neurological and memory care conditions can be a very overwhelming diagnosis for a patient but also for their family. Our goal with the Martha W. Goodson Center is to provide holistic support for the whole family, walking alongside them throughout the trajectory of the disease,” said Tina Thomas, Executive Director of Memory Care at Riverside Health System. “We support people first and the disease second. With our personalized care plans and individualized approach, we want these families to feel that they have a path forward, helping them live their best life despite a difficult diagnosis.”
The journey at the Martha W. Goodson Center begins with a cognitive screening and physical assessment prior to diagnosis from a team of highly skilled Riverside professionals, ranging from physicians to speech therapists. This comprehensive evaluation is only step one, providing a baseline for the patient and their caregiver. If a patient is diagnosed with a neurological or memory condition, they are paired with a care navigator who’s responsible for crafting an individualized approach to education and multidisciplinary care that offers support for the patient and their loved ones.
“At Riverside, we believe in caring for others as we would care for those we love. The Martha W. Goodson Center was established under this mission, offering empathy, guidance and specialized care that wraps around these families throughout their entire journey,” said Ed Heckler, President of Lifelong Health for Riverside Health System. “By adding the Center to our network of care, we have maximized our ability to coordinate care for patients with neurological and memory conditions across our entire community.”
Feature programs and resources available through the Martha W. Goodson Center include caregiver support groups, social engagement programs, driver rehabilitation programs, medication review programs and dementia-specific training for clinical teams, among other educational and emotional support resources.
No referral is needed to engage in the programs and resources available through the Center. For more information, visit riversideonline.com/memorycare or reach out at 757-220-4751.