Dr. María de los Ángeles Ortega
By Vanessa Orr
The Louis and Anne Green Memory and Wellness Center (MWC) in Boca Raton, an integral component of Florida Atlantic University’s (FAU) Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, is expanding its services in South Florida. Not only is it working to create additional clinical, educational and research projects with Acts Retirement-Life Communities’ St. Andrew’s Estates in Boca Raton and Edgewater at Boca Pointe, but the center will soon be opening a satellite facility on Florida Atlantic’s Davie Campus.
According to Dr. María de los Ángeles Ortega, associate dean of clinical practice and professor and director of the MWC, these expanded services and the resulting research will help to improve health care delivery for persons living with Alzheimer’s and related dementias. In addition, Florida Atlantic students from a number of different departments will gain hands-on experience in the intricacies of geriatric care and cognitive health by conducting cutting-edge research on how to treat the illness as well as how to reduce risk factors.
“The saying, ‘It takes a village’ is true,” explains Dr. Ortega of the range of projects that will include Florida Atlantic nursing, medical, social work and health administration students. “Each discipline has different areas of expertise, which results in a more comprehensive, person-centered approach.
“There is a place for every student to gain knowledge and to learn from one another while contributing to best practices and evidence-based dementia care,” she added, noting that this interaction will also remind students that they are not alone in the healthcare setting.
The Memory and Wellness Center has been working with the ACTS Center for Applied Research at St. Andrews Estates on a Long COVID study to examine the prevalence and impact of Long COVID symptoms on people living independently in retirement communities. The study provides residents with comprehensive memory testing and evaluation which Dr. Ortega says is crucial for early detection and the management of memory-related issues.
“This study is geared toward identifying and addressing memory concerns linked to the pandemic so that residents can receive tailored care to achieve overall wellbeing,” said Dr. Ortega. “We also want to see if there is anything we can do to prevent further decline, which could include medical treatment, nonpharmacological approaches and behavioral changes in different areas.”
The Memory and Wellness Center also provides residents with a comprehensive driving evaluation that includes tests of vision, physical functioning and cognitive skills required for safe driving.
In fiscal year 2024-25, the Memory and Wellness Center plans to open a satellite wellness center on Florida Atlantic’s Davie Campus that will provide support services to persons living alone with Alzheimer’s and related dementias, as well as improve the quality and effectiveness of care to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities who are at higher risk of developing dementia, such as those with Down syndrome.
“We are very excited about this project and appreciate the space provided by Florida Atlantic’s top leadership and the College of Nursing,” said Dr. Ortega, adding that the center has been a goal of hers since she first taught on the Davie campus in 2011.
The satellite facility will offer memory and wellness evaluations provided by gerontological nurse practitioners and neuropsychological testing when appropriate, as well as evaluations by social workers to identify the needs of family caregivers. In-person family caregiver support groups will also be provided as will virtual support groups.
Florida Atlantic will be working with Broward Health North Memory and Wellness Center, which is one of 17 state memory disorder clinics under the Florida State Department of Elder Affairs, to collaborate on research, clinical services and training.
“Our goal is to enhance each other’s services and not replicate services by providing community-based dementia programs focused on interdisciplinary diagnoses, counseling and education,” said Dr. Ortega, adding that this collaboration will become a source of referrals for both entities as well as enhance dementia-specific supports to the Spanish and Creole-speaking communities.
“Working together in all of these different ways will help students not only go to where the patient is, but provide an understanding of individual health, population health and community health,” said Dr. Ortega. “It will help prepare students for this different aspect of care that isn’t within the walls of hospitals or clinics.”
SIDEBAR
The 18th annual Keep Memories Alive walk to benefit The Louis and Anne Green Memory and Wellness Center will be held on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024 at the Town Center at Boca Raton. For more information, visit https://fauf.fau.edu/events/memories.
