Medications and The Aging Mind: A Clinical Guide (Recorded Webinar)
Presented by George Barnes
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This course is a recording of a previously hosted live webinar event. Polling and question submission features are not available for this recording. Format and structure may differ from those of standard Medbridge courses.
Have you ever suspected a patient's sudden cognitive decline was linked to their medication list? Patients like Geraldine, misdiagnosed with dementia due to a reversible, drug-induced impairment, highlight a critical practice gap. Polypharmacy is a widespread concern in older adults, and nearly half of all adverse drug reactions are preventable. Ancillary clinicians— including PTs, OTs, SLPs, and nurses—are uniquely positioned to observe these changes but often lack a formal framework to act.
This essential webinar empowers you to bridge that gap. You will learn to recognize the specific medications that commonly cause cognitive changes, such as anticholinergics and opioids. Most importantly, you will master the practical, three-step MED guideline (monitor, excavate, discuss) to track patient status and communicate your findings with confidence. Walk away with immediately applicable skills to improve patient safety, collaborate effectively with your team, and make a tangible difference in the lives of the vulnerable patients you serve.
Learning Objectives
- Identify risk factors that make older adults more susceptible to medication-related cognitive changes
- Recognize high-risk medication classes associated with cognitive impairment, including anticholinergics, opioids, and benzodiazepines
- Classify common symptoms of drug-induced cognitive changes using case examples
- Outline the three-step MED guideline (monitor, excavate, discuss) for interprofessional communication about medication concerns
- Select appropriate strategies to communicate concerns in ablame-free and collaborative manner with the prescribing team
- Predict the potential impact of proactive medication monitoring on client safety and participation in daily activities
Meet your instructor
George Barnes
George Barnes is a board-certified specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders and has developed an expertise in dysphagia management, focusing on diagnostics and clinical decision-making in the medically complex population. George yearns to make education useful, research clinically focused, and quality care…
Chapters & learning objectives
1. The Problem of Polypharmacy
This chapter establishes the critical problem of polypharmacy, defined as the use of five or more medications, and explores its devastating consequences like the “medication cascade.” Participants will learn the key risk factors that make older adults vulnerable to preventable, drug-induced cognitive impairment. The chapter concludes by introducing the clinician’s essential role in monitoring these patients to improve safety.
2. Medications to Pay Attention To
This chapter provides a focused review of the medication classes most likely to cause cognitive changes, including the high-risk “anti” family, benzodiazepines, and opioids. Participants will learn to recognize common drugs within each class and understand their cognitive side effects, from memory impairment to delirium. This knowledge will equip clinicians to more readily flag potentially problematic medications on a patient’s chart.
3. MED Guideline
This chapter introduces a practical and systematic framework for daily practice: the MED guideline. Participants will learn the three-step process of monitoring for cognitive changes, excavating the chart to find potential causes, and discussing findings with the team. The guideline empowers clinicians with a collaborative, blame-free approach to communication, enabling them to support the prescribing team effectively and contribute to safer medication management.
4. Case Studies
This chapter transitions from theory to practice by applying the MED guideline to real-world case studies of patients with complex medical histories and long medication lists. These examples provide a step-by-step demonstration of how to implement the framework to identify a potential impairment, investigate its cause, and communicate effectively with the team. This application of knowledge solidifies the learner’s ability to facilitate positive changes in their own clinical practice.
5. Question and Answer Session
In this chapter, the presenter will address questions and facilitate a conversation about medications and the aging mind.