Family dementia care consulting is a non-medical service. No medical advice will be offered and Amy is not permitted to diagnose or prescribe medications during these consultations. If Amy recognizes that a loved one is having severe psychiatric symptoms, she will recommend urgent medical care to rule out infection, illness, or injury.
During an initial consultation, Amy will meet with family members on Google Meet to comprehensively understand your family's unique situation. The initial session will also serve as an educational opportunity, where Amy will provide vital information to help families navigate the complexities of dementia. Amy will help make sense of the confusing changes your family has been navigating and will teach strategies for supporting loved ones in a way that maintains their dignity no matter their level of capacity. Following the initial consultation, Amy will formulate a personalized care plan tailored to your family's needs. The care plan will include:
Insight about your family's dementia journey.
Guidance on communication and support strategies.
Safety recommendations for the physical and social environments.
Guidance for respite care, including home care support, VA services, long-term care insurance, Medicaid considerations, and care facility options.
Guidance for guardianship, conservatorship, power of attorney (POA), and advance directive documents.
Because conversations about dementia can impact the dignity of loved ones, leaving them with anxiety they are unable to manage, Amy recommends that loved ones are not included in family dementia consultations.
Amy Shaw, PA, is available for private pay in-person medical care to patients and families in Laramie County, WY, or telehealth medical care throughout Wyoming. At this time, Amy does not accept Medicare, Medicaid, or any medical (health) insurance. Amy can provide home-based visits to support patients with chronic or terminal illnesses, including dementia, heart failure, cancer, lung disease, and age-related decline. Amy is a pioneer in supportive care, recognizing that patients and families need a compassionate advocate to help them navigate the complex medical system.
An Extra Layer of Support:
Alzheimer's and Dementia care and coordination. Amy can manage all aspects of Alzheimer's and dementia care, including clinical diagnosis, assessment, treatment of psychiatric symptoms (including prescribing medications), goals of care planning, the start of respite care, and assistance with transfers to a care facility. Patients who have not formally been diagnosed by neurology can be referred by Amy for biologic investigation and diagnosis confirmation and discussion of treatment options, including the new infusion therapies offered to treat Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). Amy can support patients and families at home by ordering Home Health Care (physical, occupational, and speech therapy), referring to and coordinating with other specialists, and ordering labs at home (e.g., urinalysis) to help families avoid clinic visits and trips to the ER.
Chronic disease management and care coordination. Amy can collaborate with specialists in the community to support patients with heart disease, lung disease, cancer, dementia, and age-related decline to help prevent hospitalizations or navigate treatment decisions. If a loved one is hospitalized, Amy can assist by contacting the ER and hospital providers to advocate for your loved one during normal business hours.
Home-based palliative care. Available for patients who are not yet ready to enroll in hospice care but do not want to return to the ER or hospital.
Hospice care supplemental support. Available for patients enrolled with a hospice care agency. Amy can provide supplemental in-home provider-level visits to support the patient's family. Available on a private pay basis only. This service is not covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or health insurance plans, as Amy is not affiliated with hospice care agencies.
Goals of care conversations. Amy wrote the textbook on having compassionate, collaborative conversations with patients and families (to be published soon by Springer Nature, the publisher of the journal Nature)! If your family struggles with difficult conversations about healthcare decisions, allow Amy to help. Amy's compassionate approach is unmatched.
Advanced care planning, Living Will, DNR, POLST. Amy can help with medical planning for the future. These conversations can be difficult to have, and the medical community often ignores this necessary but important aspect of patient care.
Transitions of care. Amy can help with the sometimes challenging transitions to or from the hospital, ER, rehab, care facility, or hospice. Amy can serve as your family's advocate to help ensure the transition goes smoothly.