# Transforming EDs for Persons Living with Dementia and their Care Partners

Thank you to all who joined us for our 14th Healthcare Systems Roundtable.

About This Roundtable

The 14th GEDC Healthcare Systems Roundtable explored how healthcare systems can transform emergency departments to better serve persons living with dementia (PLWD) and their care partners. Participants shared and learned practical strategies for improving ED environments, workflows, and interdisciplinary care models that align with broader dementia-friendly health system initiatives.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0CdnrAPS3E

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Roundtable Details

Themes

Capacity & Strategy Alignment: Caring effectively for PLWD is essential to managing hospital capacity and system performance.

Environmental Design: Small, low-cost changes (noise reduction, high-back chairs, decluttering) can have a big impact on patients with cognitive impairment.

Caregiver Inclusion: Supporting caregivers reduces repeat ED visits, improves patient outcomes, and eases overall system burden.

Training & Culture Change: Sustainable impact requires staff training, leadership support, and embedding new processes into EHR systems and workflows.

Community Resources: Effective care requires strong local resource networks; gaps persist, especially for middle-income families.

Expert Panel

Morgan Daven
Vice President of Healthcare Strategy
Alzheimer's Association
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Nida Degesys, MD
Director of Geriatric Emergency Department
University of California at San Francisco

Amy Shaheen, MD, MSc
MSc Executive Medical Director and Vice President,
Practice Quality and Innovation UNC Health Alliance

Kevin Biese, MD, MAT
Vice-Chair, Academic Affairs Director
Division of Geriatric Emergency Medicine 

    

       

Key Takeaways

Related & Mentioned Resources

Emergency Department Care of Individuals Who Have Dementia: An Implementation Toolkit

Dementia Care in the ED

Alzheimers Association Resources for Health Systems and Medical Professionals

 The National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC)

Detection of emergency department patients at risk of dementia through artificial intelligence 

PBS Documentary: Aging in America: Survive or Thrive, which features a Level I GEDA (UCSF's AFED) ​

Best Programs for Caregiving

National Dementia Care Collaborative

Alzheimer’s Association International Conference: Workshops and Preconferences

Caregiving Documentary Film: Premiering on PBS

Cognition in Primary Care (CPC) Program