Coping with PPA Program
The Coping with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) Program is a free information and support program for people living with PPA and their loved ones, co-created by three main partners: the community organization ARTÈRE, the Research Chair on PPA - Fondation de la famille Lemaire (Dr. Robert Laforce & Monica Lavoie, Ph.D.) and Université Laval/CIRRIS (Laura Monetta, Ph.D.).
The program objectives are:
- Inform people living with PPA and their loved ones
- Create a place for exchange and belonging
Program structure and content covered
Six sessions lasting 1.5 hours, in person, facilitated by a community worker:
- Viewing video capsules produced by experts in the field on various aspects of the disease
- Group discussions related to the content of the capsules
Session 1: Basic knowledge about PPA – Part 1
- What is PPA?
- How does PPA fit into other neurocognitive disorders?
- How do the three PPA variants manifest?
- What happens in the brain?
Session 2: Basic knowledge about PPA – Part 2
- How do the three PPA variants evolve?
- How is PPA diagnosed?
- What professionals are involved throughout the disease and what are the treatment options?
- What are the daily impacts of PPA on communication?
- How do language difficulties evolve?
Session 3: Facilitating communication with a person with PPA
- How to promote an optimal context for communication?
- What strategies can be used by people living with PPA to facilitate communication?
- What strategies can be used by loved ones to facilitate communication?
- What available tools can facilitate and support communication?
Session 4: Living with PPA daily – Part 1
- What are the eating difficulties in PPA?
- How to optimize meals and promote safe eating?
- What motor changes are associated with PPA and how to manage them daily
- What cognitive deficits can occur in PPA?
- How to compensate for these cognitive difficulties daily?
Session 5: Living with PPA daily – Part 2
- What changes can occur in terms of independence in PPA?
- How to promote well-being and compensate or reduce the impacts of the disease on daily activities?
- What are the ways to promote social participation when living with PPA?
Session 6: Caregiving issues (for loved ones only)
- What are the most common behavioral changes in PPA and how to deal with them daily?
- How does the process of accepting the disease unfold and how to prepare for the future?
- What resources are available for caregivers?
- What legal issues are associated with PPA?
- How to consider care for the loved one in the final stages of the disease?
The Coping with PPA program is currently offered in the following organizations:
- Artère, Québec (QC)
Contact: famille@arterequebec.com - Société Alzheimer de Chaudière-Appalaches, Lévis (QC)
Contact: eliseborgia@alzheimerchap.qc.ca - Aphasie Rive-Sud, St-Hubert (QC)
Contact: info.aphasierivesud@gmail.com - AVC-Aphasie Laval, Laval (QC)
Contact: coordo@avcaphasielaval.ca - Association des personnes aphasiques de Granby, Granby (QC)
Contact: APAG-Region@outlook.com
Are you an organization and would like to offer the program in your region? Contact us!
info@plateformeapp.ca
The program was made possible thanks to our valuable collaborators
- Léonie Proulx, Speech-Language Pathologist
- Sarah Bérubé-Lalancette, Speech-Language Pathologist
- Annie Légaré, Speech-Language Pathologist
- Vincent Martel-Sauvageau, Ph.D., Speech-Language Pathologist
- Béatrice Tousignant, Ph.D., Neuropsychologist
- Nathalie Bier, Ph.D., Occupational Therapist
- Dr. Patrick Bernier, General Practitioner
- Isabelle Pelletier, Psychologist
- Me Josée Bédard, Notary