Ep 19: Cognition and Depression in Older Adults with Dr. Leslie Fuller

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we have something special planned: Instead of 1 Expert-in-Residence this month, we’re spotlighting some incredible clinicians and amazing human beings from Neurotherapeutic Pediatric Therapies, Inc. (Neuro). 

Neuro is a non-profit therapy clinic providing occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, mental health therapy, and medical services to uninsured and under-insured children, adolescents, individuals and families.

In this episode, Expert-in-Residence Dr. Leslie Fuller, ND joins Mike and Helena to talk about mental health as we age, specifically cognition and depression. We dive into holistic care models, the importance of mental health teams, and navigating the complexities of multi-medication management. We’ll tackle the differences between age-related cognitive decline and neurodegeneration that may be a signal of something bigger.  

We reference the BEERS Criteria in this episode, find a printable pocket version here: https://gwep.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/AGS-2023-BEERS-Pocket-PRINTABLE.pdf 

Dr. Leslie is a 2009 graduate of NUNM, where she was a clinical educator for 14 years (involving 10 years of specific clinical Neurology Rotation, attending physician at Outside In, and working in a certified primary care home) and an assistant professor overseeing Neurology Curriculum. She teaches lab diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and pharmacology for the Doctorate of Chiropractor program, and teaches Nutrition for Neurologic Conditions in the Doctorate of Clinical Nutrition Program. During her time at UO, she worked for a nonprofit called World Wheelchair Sports where she worked with kids and families. It was there that she realized how poorly the medical system was set up to really help individuals with neurologic conditions or disabilities receive medical care that was specialized to them.

Finding NUNM at a career fair, she fell in love with the non-MD approach and has pushed into “a different way to do neurology” for the last 18 years of education and 14 years of practice. Dr. Leslie’s goal with medicine is to strengthen and support weakened systems: weakened physiological systems that cause pathology, and weakened medical systems that don’t accommodate the needs of neurologic conditions. Loving to teach at every level from direct education to individual patients up to large classroom teaching for medical students or professionals seeking CE, Dr. Leslie loves the ah-ha moment that can guide a learner to really dive into understanding their condition or understand a health topic.

Areas of interest include brain injury, dysautonomia, Parkinson’s disease, cognitive impairment (including Alzheimer’s and mild cognitive impairment), multiple sclerosis, rare neurologic conditions, headache and migraine, peripheral neuropathy, and pain conditions (including fibromyal

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DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, psychotherapist, or other qualified medical professional. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this podcast are the speaker’s own and may not be those of the hosts or CoNut Media LLC; we are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast. Listeners should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical or mental health condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their healthcare professionals for any such conditions.

Chapters

• 8:48 About Neurotherapeutic Pediatric Therapies
• 25:37 BEERs Criteria Printable Pocket Guide
• 51:21 Medscape Article: One-Minute Speech Test Could Help Assess Dementia Risk
• 52:24 Mastering Your BS