KJZZ’s Voices of Arizona is a special segment where we shine a spotlight on everyday Arizonans who help make our state an extraordinary place to live.
Many unhoused seniors in Arizona struggle with memory loss either due to the stress of their situation or possible dementia. Meet a nurse caring for this population.
Amber Porter is a family nurse practitioner with Circle the City, which provides health care to the homeless in Phoenix.
“Today, we are doing memory clinic!”
The Memory Clinic opened seven months after researchers from Arizona State University found that roughly 80-90% of older adults at CASS, the state’s largest mass shelter, have some kind of cognitive impairment.
"So both my first two patients are people I have seen before. So they are both over the age of 55 and have screened positive on their MoCA for a cognitive decline," Porter said.
That led to a partnership between the two organizations “to see patients in a rapid fashion for a neurological evaluation, so we are doing Alzheimer's Society guidelines.”
Because the Montreal Cognitive Assessment doesn’t diagnose dementia.
Rapid is key because even with private health insurance and ample support, “the average wait time to see somebody who would be able to do this kind of evaluation, it would be anywhere from six to eight months, and we're seeing them in a week to two weeks.”
Porter also performs other tests because in this population, depression, out of whack electrolytes or diabetes could contribute to cognitive decline. From there, she often orders brain imaging like a CAT scan.
The Memory Clinic is open once a week and only for a few hours.
“But we have heard that there's been a need and an ask for us to expand this to other institutions that also serve older folks," Porter said.
So, starting this week, the memory clinic will begin serving patients at the Parsons Family Health Center in midtown.
“And it doesn't matter which shelter they entered. We are happy to see them and evaluate them for their cognitive decline.”
