Topic > Case Study on Short-Term Memory Impairment by Susan

The ability to remember previous therapy sessions and rehabilitation activities is critical to effective therapy sessions. Due to short-term memory impairment, Susan may have difficulty managing activities of daily living (ADL). The impact of Susan's short-term memory impairment requires an intensive, slow and cautious approach to be implemented in her treatment course. Susan is most likely to benefit most from short, frequent, repetitive therapy sessions to improve her short-term memory function. To improve Susan's memory during therapy sessions, she will need repeated instructions and feedback to complete tasks (Corbett, 2011). Mental repetition and maintenance rehearsal would be a technique used in Susan's therapy sessions to improve her short-term memory retention (Burton, Westen, & Kowalski, 2012). Burton, Westen, and Kowalski (2012) define maintenance rehearsal as “the deliberate effort to retain information by repeating it over and over again.” A series of recall strategies specifically focused on one aspect of memory could also contribute to the effectiveness of therapeutic sessions. The ability to relearn any lost skills, learn new skills, and compensatory skills would also have a significant impact on Susan's progress with therapy. A mental imagery approach can be used to help Susan relearn lost motor skills (Liu, Chan, Lee, & Hui-Chan, 2004). A mental imagery approach to relearning lost skills would involve creating a mental model to represent, describe, and explain how things work (Burton, Westen, & Kowalski, 2012). Susan experiences significant challenges in learning new tasks due to her short-term memory deficit and limited attention span. Using an implicit learning approach to recognize new patterns