Cognitive Retention Therapy (CRT) also known as the Ashby Memory Method is a Cognitive therapy for dementia, based on the research of Dr.

Mira Ashby Mira Ashby, (1922 – July 16, 2005) was the founder of Ashby House, which opened in 1978 in Toronto. Ashby House was the first community-based brain injury rehabilitation program in North America. The first transitional living program for adu ...

. It is adapted from her programs for brain injury rehabilitation, for which she won the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

in 1984. CRT is a specifically tailored program to work for the damage done by

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

and other

dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

. Combining word exercises, visual stimulation, a process called

errorless learning Errorless learning was an instructional design introduced by psychologist Charles Ferster in the 1950s as part of his studies on what would make the most effective learning environment. B. F. Skinner was also influential in developing the techniqu ...

, Stroop exercises and many other techniques from Dr. Ashby's research, CRT creates personalized activities based on participant's interests to stimulate all 5

senses A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the world through the detection of stimuli. (For example, in the human body, the brain which is part of the central nervous system rec ...

. CRT is currently undergoing formal clinical studies, but has been presented at different seminars and conventions including the 28th National Conference of the Alzheimer Society of Canada in Toronto, Ontario; and has received positive feedback as a plausible treatment option.ElderWise, Alzheimer Disease: Early Diagnosis & Treatment

References

Cognitive therapy {{Cognitive-psych-stub