The functional assessment staging tool (FAST) is a reliable measure commonly used to assess functional status in patients with dementia. It helps provide an efficient and comprehensive evaluation of functional ability and the potential for a functional decline over time. This makes it an invaluable tool for healthcare professionals, caregivers, and family members to monitor the functional abilities of individuals with dementia.
At Compassus, we use the FAST to assess the functional status of individuals with dementia and determine appropriate care plans. This assessment is completed by a healthcare professional experienced in dementia care and provides an overall score. To learn more about the functional assessment staging tool for dementia, contact us at 833.380.9583. Our team can help provide more information on the FAST score and our care services.
What Is the Fast Scale for Dementia?
One of the ways to help determine whether a loved one is experiencing dementia is the functional assessment staging scale. FAST, developed in 1982 by Dr. Reisberg, is a practical, functional assessment tool used to define and grade all forms of dementia. It includes seven steps:
- No functional or cognitive impairment
- Early functional changes
- Mild functional losses
- Moderate functional losses
- Moderately severe functional losses
- Severely impaired functional abilities
- Total dependence
The functional assessment tool is used to evaluate functional abilities, including physical abilities (dressing and grooming), language abilities (memory and recognition), activities such as mobility or feeding themselves, and many other tasks.
The FAST scale helps families concerned about Alzheimer’s and other dementias identify how far along their loved one may be in cognitive decline. Understanding an individual’s functioning level helps to support the creation and ongoing management of personalized care plans.Â
Navigating the Fast Score for Dementia
1 – No difficulty either subjectively or objectively
2 – Complains of forgetting the location of objects—subjective word-finding difficulties
3 – Decreased job functioning evident to co-workers. Difficulty in traveling to new locations. Decreased organizational capacity*
4 – Decreased ability to perform complex tasks (e.g., planning dinner for guests, handling. personal finances, difficulty marketing, etc.)
5 – Requires assistance in choosing proper clothing to wear for the day, season, or occasion (e.g., a patient may wear the same clothing repeatedly unless supervised)*
6a – Improperly putting on clothes without assistance or prompting (e.g., may put street clothes on overnight clothes, put shoes on wrong feet, or have difficulty buttoning clothing) occasionally or more frequently over the past weeks*
6b – Unable to bathe properly (e.g., difficulty adjusting bathwater temp.) occasionally or more frequently over the past weeks*
6c – Inability to handle mechanics of toileting (e.g., forgets to flush the toilet, does not wipe properly or properly dispose of toilet tissue) occasionally or more frequently over the past weeks*
6d – Urinary incontinence occasionally or more frequently over the past weeks*
6e – Fecal incontinence occasionally or more frequently over the past weeks*
7a – Ability to speak limited to approximately a half-dozen different intelligible words or fewer in an average day or the course of an intensive interview
7b – Speech ability is limited to using a single intelligible word on an average day or in an intensive interview (the person may repeat the word over and over)
7c – Ambulatory ability is lost (cannot walk without personal assistance)
7d – Cannot sit up without assistance
7e – Loss of ability to smile
7f – Loss of ability to hold head up independently
*Scored primarily based on information obtained from a knowledgeable informant
Using the FAST Score for Hospice Care
This functional assessment staging tool for dementia can offer tremendous support to those tasked with providing care to patients with Alzheimer’s or related dementia. It helps by offering a unique, problem-solving approach to provide more tailored care plans. The FAST Score uses custom scoring for functional tasks such as dressing and eating to evaluate which nursing interventions are needed for each patient.
Most importantly, it enables caregivers to quickly adjust patient care when needs change suddenly—giving them the information they need to make well-informed decisions swiftly.
Learn More About FAST for Dementia at Compassus
At Compassus, we understand how difficult it can be to care for a loved one with dementia. That is why we use the functional assessment staging tool to evaluate the functional status and create personalized care plans for each patient. If you want to learn more about FAST and how it can help your loved one, please contact us at 833.380.9583.
