Recent CMS reports continue to urge providers and policymakers to revitalize efforts toward dementia education and care to accommodate the impending shift in American demographics and increasing number of residents with dementia. To do this, providers are urged to change our understanding of and our approach to caring for individuals with dementia. Vital components of an effective approach to dementia care include individualized attention, tailored care plans, implementation of cognitive assessment tools to monitor individuals for signs of dementia, and dynamic living spaces. Providers often focus on the psychiatric and behavioral symptoms associated with dementia and as a consequence they neglect to implement evidence-based intervention techniques to help affected residents complete their ADL/IADL. Additionally, provider overcompensation often has the provider completing activities for the residents to save time and reduce frustration which can diminish a residents sense of independence, autonomy and overall quality of life and can often lead to adverse outcomes such as falls, weight loss or behavioral issues. Providers must shift away from thinking about “losses” and begin to develop resident “strengths.” Behaviors like catastrophic outbursts and agitation often result from inability to communicate, need for emotional security, sensory issues like overstimulation, or staff responses that do not support purposeful and meaningful engagement. Behaviors in persons with dementia often go unaddressed because providers lack strategies to address these or use interventions not based on the evidence and therefore not effective. In this session, evidence-based behavior management and intervention strategies related to pain management, communication, emotional/cognitive state, sensation, agitation, and wandering are examined to help providers reduce unwanted behaviors without relying on medications. The research related to routine, resident preference, and meaningful engagement in activities is discussed along with their impact on ADL performance. Using a person-centered approach, participants will learn how to adapt activities to match the client’s functional level, modify routines to enhance occupational performance, and environment-based interventions to promote a home-like atmosphere and foster active engagement at all stages of the disease process. In this session, evidence-based behavior management and intervention strategies related to pain management, communication, emotional/cognitive state, sensation, agitation, and wandering are examined to help providers reduce unwanted behaviors without relying on medications. Using a person-centered approach, participants will learn how to adapt activities to match the client’s functional level, modify routines to enhance occupational performance, and environment-based interventions to promote a home-like atmosphere and foster active engagement at all stages of the disease process. Participation and communication strategies for this population are discussed as well as techniques for nursing to follow.