The Sheraton in Towson hosted a large crowd for the Alzheimer’s Association Annual Baltimore Dementia Conference. Extremely well attended! There were Assisted Living/Independent Living/Nursing Facility Personnel; Social Workers; Dept of Aging Personnel; Spiritual Leaders; Hospice Personnel; Caregivers; Pharmacists; Ombudsmen; Healthcare Professionals; Medical Personnel; In-Home Care Agency Personnel; Dementia Patients; AND, OF COURSE, Maryland Senior Resource Network members!
MSRN had a table in the lobby of the Sheraton with all the others and had some good traffic. Ann Marie Ferritti had a table for 2nd Family; Lynn Berberick had a table for BrightStar; Elizabeth Boyle had a table for Brightview Towson.
After the morning break, attendees went to one of four breakout sessions: 1) Person-Centered Care: Moving from Concept to Practice where the speaker was, none other than, MSRN’s Karl Douglas, Exec Director of Brightview Towson; 2) Driving and Dementia; 3) Safe Use of Medicines and Dementia; and 4) Caregiving 101 providing Practical Solutions for Everyday Care.
Those who attended 1) Person-Centered Care: Moving from Concept to Practice, where Karl Douglas spoke, totally enjoyed the time at this session. Karl is a dynamic and down to earth speaker. He engages the audience, which always makes it interesting and fun. His message was so important: Treat dementia patients the way you would want to be treated! These are real people with a past. Some were doctors, engineers, pastors, nurses, etc. Get to know them as people who have wonderful skills and talents Help them to use those talents, if at all possible. This makes them feel useful and like they have a purpose. Understand the disease and react accordingly.
Deb Bakalich, left and Patti Farrell, right, talking with people at the MSRN table
