Alzheimer's Foundation to host free virtual workshop
Clark Fork Valley Press
The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America will host a free virtual educational conference as part of its national Educating America Tour to help Montana residents affected by Alzheimer’s disease during the COVID-19 crisis on Tuesday, September 29, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m MST.
The conference, which is free and open to everyone, will provide information and advice from health and caregiving experts. To register, go to www.alzfdn.org/tour.
“Knowledge is a useful and powerful tool that can help make any situation easier to navigate. That’s especially true now as more than 22,000 Montana families are caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., AFA’s President & CEO. “We want individuals who are caring for someone with Alzheimer’s to know about the resources available to help them and steps that they can take to improve their loved one’s care and quality of life. This conference will bring that information directly to families without having to leave their homes.”
Dr. Mehmet Oz, host of The Dr. Oz Show, will be a guest speaker and share his family’s personal Alzheimer’s story regarding the diagnosis of his mother, Suna Oz, last year. Dr. Oz will describe how the diagnosis impacted his family, as well as share tips to promote good brain health and healthy aging.
Sessions during the AFA virtual conference will include:
Alzheimer’s Disease Mechanisms: Identifying Druggable Targets – Deborah E. Cabin, Ph.D., will discuss some of her research on Alzheimer’s disease. She will talk about understanding how a disease like Alzheimer’s causes brain degeneration in order to find viable treatments. One aspect of her research is whether lowering tau proteins can slow or halt the progression of the disease. Dr. Cabin is an Associate Professor and Assistant Director of the McLaughlin Research Institute in Great Falls, MT.
COVID-19: Consideration for Older Adults – Christopher Taylor, Ph.D. an Epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control Alzheimer’s Disease and Healthy Aging Program, will talk about COVID-19, what we can expect in the future and how the virus particularly affects older adults, including those with cognitive decline, and their caregivers. He will provide tips on how to help keep these individuals safe during this difficult time.
My Story and Lessons Learned– Leah Stanley is a Speaker, Author and Caregiver. She became a caregiver for her grandparents at the age of 29 and wrote about this experience in her book, titled “Goodnight, Sweet: A Caregiver’s Long Goodbye.” She will describe what she learned as a caregiver, as chronicled in her book, and provide caregiver strategies for others in the same situation. She will discuss techniques she utilized in caring for her grandparents and communicating with them more effectively. She will walk individuals through her emotions and grief process and teach how to deal with difficult family members.
For more information or to register, go to www.alzfdn.org/tour.
Those who can’t participate in the virtual conference or have immediate questions about Alzheimer’s disease can connect with licensed social workers seven days a week through AFA’s National Toll-Free Helpline at 866-232-8484 or via our online web chat system (available in 90+ languages) at www.alzfdn.org by clicking the blue and white chat icon in the right hand corner of the page.