The North Georgia Regional Office of the Alzheimer’s Association, Georgia Chapter presents “Working Together,” an education symposium to be held on Tuesday, April 13 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Calhoun Seventh Day Adventist Church.

The keynote speaker is Melanie Bunn, RN, MS, GNP. Bunn is nationally-recognized as a leader, trainer and educator in dementia care. She is a trainer in the DVD and training manual Accepting the Challenge: Providing the Best Care for People with Dementia. She has been working at Duke University as a clinical instructor – geriatrics rotation since 2002 and is also working at Duke on an HRSA grant developing skills of nurses in long term care.

Bunns’ topics will include “Working Together: Partnering with the Person with Dementia”, “Making Your “Helping” Helpful: Stragegies for improving Care” and “Thriving as a Caregiver: You Can’t Sprint a Marathon!”. Renae Gentry, programs director, said “This conference is designed to provide caregivers with practical information they can use in their day to day caregiving. This benefits both the caregiver and the person with dementia.”

Family and professional caregivers, volunteers, clergy, students, community providers, law enforcement and EMS are invited to attend. Those attending will gain an enhanced understanding of dementia, its symptoms and progression and expand skills in providing assistance to optimize caregiving. DeLonda Tippens, a family caregiver said “I will be attending the conference and I am really looking forward to getting more information to help our family be better caregivers for my father-in-law.”

We are extremely grateful to our major sponsors who make this event possible: Community Foundation of Northwest Georgia, Elder Law Practice of David McGuffey, Milton Ratner Foundation, Morning Pointe Assisted Living and Alzheimer’s Care and the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission.

To register for the conference, contact the Alzheimer’s Association at 800-272-3900 or 706-275-0819.