The Morning Pointe Foundation, with guest speaker David Hutchings, Ph.D., presented a virtual seminar educating family caregivers and professionals in the senior care industry on Alzheimer’s and dementia.
The presentation on Nov. 10 was the latest in the Morning Pointe Foundation’s Caregiver Café
series, free webinars providing education for seniors, their families and other caregivers. This
session was the foundation’s first Caregiver Café to offer CEUs/contact hours to registered
nurses, licensed practical nurses and master’s of social work.
Dr. Hutchings is a geriatric neuropathology and dementia specialist. Live attendees asked questions
at the end of the session, and those signed up for CEUs took a brief survey after the webinar’s
conclusion. The credit was administered by a partnership with the University of Tennessee at
Chattanooga.
“Dementia is not a normal part of the aging process,” Dr. Hutchings said. “We don’t just get older
and develop dementia, but we see things that are cognitive impairments that are not a part of
normal aging.”
For example, Dr. Hutchings listed frequent memory lapses, forgetting how to do things, difficulty
learning new materials, repeating questions or conversations, indecisiveness, difficulty handling
money and losing track of daily events.
“[With dementia,] we see emotional abilities change,” said Dr. Hutchings. “We see fluctuations in
mood. We see personality changes. We see the loss of ability to problem solve.”
Dr. Hutchings touched on not only Alzheimer’s but other types of dementia, such as vascular
dementia, Lewy body dementia and Parkinson’s disease dementia, and the importance of
correct diagnosis for appropriate treatment.
He also talked about genetic risks, the stages of dementia and managing advanced symptoms.
For example, timing medication for mid- to late afternoon may help a dementia patient
experience fewer negative “sundowning” behaviors.
“I learned so much from the webinar,” said participant Barbara Pedigo. “Dr. Hutchings had an
excellent presentation. Thank you for the opportunity to participate.”
The session is available to watch on the Morning Pointe Foundation website:
https://morningpointe.com/caregiver-cafe/.
The Morning Pointe Caregiver Café wellness series connects experts on senior living and care
with those experiencing the physical and mental effects of aging and their families.