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Orange County hosts free dementia education workshops

The Orange County Department on Aging is hosting a series of free workshops to educate in-home caregivers and families about dementia. 

This is the third summer that the county will sponsor the workshops, which are part of a grant from the Administration of Community Living. 

“There’s a lot of misunderstanding and misrepresentation about what it means to live with dementia,” training coordinator Marie Dagger said. “There's definitely an understanding in the general public that folks with dementia just can't do anything, but if you take things in baby steps and provide a little bit of cueing and a little bit of support along the way, often you can be amazed at what somebody can still do.” 

The workshop for in-home caregivers is a two-part series which teaches caregivers about the types, stages and symptoms of dementia as well as ways to work collaboratively with their patients. 

“We spend a lot of time talking and working on how to do activities and programs with people and not to them or at them,” Dagger said.

Dagger said that the response to the program has been positive so far, and her department has been able to reach nearly 200 families through this program and others sponsored by the grant.

“It’s definitely a worthwhile course, especially for those whose family members are living with dementia,” said Phyllis Fliederbaum, a participant in the workshop whose father was diagnosed with dementia. “At the very least, real-time experiences contributed by other participants were very helpful to me, and I believe would certainly prove useful to others who enroll in this series of classes.”

In addition to the workshops, the department hosts a wide array of programs for those affected by dementia, including in-home consultations, a dementia-friendly business program and memory cafes – social outings for those with cognitive impairments.

“Our goal is to empower older adults and caregivers to stay active and engaged in their care, and we feel this series helps people to do just that,” said Annie Deaver, eldercare services administrator.

The next workshop for in-home caregivers will take place on Thursday, Aug. 23 and Aug. 30 in the Passmore Center in Hillsborough. The registration deadline is Aug. 17. Those interested can register here.

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