Free Alzheimer’s disease information conference coming to St. Louis

Published August 16, 2023

The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA) will host a free Alzheimer’s & Caregiving Educational Conference for St. Louis-area residents on Wednesday, Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport Hotel (9801 Natural Bridge Road, St. Louis) as part of its 2023 national Educating America Tour.

The free conference is open to everyone and will allow participants to learn from experts in the field of Alzheimer’s disease, brain health, and caregiving. To register, go to www.alzfdn.org/tour. Advanced registration is highly recommended — registration closes on Monday, Sept. 11 at 11 a.m.

“Knowledge is a useful and powerful tool that can help make any situation easier to navigate, especially something as challenging as caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease,” said Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., AFA’s president & CEO. “Connecting families with useful, practical information and support that can help them now and be better prepared for the future is what this conference is all about.”

Sessions during the AFA conference will include:

The Aging Brain and the Elimination of Alzheimer’s Disease– As we get older, it’s only natural that we start to forget things, but this is a major difference between normal age-related memory slowdown and a degenerative disease such as Alzheimer’s. Dr. David B. Carr will talk about cognitive change, causes of dementia, and the latest diagnostic tests and treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. He will also provide tips to help protect brain health.

Carr is an Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Professor of Geriatric Medicine, and Clinical Director, in Division of Geriatrics and Nutritional Science at the Washington University School of Medicine. He is also a clinician in the Memory Diagnostic Center and Geriatric Assessment Clinic at Washington University, where he maintains an outpatient consulting practice in dementia and geriatric care.

Cognitive Stimulation Therapy for persons with dementia– There are a variety of therapeutic activities and methods to try to help stimulate the brain, keep it active and delay the progression of cognitive loss. Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST) is an evidence-based, non-pharmacologic intervention for people experiencing mild to moderate cognitive impairment.

Marla Berg-Weger will explain how CST uses strategies that exercise different cognitive skills, including executive functioning, multi-sensory stimulation, and reminiscence, with the goal of improving cognitive function, through the use of word association/categorization, current affairs, food, and number games. She will provide information on accessing groups and practitioner training.

Berg-Weger is a professor of social work and executive director of the Geriatric Education Center at St. Louis University, as well as a fellow in the Gerontological Society of America.

Fall, burnout, and isolation–tips and tricks for caregivers by the Caregiver Club– Caring for a loved one with a dementia-related illness is a labor of love that often comes with many physical, mental and emotional challenges. Alicia Behan Christopher and Jodie Finney, co-founders and co-presidents of the Caregiver Club, will provide a general overview of Alzheimer’s disease and its symptoms; explain why motor and gate changes occur in individuals living with dementia; and discuss risk factors. They will provide advice on how to prevent falls and modify your home to make it more dementia friendly. In addition, they will talk about combatting isolation and caregiver burnout.

Christopher and Finney founded the Caregiver Club, a nonprofit service organization, to help improve the lives of individuals living with dementia by supporting their caregivers, based on their own personal experiences of caring for a loved one living with dementia.

Free, confidential memory screenings will be conducted throughout the day.

For more information or to register for the September 13 conference, visit www.alzfdn.org/tour. Those who cannot participate in the 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 by calling 866-232-8484 or web chatting at www.alzfdn.org by clicking the blue and white chat icon in the right-hand corner of the page. The web chat feature is available in more than 90 languages.