2022 Annual Aging Conference – Presenters

Modernizing Senior Centers

Dianne Stone

Senior Centers are an essential resource that supports aging in place and quality of life. Funded by the Administration for Community Living, the Modernizing Senior Centers Resource Center will help senior centers address their challenges and amplify their successes as they strive to meet the ever-changing needs of older adults. The overarching goal of the new Resource Center is to ensure that senior centers have the capacity, tools, and resources necessary to develop and implement programs and services that meet the current and future needs of diverse older adults. Modernization and outreach to a changing demographic have been primary themes for senior centers for several years, and many have implemented key programming changes, capital improvements, culturally relevant offerings, partnerships, and expanded outreach to attract more community members. Join us to learn key considerations and best practices from across the nation.

Mental Health

Chris Gazdik

Chris Gazdik, LCSW, a mental health and substance abuse therapist since 1995 will discuss the often forgotten but very real aspects of Mental Health.  Not just during the Holiday Season, but the experiences people have both with these medical conditions of Depression and Anxiety and the realities of STRESS all year around.  There are simple practices that can alleviate the pressures we all feel which might even prevent or manage a bit of "Holiday Hangover."  Understand the symptom sets of Depression and Anxiety and management tools as an answer to them.

Dementia Prevention

Dr. Elise Eifert

Dementia is an increasing concern as the global population ages. Recent research on brain health and modifiable risk factors for dementia highlight that risk factor modification, can potentially delay or prevent a substantial number of dementia cases. This presentation will explore the intersection of public health, brain health, and dementia including risk reduction, early detection and diagnosis, and management of dementia from a public health perspective.

Successful Aging with Hearing Loss

Richard Watkins

This presentation will review the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and DeafBlind communities. Topics will include best practices for communicating with these groups, the impacts of a hearing loss in various aspects of one’s life, recognizing signs of hearing loss, various technologies utilized by these populations, communication tips, and health implications.

Sexual Activity, Ageism, and Well-Being in Older Adulthood

Dr. Chanelle Caro

After attending this session, participants will be able to describe sexuality and sexual activity in late. Additionally, participants will be able to identify ageism when working with older adults, and examine how the intersection of sexuality and ageism impact the well-being of older adults. Finally, participants will discuss approaches to safeguard residents' sexual lives and well-being in the community and/or long-term care setting.

Building and Maintaining an Elder Abuse - MDT

Heather McGill

Elder abuse has been a priority of the Guilford County Family Justice Center since its inception in 2015. We will discuss how we formed our multidisciplinary team, our team members, how we keep our committee energized, challenges we face, and how our MDT makes our community a safer place for older adults.

Caregiving & Diabetes

Elizabeth Silvers 

Helping Clients & Their Caregivers Thrive with Diabetes Healthy Eating. This session will provide tips and tricks to help the caregiver provide healthy eating choices. Understanding the relationship between care, food and living a healthy life with the choices we make.