Maryland annual dementia conference highlights caregivers

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Approximately 400 people are expected to gather for the Alzheimer’s Association Greater Maryland Chapter’s Annual Dementia Conference: Making Connections,

Friday, April 25, 2014 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Sheraton Baltimore North Hotel located at 903 Dulaney Valley Road in Towson.

As the Baltimore area’s premier dementia conference for healthcare professionals, caregivers and those living with early-stage dementia, this comprehensive event will feature expert speakers on research and practical information on Alzheimer’s care.

Keynote speaker will be Gerry Sandusky— long-time play-by-play voice of the Baltimore Ravens, sports director at WBAL-TV and noted authority on communication, motivation, perception and change— whose compelling book, “Forgotten Sundays,” will be released April 22, 2014.

“My father, John Sandusky, a long-time NFL coach, suffered from Alzheimer’s at the end of his life. The book, published by Running Press, deals with the value of a name, the personal side of life in sports, and the impact Alzheimer’s disease has on millions of people and their families,” Sandusky said. “There are universal themes that are woven throughout that everyone can relate to.”

After sharing lessons he learned from experiences with his father, Sandusky will sign copies of the book, which will be available for purchase.

His presentation will be followed by a plenary session with Judah Ronch, Ph.D.— dean of the Erickson School at University of Maryland Baltimore County and a nationally renowned expert on improving the treatment and mental well-being of elders.

The conference’s afternoon sessions will include a caregiver panel, as well as presentations on family conflict, advocating for your loved one, research and public policy, among other topics related to Alzheimer’s disease, which now affects 5.4 million people.

Every 68 seconds someone new joins their ranks and hardly any family has not been personally touched in some manner by this dreadful disease.

Admission to Making Connections is $35 for caregivers and $95 for professionals. For more information about the event or to register, visit: alz.org/Maryland or call

1-800-272-3900 or email: jsample@alz.org.