This webinar series focuses on ways Ontario long-term care homes can apply their culture change journey to ensure residents living with dementia thrive.
Target Audience: Those who support people living with dementia and those in leadership roles.
Dementia Beyond Disease: Enhancing Well-being
aired: October 08, 2019
This webinar is the first in the two part series. Dr. Allen Power, Schlegel Chair in Aging and Dementia Innovation, shows the limitations of a traditional view of dementia and, how this view has not only failed to provide support for those living with the diagnosis, but how it has led to the overuse of dangerous psychoactive medications. Dr. Power describes an alternate view of dementia that focuses on the changing perspective of the individual and uses a framework of seven domains of well-being to understanding and address distress. He then outlines the aspects of culture change that must take place in order to embed this new approach when caring for those living with dementia, and share stories of success.
By watching this webinar, you will:
- Understand the limitations of our biomedical approach to dementia
- Describe the 3-pillar approach presented
- Name the 7 domains of well-being and list some simple ways to put them into practice in various care settings
Australia Journal of Dementia Care Download the webinar PDF
Negotiating Autonomy and Risk for People Living with Dementia
aired November 26, 2019
In this webinar, Dr. Allen Power, Schlegel Chair in Aging and Dementia Innovation, addresses the sensitive issues around balancing choice versus risk for people living with dementia. Using the approach outlined in the previous webinar “Dementia Beyond Disease: Enhancing Well-Being” held on October 8, 2019, he shows how the desire to avoid risk, and operational decisions made as a result of this, can create an environment that may look “secure,” but is actually unsafe. Using real-life stories and situations, Dr. Power will shows how we can best negotiate risk, in order to maximize well-being and individual rights.
By watching this webinar, you will be able to:
- Define “surplus safety” and “all-or-none” thinking
- Describe a 7-step process for negotiating risk
- Explain how segregated living environments can harm autonomy
About the Presenter
Dr. Allen Power is an internist, geriatrician, skilled educator and published author. He is internationally respected for his work challenging the use of antipsychotic medications for people living with dementia. His book, Dementia Beyond Drugs: Changing the Culture of Care was named a 2010 Book of the Year by the American Journal of Nursing, and was re-released in a second edition in October 2016. His second book, Dementia Beyond Disease: Enhancing Well-Being was released in 2014 and updated in October 2016 as well. Dr. Power has advised the US government in their antipsychotic reduction initiatives, and was named one of “Five Leaders of Tomorrow” by Long-Term Living Magazine in 2013. In addition to traveling the globe advocating for transformational models of care for older adults, Dr. Power partners with RIA researchers and Schlegel Villages to advance innovative approaches to aged care and dementia. He focuses on bringing knowledge into practice to transform the culture of care, from philosophical to system shifts, to physical design concepts for community living. In addition to his role with RIA, Dr. Power is a Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Rochester, and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and American Society for Internal Medicine. He is also a Certified Eden Alternative Educator and a board member with the US Dementia Action Alliance.