Free Family Caregiver Workshop to be Feb. 21 in Jacksonville

By Ben Boulden

The workshop, which is open to the public, will be held 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at the North Metro Medical Center, 1400 Braden Street 2422 in Jacksonville. For more information or to register, please call 501-351-1543 or email rcarter@nortmetromed.com. Lunch provided. Space is limited.

The program is sponsored by UAMS’ Arkansas Geriatric Education Collaborative. The collaborative is funded by a Health Resources and Services Administration grant of $2.4 million for a Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program.

Taught by Donna LeBlanc, M.S.N., APRN, the workshop will present an overview of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and provide caregiving tips that maintain respect, dignity and quality of life for the person living with dementia. Information will be presented on nutrition, behavior, communication techniques and activities.

About 452,000 family caregivers in Arkansas provide an estimated $4.7 billion in unpaid care each year, helping their loved ones with bathing and dressing, cooking meals, transportation, finances and complex medical tasks like wound care and injections.

UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute and Institute for Digital Health and Healthcare Innovation. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 2,727 students, 870 medical residents and five dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.