Christian Health and the Alzheimer’s Association to Present Program on Tools for Communicating with Individuals with Dementia

Christian Health (CHCC) in Wyckoff and the Alzheimer’s Association will present a special program open to the public entitled “Effective Communication Strategies: Tools for Communicating with Individuals with Dementia” from 4 to 5 p.m., Thursday, June 30, in the CHCC Auditorium (Use 700 Mountain Ave. entrance). Presenters will be Teresa DeLellis, LSW, Social Work Director, Heritage Manor Nursing Home at CHCC, and Claire Day, Senior Vice President, Alzheimer’s Association.

Attendees will explore how communication takes place when someone has dementia, learn to decode verbal and behavioral messages, and identify strategies to help caregivers connect and communicate at each stage of the disease. Communication is more than just talking and listening. It’s also about sending and receiving messages through attitude, tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language. As people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias progress in their journey and ability to use words is lost, families need new ways to connect.