UMaine Center on Aging Announces Spring 2006 Education Series

Contact: Len Kaye, 581-3716; George Manlove, 581-3756

ORONO — This year’s Spring 2006 Professional Excellence in Geriatrics Series (PEGS), sponsored by the University of Maine Center on Aging, runs April 25-May 22 in Augusta, Bangor, Belfast, Orono, Presque Isle and Portland.

The series, in combination with the Geriatric Organizational Leadership Development Seminar (GOLD), is a series geared to anyone with an interest in geriatric care who wants to learn about a multitude of new theories and clinical approaches to improve quality of life and care for the aging. The program will appeal to the public, in addition to professionals who work with aging populations.

Topics for this year’s series form a diverse group of issues that face agencies, organizations and individuals who work with aging populations, according to Len Kaye, director of the UMaine Center on Aging.

“This year’s series addresses some of the most perplexing and challenging issues confronting older adults,” Kaye says, “from alcohol and substance abuse to fraud and identity theft to navigating through the complexities of Medicare prescription drug coverage. We believe that all of these issues can best be dealt with when older adults have well trained health care professionals to turn to for guidance and support.”

Other session topics include marketing to Boomers, an introduction to handheld personal digital assistants and avoiding staff burnout.

The series is being presented throughout Maine to offer the sessions to a broad audience. Co-sponsors include: the University of Maine at Augusta; the Maine Geriatric Education Center and College of Osteopathic Medicine at the University of New England; University of Maine at Presque Isle; Dirigo Pines in Orono; and Arden Training & Consulting in Bernard, Maine.

Participants receive a certificate of attendance for each individual session and they may register by email, fax or regular mail. More information, including driving directions, is available on the Internet at www.mainecenteronaging.org.

The $40 registration fee for the workshop covers materials, certificate of attendance, and refreshments. Registration is $35 for Maine Gerontological Society members and $20 for students. Discounts are available for all day registrations and walk-in registrations are welcome. For more information or to register, call UMaine’s Center on Aging at (207) 581-3617.

The Center on Aging is an interdisciplinary research center affiliated with the University of Maine’s School of Social Work and College of Business, Public Policy and Health. The Center’s mission is to promote and facilitate activities on aging in the areas of education, research and evaluation, and community service, in order to maximize the quality of life of older citizens and their families in Maine and beyond.

The schedule of program sessions is as follows:

Session 1

“Targeting the Boomer Consumer” – Tuesday, April 25, 9-11:30 a.m., Room 180, Jewett Hall, University of Maine at Augusta (UMA), with Susan Kaye, principal at Packard Judd Kay Strategic Marketing Group in Bangor and an instructor with the Maine Business School.

Session 2

“ABCD: A Community Development Model” – April 25, 1-3:30 p.m., UMA Student Technology Center, Room 138, with: Anne Schink, program/training/disability officer, Maine Commission for Community Service; Larry Ullian, director of program development, Muskie School of Public Service, University of Southern Maine; and Jane Brissette, coordinator, patient navigator program, American Cancer Society.

Session 3

“Introduction to Handhelds and Epocrates” – April 27, 1-3:30 p.m., Room 233, Blewett Hall, University of New England’s Westbrook College Campus, with Rorie Lee.

Session 4

“Fraud and Identify Theft” – Tuesday, May 2, 2-4:30 p.m., Room 132, College Center, University College Bangor, with Michael Desrosiers, a U.S. Postal inspector, and James McCarthy, assistant U.S. Attorney.

Session 5

“End of Life Issues – Let’s Talk About Them” – May 3, 1-3:30 p.m., Campus Center, University of Maine at Presque Isle, with Kim-Anne Perkins, a licensed clinical social worker and director of the UMPI School of Social Work.

Session 6

“Music Therapy and the Elderly” – Monday, May 15, 9-11:30 a.m., Penobscot Room, The Inn, Dirigo Pines, Orono, with Alan Wittenberg, a certified music therapist.

Session 7

“Thematic Programming for Dementia” – May 15, 1-3:30 p.m., Penobscot Room, The Inn, Dirigo Pines, with Barbara Fisher, registered nurse and director of My Friend’s Place, an adult day program in Bangor.

Session 8

“Substance Abuse in Elders” – Friday, May 19, 1-3:30 p.m., College Center Ballroom, University College Bangor, with Brent Scobie, a licensed clinical social worker and clinical supervisor, Acadia Hospital Substance Abuse Services.

Session 9

“Avoiding Staff Burnout” – Monday, May 22, 9-11:30 a.m., Hutchinson Center, Belfast, with Lesa Andreasen, president, BLF Inc.

Session 10

“Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage (Part D)” – May 22, 1-3:30 p.m., Hutchinson Center, with: Mary Walsh, manager of community programs, Office of Elder Services; Anne Smith, Medicare rights advocate, Legal Services for the Elderly; and Susan Lutton, director of litigation and training, Legal Services for the Elderly.