The California Partnership to Improve Dementia care is presenting a one-day conference, “I Already Told You...Don't You Remember,” a guide to excellence in dementia communications and behavior prevention without antipsychotic medication, in both northern and southern California in July. The conference will be offered in Sacramento on July 29 and in Lake San Marcos on July 30.

The program will demonstrate dementia communication skills known to prevent or reduce the intensity of challenging behaviors, offer tips for coaching these skills in your own organization and share experiences from communities that have found these communications skills to be the “missing link” to antipsychotic reduction and culture transformation.

Physicians, nurses, nursing home administrators and social workers are encouraged to attend. (Continuing education credits will be available for nursing home administrators, nurses and social workers.) The featured speaker will be internationally-known dementia educator and dementia communication coach Erin Bonitto, who will provide concrete strategies for this dilemma and demonstrate specific dementia communication skills.

The California Partnership to Improve Dementia Care was formed in 2012 to improve dementia care and eliminate the misuse of antipsychotic medication in nursing homes. The partnership was launched by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the California Department of Public Health and a diverse group of stakeholders, including the California Medical Association. The partnership offers numerous resources to assist nursing homes with culture change practices that improve dementia care, including workshops, videos and training materials designed to teach providers about models that enhance the care experience and empower residents and staff through best practices that achieve national and state goals.

For more information or to register for the event, click here.