Course Detail: PER163 - Aging and Dementia
Dementia is one of the major causes of disability worldwide (1 in 3 seniors die with dementia). The number of people with dementia is increasing and many continue to live at home within their community (over 11 million Americans provide unpaid care for people with dementia). There is limited understanding about dementia as well as many misconceptions and myths about those who have dementia and how to effectively support them and their care-partners. This short course will explore topics related to understanding, living with, and working with adults with dementia, including how dementia is different from normal aging, the disease progression, how it affects individuals and their family and caregivers/care-partners, healthcare & support options, and prevention.
This course will cover:
What is dementia?
- Dementia definition, characteristics, and progression
Living with dementia
- Support post diagnosis
- Targeting quality of life and prolonging independence
Care-partnering & caregiving
- Caregiving support
- Communication strategies
Planning ahead
- Risk factors and prevention
This course will be delivered online. Classes will be facilitated by a live instructor during the scheduled course times. Participants should have a computer with a strong internet connection, a working microphone, and speakers. Students should be prepared to utilize the camera and microphone. Class participation enhances the online learning experience.
Instructor Naomi Gurevich, PhD, CCC-SLP is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders at Purdue University Fort Wayne and is a licensed & certified Speech-Language Pathologist. She teaches courses on anatomy & physiology, gerontology, and medical speech-language pathology, and has won two teaching awards during her time at PFW (one in 2019 for the full version of "Aging and Dementia" course, and one in 2021 for "Science Teacher of the Year") and two research awards (2022, 2024). She is the director of the Clinical Linguistics and Acquired Disorders (CLAD) Lab. Her publications include three books, two of which are directly related to the topic of dementia ("Treating Cognitive Disorders in Adults" (Pro-ed, 2019), and "The SourceŽ: Dementia" (2nd Edition, Pro-ed, 2022)). Naomi is a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Dementia Observatory Knowledge Exchange Network. She served as the Coordinator of the Gerontology Certificate Program at PFW (2017-2022) & was a member of the Gerontology Advisory Committee. She developed and led local initiatives at Purdue University Fort Wayne to create disability and dementia friendly businesses in the Fort Wayne area and is committed to educating the community about aging and dementia.
