2026 Hands-On Caregiver Virtual Conference

November 4, 2026 | 7:00 AM to 11:05 PM | Zoom
Registration: $30.00

Morning & Afternoon Session Options
Share this Conference with Others on Your Team!

7:00-7:10am or 12:00-12:10pm | Welcome & Announcements

7:10-8:00am or 12:10-1:00pm | Stacey Gladfelter | Silent Grief of Dementia: Navigating Loss for Families and the Professionals Who Serve Them

8:10-9:00am or 1:10-2:00pm | Norma Jo Majerus | Dispelling the Myth: Balance Improvement if Possible in Dementia

9:10-10:00am or 2:10-3:00pm | Brooke Aziere | HIPAA Hot Takes in 2026

10:10-11:00am or 3:10-4:00pm | Justin Harland | Nurturing Wellness: Evidence-Based Self-Care Strategies for You and Those You Care For

11:00-11:05am or 4:00-4:05pm | Closing & Announcements

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Session Descriptions

The Silent Grief of Dementia: Navigating Loss for Families and the Professionals Who Serve Them - Stacey Gladfelter
Dementia is often described as a “long goodbye,” but that phrase can obscure the many losses that accumulate throughout the dementia journey—for individuals living with dementia, their families, and the professionals who walk alongside them.

This session explores the layered and often unspoken grief associated with dementia, including changes in identity, relationships, trust, family roles, financial security, independence, and expectations for the future. Participants will examine how anticipatory grief, ambiguous loss, and complex grief can emerge across the progression of dementia and influence the experiences of both family caregivers and aging services professionals.

Drawing on more than a decade of experience supporting families in senior care, facilitating grief-focused education for professionals, and navigating personal loss, this session bridges grief theory with the realities of dementia care. Participants will gain practical language, communication strategies, and frameworks for recognizing grief and responding compassionately during diagnosis, care transitions, placement, decline, and other emotionally complex moments.

The session also considers the grief carried by professionals themselves. By recognizing grief as an ongoing component of dementia care—not simply a response to death—aging services professionals can better support families, navigate difficult interactions, and understand the role grief education can play in sustaining compassionate practice.

Learning Objectives
-- Differentiate among anticipatory grief, ambiguous loss, and complex grief as they may occur throughout the dementia journey
-- Identify common emotional and behavioral responses associated with dementia-related grief among family caregivers and aging services professionals.
-- Apply grief-informed communication strategies during key transitions, including diagnosis, changes in care needs, placement, and decline.
-- Explain how unrecognized or unsupported grief can contribute to compassion fatigue and professional burnout among those working in dementia care.
-- Select and utilize practical grief-informed tools and frameworks to support families, strengthen professional practice, and inform team education. 

Dispelling the Myth: Balance Improvement is Possible in Dementia - Norma Jo Majerus
A diagnosis of dementia is sometimes accompanied by the assumption that significant cognitive impairment limits a person’s ability to improve balance, mobility, or safety. Difficulty understanding or following directions can certainly affect traditional approaches to intervention—but it does not mean improvement is impossible. How professionals assess, communicate, motivate, and structure interventions can make a meaningful difference.

This session explores practical approaches to assessing and improving balance and mobility among individuals with cognitive impairment and dementia. Participants will examine formal and informal assessment strategies, including the use of observation to better understand an individual’s abilities, needs, and fall risk.

The session will also introduce strategies for promoting participation through relationship-centered care, functional engagement, and individualized motivation. Particular attention will be given to caregiver approach, including communication style, environmental setup, and the use of task-based and implicit strategies that reduce reliance on an individual’s ability to understand and follow traditional directions.

Through clinical data, case examples, and evidence-based discussion, participants will examine how appropriately adapted interventions can contribute to measurable improvements in balance, mobility, and safety for individuals living with dementia. Participants will leave with practical strategies for modifying their approach and working collaboratively with therapy professionals, interdisciplinary falls teams, and caregivers to better support individuals with cognitive impairment.

Learning Objectives 
-- Describe cognitive impairment associated with dementia using established frameworks, including Allen Cognitive Levels and the Global Deterioration Scale.
-- Explain how dementia and cognitive impairment can affect balance, mobility, and fall risk.
-- Apply practical intervention strategies that adapt communication, environment, functional activities, and motivation to support improvements in balance, mobility, and safety for individuals with dementia.
-- Identify the complementary roles of therapy professionals, interdisciplinary falls teams, and caregivers in managing fall risk and supporting individuals living with dementia.

HIPAA Hot Takes for 2026 - Brooke Aziere
Navigating HIPAA privacy and security compliance can feel like a long and winding road—and potential regulatory changes may add another turn. This session will help aging services providers understand proposed updates to the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules that may be finalized in 2026 and what those changes could mean for their organizations.

Participants will review key proposed regulatory changes and explore their potential implications across organizational operations, including policies and procedures, information security, information technology, medical records, and business associate management. The session will translate regulatory developments into practical considerations for organizations preparing for possible new compliance requirements.

Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of what may be changing, which areas of their organizations could be affected, and what they should be considering now to prepare for implementation if the proposed rules are finalized.

Learning Objectives
-- Describe key proposed changes to the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules that may be finalized in 2026.
-- Identify areas of organizational operations that may be affected by proposed HIPAA changes, including policies, information security, information technology, medical records, and business associate management.
-- Assess potential implications of proposed HIPAA requirements for their organization’s current privacy and security practices
-- Identify practical steps their organization can consider in preparation for implementation if the proposed rules are finalized. 

Nurturing Wellness: Evidence-Based Self-Care Strategies for You and Those You Care For - Justin Harland
Caring for others requires attention to our own well-being, yet self-care can easily become an afterthought amid the demands of work, caregiving, and everyday life. This session explores evidence-based strategies for supporting physical, emotional, and mental well-being—for ourselves and for those we care for.

Participants will examine practical approaches to self-care that can support long-term health, reduce stress, and help prevent burnout. Drawing on current research, the session will address physical health behaviors, mindfulness and stress-reduction practices, and realistic strategies for incorporating wellness into everyday routines.

Rather than treating self-care as one more thing to add to an already full schedule, this session focuses on practical, sustainable choices that can be adapted to individual needs and circumstances. Participants will leave with evidence-informed strategies they can use personally, share with those they support, and incorporate into a personalized plan for ongoing well-being.

Learning Objectives
-- Identify at least three evidence-based self-care practices associated with improved health and longevity.
-- Describe at least four practical strategies for supporting physical health and well-being.
-- Apply at least two mindfulness-based techniques for reducing stress and supporting emotional well-being.
-- Develop a personalized self-care checklist incorporating at least three evidence-based recommendations.

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Registration Policy
Registration for the 2026 Hands-On Caregiver Virtual Conference includes digital handouts and tools for each of the sessions, connection(s) to the live conference (one connection per individual and one or multiple connections for buildings), and a Certificate of Attendance for each completed attendee. A recording of this conference is NOT included in the registration fee.  

Cancellation Policies
Substitutions for events are always welcome. These individuals can be anyone employed on your campus, board members, resident family members, or residents. Substitutes must be made for the whole event.