Riverside Center for Excellence in Aging and Lifelong Health (CEALH) Promotes Resources To Care For Older Adults

Williamsburg, VA (PRWEB) August 09, 2014

Offering a variety of resources and unique services, the Riverside Center for Excellence in Aging and Lifelong Health (CEALH) has become a primary conductor of age-related research.

And not just in Williamsburg, Va., where the center is located. Across the state, and in some cases, the country.

That’s what Kim Weitzenhofer, CEALH’s Director of Community Relations, told the community this summer during a special interview on the air with WMBG AM 740, where she also highlighted the unique programs that will be offered this fall throughout the Virginia Peninsula and Middle Peninsula.

The Center aims to close the gap between research conducted into how to better care for older adults and getting the information to those actually caring for older adults day to day.

“The ultimate goal of CEALH is to help you and your loved ones make informed decisions regarding health and well-being,” Weitzenhofer said, detailing the range of programs that the center offers, including the award winning program, “Caring for You, Caring for Me.”

The program, out of the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving in Georgia, brings personal and professional caregivers together for a series of seminars showcasing how to address their own social and healthcare needs while also caring for older adults.

“There really is an important part of them tapping into these resources so that they don’t burn themselves out, so they can give of themselves completely,” she said.

In CEALH’s “Chronic Disease Self-Management” Program, Weitzenhofer said, attendees learn life tools to assist them in making the best decisions possible for themselves or someone they care for.

“We offer and implement the Stanford University, evidence-based model,” Weitzenhofer said. “We partner with agencies in our area (Peninsula Agency on Aging and the Department on Aging and Rehabilitative Services) so that we can collaboratively offer this to community members for free.”

Other Coalition partners include the Peninsula Health District, the Hampton Health Department, York County Community Services, Commonwealth Assisted Living and Sentara.

It’s a six-week workshop that goes beyond just giving attendees tips.

“We’re giving life tools, such as setting weekly goals, action planning, problem solving and decision making, pain management (and) stress management,” Weitzenhofer said.

Other CEALH programs include an ongoing older adult driving rehabilitation clinic, clinical trials, a Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) program, Geriatric Assessment Clinic and Senior Care Navigation.

CEALH is currently gearing up for its fall program offerings.

Two “Caring for Me, Caring For You” sessions are scheduled for the Riverside Doctors’ Hospital in Williamsburg and on the Middle Peninsula at the Mathews Volunteer Rescue Squad.

Williamsburg, Va.
September 15 –October 20, 2014
5 Sessions to be held on Mondays, from 1 to 3:15 p.m.
(Session will not be held on Columbus Day)
Riverside Doctors’ Hospital | 1500 Commonwealth Avenue, Williamsburg, VA
Mathews County, Va.

September 23 –October 21, 2014
5 Sessions to be held on Tuesdays, from 3 to 5:15p.m.
Mathews Volunteer Rescue Squad | 94 Cricket Hill Rd, Hudgins, VA
Call the center or visit http://www.riversideonline.com/cealh/services/caring-for-you-caring-for-me.cfm to register.
For those attendees who actively care for older adults, respite care is available during the sessions.

Weitzenhofer emphasized that these programs are not just for family and volunteer caregivers, but also for professionals.

Click here to listen to the complete interview. (LINK TO: https://riversidehealthsystem.box.com/s/3stgk0bsd8azk59swgqz)

About Riverside Center for Excellence in Aging and Lifelong Health

The Riverside Center for Excellence in Aging and Lifelong Health (CEALH) upholds a mission to “integrate interdisciplinary aging research with clinical capabilities to develop innovative programming that can be applied and sustained by Riverside Health System, the community, and other providers of aging-related services to improve care and better meet the needs of a growing older adult population.”

The center is located at 3901 Treyburn Building, Suite 100, Williamsburg, Va.

For more information, call (757) 220-4751 or visit excellenceinaging.org.

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