The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA) will host a free virtual Alzheimer’s educational conference for Illinois residents on Wednesday, May 4, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. CST as part of the 2022 national Educating America Tour. The conference, which is free and open to everyone, will allow participants to learn from, and ask questions of, health and caregiving experts. To register, go to www.alzfdn.org/tour.
Speakers and topics will include:
Sanford Finkel, M.D., will provide an overview of Alzheimer’s disease, an update on Alzheimer’s research and clinical trials, and what we can expect on the horizon. He will also discuss contested wills and testamentary capacity, a person’s legal and mental ability to make or alter a valid will. It can be influenced by dementia, depression, psychosis, medication effects, medical problems, and end of life issues. Many of these illnesses or conditions, in and of themselves, do not necessarily mean someone lacks testamentary capacity.
Dr. Finkel is a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Chicago Medical School. He is an active clinician who specializes in geriatric psychiatry. Dr. Finkel founded the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry and co-founded the International Psychogeriatric Association and the American Psychiatric Association Council on Aging. He is also a member of AFA’s Medical, Scientific and Memory Screening Advisory Board.
Certified Elder Law Attorney, Amy Delaney – A Dementia Diagnosis – Now What? – When a loved one is diagnosed with a dementia-related illness, it is important to make sure that you have the right legal documents in place. Certified Elder Law Attorney, Amy Delaney, Founding Partner of Delaney Delaney & Voorn, Ltd. will advise on legal strategies that must be considered after a diagnosis of dementia, including levels of capacity required to executive certain estate planning documents, how family members can help the process of estate planning, obtaining medical evidence to support competency, and what to do if the window of opportunity for estate planning has closed. Amy is a board member and President of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NELA) in Illinois, she has served on the editorial board of the NAELA Law Journal and is a professor emeritus of The John Marshall Law School.
Luisa Echevarria When a dementia-related illness enters your life, it can be overwhelming. As a caregiver, it is a task that you should not take on alone. Chicago’s Luisa Echevarria will talk about her own experiences as a caregiver to her mother and grandmother, both of whom lived with Alzheimer’s disease. She will discuss what strategies worked for her and offer caregiver tips to help improve quality of life. Luisa is on the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America’s Board of Directors and is the former Director of Community Empowerment for Univision Communications Inc. in Chicago. She has been a member of the board of directors of Chicago’s El Valor organization for over 20 years. She also volunteers her time with several Latino service organizations in the Chicago area including Association House, Casa Central, Mujeres Latinas en Acción and Arden Shore.
