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An Alzheimer's Disease Research Center

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Sunday Reads: Natural Disasters And Dementia

Editor’s Note: Here at the Penn Memory Center, the communications team has been trying out a weekly letter we call “Sunday Reads” to keep you updated on what’s been happening and what we’re currently reading in our office. To see this in your inbox first, fill out your name and email address at the top of your screen or email joyce.lee2@uphs.upenn.edu.

It’s the peak of hurricane season, which reminds us here at PMC how our patients are particularly vulnerable to natural disasters.

Tropical storms have brought some rain to Philadelphia this season, but we’ve been fortunate not to experience anything like what has hit Florida this past week. However, we must be prepared for any harsh weather that may come in the months ahead, including major snowstorms and the extreme cold.

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Sunday Reads: Language, Stigma, And Disease

Editor’s Note: Here at the Penn Memory Center, the communications team has been trying out a weekly letter we call “Sunday Reads” to keep you updated on what’s been happening and what we’re currently reading in our office. To see this in your inbox first, fill out your name and email address at the top of your screen or email joyce.lee2@uphs.upenn.edu.

Language is an undeniably powerful tool. It can persuade, lift, and inspire.

But words can also sometimes be weaponized, to marginalize and discriminate against certain individuals and groups of people.

We’ve seen this happen with people living with dementia. That is why at PMC, we are very careful with the words we use to refer to our patients and research participants. But these conversations we’ve been having in our office have become more public, and we think it’s appropriate to talk about this now.

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PMC To Receive Caring Community Award from ARTZ Philadelphia

Penn Memory Center, “a model” for other Alzheimer’s research centers, will receive ARTZ Philadelphia’s Caring Community Award at a community exhibition and reception Friday.

An ARTZ Philadelphia Community Exhibition

Friday, October 5  | 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
The Philadelphia Foundation Community Arts Gallery
1835 Market Street, Suite 2410, Philadelphia PA
Register on the ARTZ Philadelphia website.

“We have seen an intensification of Penn Memory Center’s emphasis on the importance of the arts and humanities in the last several years,” said ARTZ Philadelphia founder and executive director, Susan Shifrin.

“I think that Penn Memory Center is a model for what other Alzheimer’s research centers and care centers should be doing.”

Over the last three years, Penn Memory Center, has launched and expanded projects such as Art of the Mind, Making Sense of Alzheimer’s, and collaborations with our community partner, Curtis Institute of Music. For the last two years, the Art of Mind exhibition showcased artists’ work in the intersection of memory and art. Making Sense of Alzheimer’s is a creative space for stories and ideas that tackle the changing understanding of what Alzheimer’s disease is. Arlen Hlusko, cellist from the Curtis Institute, has performed at our Thank You Breakfast, and Rimbo Wong, violinist from the Curtis Institute, has brought classical music into the homes of Penn Memory Center patients.

The Caring Community Award is offered to organizations that have worked with ARTZ Philadelphia and are notable for their promotion of quality of life that is enhanced specifically by interaction with the arts. Shifrin looks for organizations focused on being welcoming and open to people living with dementia.

At the same event, Deborah Davis, LCSW, will be awarded the Community Catalyst Award. Awards will be given out at a public reception at The Philadelphia Foundation Community Arts Gallery.

ARTZ Philadelphia, an organization dedicated to providing opportunities for self-expression and for the rebuilding of self-esteem and dignity to people with dementia and their caregivers, has had a relationship with Penn Memory Center since its inception.

This is the second Caring Community Award being presented by ARTZ. The first award was offered to Woodmere Art Museum, one of ARTZ Philadelphia’s longtime partners that hosts programs, lectures, and panel discussions as well as a collection of art.

October Memory Café to feature Philadelphia Zoo

October Memory Café

Friday, October 12 | 10:30 a.m. to Noon
Christ Church Neighborhood House
20 N. American Street, Philadelphia
RSVP to alison.lynn@uphs.upenn.edu

Philadelphia Zoo on Wheels joins Penn Memory Center for the October Memory Café.  Zoo on Wheels emphasizes the importance of empathy and connecting with animals. Animal petting, facts, and education will be a part of the Zoo on Wheels experience for attendees. To RSVP, contact Alison Lynn at 215-360-0257 or alison.lynn@uphs.upenn.edu.

Sunday Reads: Financial Fraud Among Older Adults

Editor’s Note: Here at the Penn Memory Center, the communications team has been trying out a weekly letter we call “Sunday Reads” to keep you updated on what’s been happening and what we’re currently reading in our office. To see this in your inbox first, fill out your name and email address at the top of your screen or email joyce.lee2@uphs.upenn.edu.

Older Americans lose billions of dollars each year due to fraud, and some of the most vulnerable people in that subset are individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

In fact, before an individual is even diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, his or her bank accounts may shed light on a clinical diagnosis that’s yet to come.

“In some sense, the banking and financial services industries are on the front line of screening for cognitive decline in America,” PMC Co-Director Jason Karlawish, MD, told ABC7 in a recent article.

Dr. Karlawish goes on to detail the steps he’s taking to help protect individuals from elder fraud, as part of his self-developed strategy known as “Whealthcare.”

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Sunday Reads: Caregiving and Self-Care

Editor’s Note: Here at the Penn Memory Center, the communications team has been trying out a weekly letter we call “Sunday Reads” to keep you updated on what’s been happening and what we’re currently reading in our office. To see this in your inbox first, fill out your name and email address at the top of your screen or email joyce.lee2@uphs.upenn.edu.

Fall is officially here, which means cooler weather, warmer clothing, and perhaps a difference in cognition—at least according to a new study published in PLOS Medicine.

The changing of the seasons doesn’t mean that your cognition will be altered. Rather, the researchers found that individuals (with and without Alzheimer’s disease) performed better on working memory and speed of perception tests when they took them in the summer or fall compared to those who took the tests in the winter or spring.

This study adds to a growing body of research that has previously found cognition may change with the four seasons. If cognition does in fact shift, the authors of the paper suggest dementia-related clinical resources should be made more available in the cooler seasons when a person’s symptoms are more severe. Certain biomarkers could be responsible for the change, but it’s not quite clear. Therefore, more research is needed.

Regardless if cognition changes or not, two things that don’t are the value of a caregiver and the importance of them getting help, too.

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Now Enrolling: Dance for Health — Active Body, Active Mind

Dance for Health

Saturdays, Sept. 29 to Nov. 17, 2018
10 to 11:30 a.m.
Ralston Center, 1st Floor Wellness Center
3615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104

Dance for Health, weekly dance sessions and social activities that promote brain health and healthy living among participants in West Philadelphia, will return to the Ralston Center this fall. With the support of the Penn Medicine CARES grant, the program is free and open to the public. Classes will be held at the 1st Floor Wellness Center in Ralston Center, 3615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

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Exercising body and mind in Dance for Health

By Kaleah McIlwain

There’s a dance people do when they start listening to music and are getting a feel for it.

Some people sway back and forth, others bob their head.

On a Saturday morning, David Earley did both as he waited for the class participants to arrive.

Wearing a coordinated outfit of all-white Nike Air Force shoes, black jeans, a white and red jersey with the words “you’re in good hands,” and a red baseball cap, Earley set up his small gray boombox at the front of the room and began playing “Same Ole 2step” by Ent Distrikt. The music was a cue for everyone in the room to get up and start dancing.

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Reflection: West Philadelphia seniors bond in PMC Dance for Health program

By Danielle Kennedy

As a Penn MPH student, I wondered how Penn researchers could strengthen their relationship with West Philadelphians. Working with Dance for Health in the spring enabled me to give back to the research community through social dance classes. Dance for Health (DFH), a partnership between the Penn Memory Center and Ralston House, creates a space for older adults in Philadelphia to get active through dance and preserve their cognitive health.

In the beginning, I was unsure if I would take part in learning the dance routines. I had never taken a line dancing class; but when the music started, it felt natural to join in. Dancing with DFH participants every Saturday helped me connect with them. Each time I started dancing on the wrong foot or turned left instead of right, I was encouraged to keep going by the DFH participants’ warm smiles.

As the weeks progressed, I noticed the dance instructors were not giving us as many instructions as they used to. I realized then that the instructors were testing participants’ memories of the choreography. I also looked forward to strengthening my relationship with DFH participants each Saturday and learned that they enjoyed the social aspect of the program as well. The older adults told me they appreciated that DFH provided them with a break from their usual routine and a chance to connect with others. Some participants brought friends or family members to class while others enjoyed making new friends and bonding over shared experiences between dances.

Interestingly enough, previous research suggests a positive correlation between social interaction and health. Working with DFH, I was able to witness firsthand how social dance can bring you joy and health.

Danielle Kennedy was a 2017-2018 Penn Memory Center intern.

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