Latest News
Let Me Be Your Memory
“Let Me Be Your Memory,” an innovative, first-of-its-kind program bringing audio memory preservation to teenagers for the promotion of Alzheimer’s awareness, is the subject of a video from ABC 33/40’s “Focus at 4” news series. The project was created via a unique collaboration between The Voice Library, Tuscaloosa Magnet Middle School, and Cognitive Dynamics Foundation.
As part of the school’s International Baccalaureate Program, middle school students were tasked with recording audio memories from their loved ones over the Thanksgiving holidays in an effort to raise awareness for National Alzheimer’s Awareness Month.
It is hoped that this concept, piloted in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, will be a model for other schools across the country, as a means to engage teenagers in Alzheimer’s awareness, and to promote intergenerational outreach.
Click on the link below to view the story, and scroll below the initial video to view the piece:
Thanksgiving, 2012
My spirit, a russet oak leaf,
swirls to November’s windy wand,
swept along in a homeward spell.
Brushing by the old ones,
I, again, am green, though briefly so.
For we all change hues in autumn’s breeze.
And the heat of held hands
and thankful hearts
has cut away the cold.
Stuffing ourselves with the gravy of good,
we laugh again at dinnertime,
and for dessert, we cry…
True colors show
around the table
in the fall of the year.
“Now Thank We All Our God…”
for the time of turning.
Goodbye
Where are you?
Perhaps I mean
“Where is the you I know?”
Are these two the same?
Do both die slowly
in this death march of the mind,
this Dachau of dreams?
Is self peeled off in skins,
that which I’ve touched the first to go,
then deeper ones
known just to you?
In this retrograde revelation
have you met a boy that looks like you?
Do you know him:
his hopes, loves, reality;
is this at all familiar?
Now is all you have, I know.
But now is infinite and true.
May I meet you there,
whatever “you” I find?
May we be at home again…
together?
Can each successive “now”
make yourself known to you again,
and string staccato notes
into legato lines
that you can sing?
When skin has gone
is all that’s left a soul?
Is this when we must say…
Goodbye?
D. Potts, for National Alzheimer’s Month
“Let me be your memory”
Cognitive Dynamics is pleased to announce a new digital audio reminiscence preservation initiative in collaboration with The Voice Library and Tuscaloosa Magnet School, titled “Let me be your memory.” In this innovative program, students from Tuscaloosa Magnet School will capture audio memories in the form of stories, poems, readings, etc. in honor of those with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers, to raise awareness during National Alzheimer’s Month. This collaborative project will be the first of its kind, and will hopefully be the pilot for others like it.
Over the next several weeks students from Tuscaloosa Magnet School will capture reminiscences powered through The Voice Library’s website. These memories, which can be recorded digitally on computer or digital recorder, or over the phone, will then be uploaded as MP3 recordings to a named library, which can be accessed by anyone given permission.
The resulting library of recordings will help to raise awareness for National Alzheimer’s Month. Furthermore, intergenerational relationships will be fostered, and life stories of those with Alzheimer’s disease will be preserved at a time when they are being lost. Persons with the disease will be validated through the experience, and human dignity will be fostered.
The websites for The Voice Library and Tuscaloosa Magnet School are below:
http://blogs.tusc.k12.al.us/tmsm/school-info/
Dr. Potts Attends NEA/NIH Workshop on Arts Interventions in the Healthcare of the Elderly
Daniel C. Potts, M.D. participated in a workshop hosted by the National Academy of Sciences titled “Workshop on Research Gaps and Opportunities for Exploring the Relationship of the Arts to Health and Well-being in Older Adults” on September 14 in Washington, D.C.. The conference was convened in collaboration between the National Endowment for the Arts, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging, National Research Council, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education and Committee on National Statistics to begin to assess the research gaps existent in arts-based healthcare interventions in the elderly. This is part of a larger national initiative to further the use of the arts for quality of life enrichment across the lifespan in every segment of society. This initiative demonstrates an emerging priority of these organizations to fund and facilitate high-quality research in this regard, so that programs may be identified and developed which may be easily replicated for more large-scale effects.
At the conference, state-of-science reports were given from leaders in the field, and representing neurobiologists, geriatricians, gerontologists, neurologists, environmental design experts, art therapists, music therapists, bibliotherapists, drama therapists, dance and movement therapists, policy makers, statisticians, and representatives from several government agencies who are invested in this effort. Discussions on method and design, models for successful programming, analysis on cost-effectiveness, and ideas for collaboration among different disciplines were put forth.
This exciting conference gave the opportunity for participants to interact and give feedback, and signifies a new and important day for furthering arts interventions for quality of life for elderly Americans.
Angel Duncan writes chapter for new art therapy textbook
Angel Duncan, Executive Director of Cognitive Connections and advisory board member of Cognitive Dynamics, has written the chapter on art therapy in early Alzheimer’s and mild cognitive impairment in Art Therapy and Healthcare, by Cathy Malchiodi. This new art therapy textbook, published by Guilford Publications, Inc., will be available for purchase October 30, 2012. Below is the overview of the book on Barnes and Noble’s website:
“Demonstrating the benefits of creative expression for patients living with acute or chronic illness, this volume provides a complete, practical introduction to medical art therapy. It presents evidence-based strategies for helping people of all ages—from young children to older adults—cope with physical and cognitive symptoms, reduce stress, and improve their quality of life. Detailed case material and approximately 100 drawings and other artwork illustrate ways to work with individuals and groups with specific health conditions and challenges, as well as their family members. Contributors are experienced art therapists who combine essential background knowledge with in-depth clinical guidance.”
Potts and Duncan to Keynote at Mississippi Alzheimer’s Conference
Dr. Daniel C. Potts and Cognitive Connections Executive Director Angel Duncan will deliver a keynote address at the 13th Annual Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease and Psychiatric Disorders in the Elderly, sponsored by the Mississippi Department of Mental Health. The conference will take place at the Whispering Pines Convention Center in Olive Branch Mississippi, near Memphis, TN, on August 16 and 17th. The title of the presentation is “Searching for the Self in Alzheimer’s Disease,” and will tout the expressive arts therapies as a means of self-expression, which validates those with Alzheimer’s and other dementias in their “now” and promotes dignity and quality of life (see the link below for more information).
http://www.dmh.state.ms.us/calendar.htm
Dr. Potts speaks at the University of Florida
Daniel C. Potts, M.D. spoke at the University of Florida Department of Neurology’s “Leadership in Neurology” series for Grand Rounds on August 7, 2012. His topic was “Art and Alzheimer’s” Dipping into the Self.” The talk highlighted the life story and watercolor art of his father, Lester E. Potts, Jr., and other famous Alzheimer’s artists such as William Utermohlen, Carolus Horn and Willem deKooning. In the talk Potts touted the expressive arts therapies as a means to access the self, and to give expression to Alzheimer’s patients who have otherwise lost expressive language abilities. These therapies are emphasized as an essential component of person-centered care, which validates the person with dementia in their present state, and promotes dignity and quality of life. There was discussion at the end of the talk, led by Dr. Ken Heilman (Chairman of the Department of Neurology and legendary behavioral neurologist) on the neurology of artistic expression, and the significance of abstract expression in the late artistic works of Lester Potts.
“The Privilege of Caregiving” highlights Canadian caregivers on MariaShriver.com
“The Privilege of Caregiving,” a new blog post on MariaShriver.com by Daniel C. Potts, M.D. highlights the caregiving stories of two Canadians, Cathie Borrie, RN, BSN, MPH, LLB and James Houston, MA, BSc, DPhil.
While sitting with her “Mum” after Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases took hold of the body and mind, Cathie Borrie caught precious glimpses of the spirit, initially jotting them on spare papers, but eventually crafting a beautiful story of them in The Long Hello: The Other Side of Alzheimer’s, and Looking into Your Voice: the Poetic and Eccentric Realities of Alzheimer’s.
Dr. Houston brings a lifetime of scholarship and remarkable faith to the task of caring for his wife. A member of C.S. Lewis’s inner circle and founding principal of Regent College in Vancouver, Houston speaks of his most recent challenge with an aura of tranquility that is awe-inspiring.
Read the whole blog post here: http://mariashriver.com/blog/2012/05/privilege-of-caregiving
Potts wins “Most Compassionate Doctor Award” for the second year
Daniel C. Potts, M.D., Founder and President of Cognitive Dynamics has been honored by the Consumer Research Council with a “Most Compassionate Doctor” Award for the second year in a row.
This award is based on reviews written by hundreds of thousands of patients. While physicians generally receive positive feedback from their patients, only a select few receive praise about the compassion that accompanied their care. In fact, of the nation’s 720,000 active physicians, less than 3% were accorded this honor by their patients in 2010. The Compassionate Doctor notation has been posted in a broad collection of web sites, including Vitals, UCompare HealthCare, Right Health, Google, and a variety of Managed Care sites. These websites are viewed by more than 9 million people on a monthly basis. The Compassionate Doctor certification is part of Patients’ Choice recognition program, where patients rate and vote for their favorite doctors. Dr. Potts has been a winner of the Patient Choice Award for 4 years in a row, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.