The Importance of Dementia Compassionate Culture

Saturday, November 4th, 2017

Cognitive Dynamics Founder and President Daniel C. Potts, MD, FAAN was a recent guest of Mike Good (Together In This) for a podcast titled “The Importance of Dementia Compassionate Culture.”  In the podcast, Good and Potts discuss the story and art of Lester E. Potts, Jr., an Alabama saw miller who discovered a hidden talent for watercolor painting after the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, and how this discovery led to new insights about the persistence of personhood and creativity in persons living with dementia.

The program created in memory of Lester Potts, Bringing Art to Life, was then discussed as a means to grow empathy and create a culture of compassion in dementia care through art therapy, storytelling, and the building of intergenerational relationships.  The program has two active locations, at the University of Alabama and in Chicago (Bringing Art to Life: Chicago), and is under development at other sites.

For more about Bringing Art to Life, check this link: Bringing Art to Life

#020: The Importance of a Dementia Compassionate Culture with Dr. Daniel Potts

Lester Potts’ Art Now Available on LestersLegacy.com

Sunday, June 18th, 2017

The watercolor art of Lester E. Potts, Jr., an artist with Alzheimer’s disease, is now available for purchase at http://www.lesterslegacy.com/.

Lester, a rural Alabama saw miller, had never painted until after the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. Lester’s newly-found creativity improved his quality of life and had many other benefits. His art has been shown from Beverly Hills to Paris, has been the subject of research, and appears in articles, textbooks, devotional books and documentaries.

Lester’s art has been used as a tool of engagement and reminiscence between care givers and persons with dementia. 

Prints of Lester’s art are available in different sizes on the http://www.lesterslegacy.com/ website.  In addition, 5 styles of greeting cards are available, with short verses composed by Daniel C. Potts, MD, FAAN on the back covers of each.

If you are not interested in purchasing, you may simply peruse the beautiful art that appears on the page.

Proceeds from the sale of all products appearing on http://www.lesterslegacy.com/ go toward supporting the mission and programs of Cognitive Dynamics

“Bringing Art to Life” to Open in Chicago

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2015

Bringing Art to Life, an exhibit opening at the National Museum of Health and Medicine Chicago June 5, 2015, from 6 to 9 pm, will feature art by Lester E. Potts, Jr., a saw miller-turned-watercolor artist after the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and poetry by his son, Alabama neurologist Daniel C. Potts, MD, FAAN. The exhibit will highlight art and design as quality of life-promoting therapies for people with neurodegenerative disease, as well as techniques to enhance the effectiveness of caregiving. Elizabeth Barber, PhD will discuss her research on art and interior design as tools to create therapeutic environments especially for people with Parkinson’s disease (PD), and which lessen caregiver burden. A panel discussion will include distinguished AD and PD physicians experienced in the expressive arts, and an art therapist. Panelists will include Neelum Aggarwal, MD, Elizabeth Barber, PhD, Theresa Dewey, ATR, LCPC, Christopher Goetz, MD, and Daniel C. Potts, MD, FAAN. The Greater Illinois Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association is a partner for the event. The exhibit will run from June 5 – 26.

Lester Potts’s Art Featured in New Book of Caregiver Meditations

Tuesday, December 9th, 2014

From ClergyAgainstAlzheimer’s comes Seasons of Caring: Meditations for Alzheimer’s and Dementia Caregivers, a first-of-its-kind interfaith volume offering comfort and hope to Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers, their families and friends, clergy and faith leaders, and care professionals. Seasons of Caringis available on CreateSpace. Click here to learn more.

Seasons of Caring includes more than 140 original meditations from 72 religious leaders and care specialists – many of them caregivers themselves – representing  some 17 faith traditions. Each writer draws upon his or her years of experience to offer words of hope, encouragement and understanding to those who are now on this journey, and to give voice to the unique challenges confronting Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers. Contributors speak from the perspective of their distinct faith traditions, yet are united in their support of families facing Alzheimer’s and dementia.

Seasons of Caring will have special meaning for facilitators and members of Alzheimer’s support groups, and will be a catalyst for group reflection, discussion and individual meditation.

All proceeds go to ClergyAgainstAlzheimer’s, a multifaith national network of clergy, laity and faith organizations working to focus our nation’s attention on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, to promote dignity and compassionate care for those with Alzheimer’s, and to support families and caregivers.

Seasons of Caring features the watercolors of Alzheimer’s artist Lester E. Potts, Jr., who discovered his gift of creativity after the diagnosis.  Cognitive Dynamics President Daniel C. Potts, MD, FAAN brought the idea for the collection to the ClergyAgainstAlzheimer’s network, and served as the book’s Editor-in-chief, with associate editors Lynda Everman, Richard Morgan, PhD, Rabbi Steve Glazer, and Max Wallack.