More about Jane

Professsional Qualifications/Specialized Training

October 2018 - AARP National Community Leadership Academy, completed a six-month interactive course designed to train and empower community leaders

June 2017 – Gerontology Practitioner Certification, West Virginia University School of Social Work, Morgantown, WV

March 2014, Dementia Care Training for Certification as Certified Dementia Practitioner, sponsored by the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners, Greenville, SC

December 2011 SPECAL: Lifelong Well Being for People With Dementia, Photograph Album Professional Training, Burford Community Hospital, Burford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

Boards, Work Groups, Task Force

January 2020 to present - Member of WV Task Force on Fiancial Exploitation
2020 to present Member WV Ombudsman Advisory Group

2019 to present - Member Board of Directors, WV Geriatrics Society

2019 - 2020 – Member WV Governor’s Task Force on Palliative Care

2017 to present - Member Board of Directors, Faith in Action of the Greater Kanawha Valley

2015 to Present, Take Me Home WV Quality Committee (WV DHHR and BMS)
2014 - 2015, Board Chair, WV Partnership for Elder Living.
2009 to 2012, Member Board of Directors, Cabin Creek Health Systems FQHC
2006 to 2008– Member of the Vision Shared Long-term Care Task Force. Vision Shared is a unique collaboration of the private sector and state government to review current practice and outline new initiatives for change in WV.
2003 - 2008, served on a work group for an Administration on Aging Alzheimer’s Demonstration Grant in conjunction with the WV Bureau of Senior Services
Member of the 2005 Long-term Care Subcommittee of the Governors Committee on Medicaid Redesign.
2003-2006 - member of the WV Center on Aging’s Rural Healthy Aging Network Project which will help identify gaps in research, knowledge and practice, regarding how to improve health and access to healthcare among rural older adults.
2003- 2008- Served on WV Bureau of Senior Services Resource Center Oversight Committee that oversees the current Resource Center Demonstration Grant that established two aged and disabled resource centers through a grant from the Administration on Aging and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid.
2003 served on the NCOA Committee “Promoting Consumer Direction in the Aging Network”.
Member of the 2003 Healthy Aging 2010 Work Group. This group, through the WV DHHR, brought together stakeholders representing various health and educational disciplines in WV to undertake the task of promoting health aging in WV.

Additional Activities

January 2020 to present, AARP WV State Volunteer President

2018 –2019 created and hosted an on-going series of podcasts for AARP WV on caregiving resources and challenges called “Prepare to Care”

October 2015, Guest Blogger, The Huffington Post “A Gift to my Future Caregivers”

2021 to 2016 Blogger, " Welcome to the Sandwich Counter" on Word Press. You can still find Jane's blog posts there.

2012, Technical advisor for movie Angels Perch, Scrappy Cat Productions, Los Angeles CA. Directed by Charles Haine. With Joyce Van Patten, Ally Walker, Ashley Jones, Ellen Crawford. Angel's Perch is the story of Jack, a successful architect living in Pittsburgh, who must make the trip to his tiny hometown when his grandmother Polly, who is suffering from Alzheimer's, is found wandering outside her house one morning.

2012 small role in the movie Angel's Perch.

2009 - 2013, host of Women's Perspective, montlhy talk show on the local cable television network.

Publications

June 2017, Co-Author, “ A Pilot Program to Improve Cognitive Impairment Recognition in the Acute Care Setting”, West Virginia Medical Journal On Line, Monday, June 19th 2017, DOI: 10.21885/wvmj.2017.12

2013 - Co- author of West Virginia University On-Line Extended Learning, In Home Dementia Care Course.

2007 - Author, downloadable self -study course, Alzheimer’s Disease: The Basics for Good Care

Developed the Alzheimer’s Association, WV Chapter workshops : Brain Health and Wellness Workshop; the Problem of Pain and Alzheimer’s Disease; Alzheimer’s Disease at the End: Late Stage Care; Caregiver Stress

“Caregiver Stress: An Important and Overlooked Health Issue, article, West Virginia Medical Medical Journal, West Virginia Medical Association, Vol. 107. No. 3, May/June 2011

“The “A” Word, Overview of Alzheimer’s, including impact on WV”; article, WV Executive Magazine Annual Health Care Edition, July 2005

“Caregivers: An invaluable Asset”; article, The State Journal, February 2006

“The Hood Ornament Handbook”; humor, inspirational book, 2002

So You Want to Help Kids”; How-to manual on starting an after school program for at risk children - 1993

Where has Jane presented?

July 2020, Presenter, Virtual Wrap Around Supports for Veterans and Their Families : "Caregiving Resources from AARP"

September 2019, Presenter, WV Activities Professional Conference, Parkersburg, WV: “Proactive Aging: Preparing for the Third Act”
September 10, 2019, Panel Discussion, AARP Price of Caring Summit, Washington DC. “Innovative Solutions in WV”
May 3, 2019, Presenter, NASW WV Conference, Charleston, WV, “Proactive Aging: Preparing for the Third Act.
September 2017, Presenter, WV Activities Professional Conference, Parkersburg, WV: “Person Centered Care: Are We Really There Yet?”
June 2017, Presenter, Western Maryland Alzheimer’s Association, Caring for Those Who Care Conference, Hagerstown, MD, “A More Peaceful Dementia”
June 2017, Presenter, WV University Summer Institute on Aging, Morgantown, WV, “Person Centered Care: Are We Really There Yet?”

June 2017, Presenter, WV University Summer Institute on Aging, Morgantown, WV, “Person Centered Care: Are We Really There Yet?”

April, 28, 2017, Presenter, NASW WV Conference, Charleston, WV, “Caregiving Defined and Then What?”

November 2016, Presenter, Western Maryland Alzheimer’s Association, Dementia Conference for Professionals and Caregivers, Frederick Maryland, “Caregiving Defined and Then What?"

October 2016, Panel Discussion on End of Life Decisions, CAMC Health Systems, Mini Medical School, Charleston, WV.

June 3, 2016, Presenter, Great Expectations Maine Geriatric Conference, Bar Harbor Maine, “Acute Care and the Person with Dementia: Chaos of Calm.”

May 6, 2016, Clarksburg WV, WV University School Of Social Work Spring 2016 Professional and Community Education “Caregivers: Lots You Need to Know but Didn’t Know to Ask. Three hour workshop on caregiving.

April 2016, Presenter, NASW WV Conference, Charleston, WV ‘ How Many Shades of Gray: Sexuality, Dementia and Long Term Care.

March 31, 2016, Wheeling, WV, WV University School Of Social Work Spring 2016 Professional and Community Education; “A Day on Dementia: Some of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly”. Day long presentation covering three topics: understanding dementia, sexuality and dementia and acute care and the person with dementia.

March 12, 2016, Raleigh County Commission on Aging, Compassionate Caregiver Conference, “Caregiving Defined”

February 26, 2016, Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale Fl. Annual Geriatric Conference, "How Many Shades of Gray, Sex, Dementia and Long-term Care."

August 2015, Florida Conference on Aging, Orlando Florida, Presenter: “Welcome to the Sandwich Counter”, “Acute Care and the Person with Dementia: Chaos or Calm” and “How Many Shades of Gray: Sexuality, Dementia and Long-term Care.”

June 2015, West Virginia University Summer Institute on Aging, Morgantown, WV, “Acute Care and the Person with Dementia, Chaos or Calm” and “How Many Shades of Gray; Sexuality, Dementia and Long-term Care”.

April 1, 2015, WV University School of Medicine, and WV Geriatric Education Center, Internal Medicine Residents : “ A More Peaceful Dementia”

November 12, 2014, WV University School Of Social Work Fall 2014 Professional and Community Education; “A Day on Dementia: Some of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly”. Day long presentation covering three topics: understanding dementia, sexuality and dementia and acute care and the person with dementia.

October 22, 2014, WV Geriatric Education Center and CAMC Health Education and Research Institute Geriatric Lunchtime Learning Presentation: “Acute Care and the Person with Dementia: Chaos or Calm”

July 19, 20, 2014 Academic Poster Presentation, Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, Copenhagen Denmark, “Cognitive Impairment Recognition in Acute Care”

June 5, 2014, West Virginia University School of Social Work, Summer Institute on Aging, Morgantown, WV , “ Sandwich Caregiving and Emotional Wounds."

November 7, 2013, Grand Rounds, Cabell Huntington Hospital, Huntington, WV. “ A New Way of Understanding Dementia”

May 3, 2013, National Association of Social Workers, Annual Conference, Charleston, WV “Beyond Person Centered Care: A More Peaceful Dementia” , three hour workshop

April 18, 2013, West Virginia Academy of Family Physicians Annual Scientific Assembly, Charleston, WV, “Physicians, What You Need to Know About Alzheimer's and Caregivers”

April 18, 2013, West Virginia Nursing Home Quality Care Collaborative Conference, Charleston, WV; “Non Pharmacologic View of Alzheimer’s and Dementia Behavior “Management”

November 14, 2012, Presenter, WV Rural Health Conference, Glade Springs Resort, Daniels, WV; “The National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s: Impact on Rural Health”

June 5, 2012, Presenter,West Virginia University School of Social Work, Summer Institute, Waterfront Hotel, Morgantown, WV. “ Beyond Person Centered Care: A More Peaceful Dementia” , three hour workshop

April 1, 2012, Presenter, WV Academy of Family Practice Physicians Conference, Embassy Suites, Charleston, WV “Physicians, What You Need to Know about Alzheimer's and Caregiviers”

September, 23,2011, Presenter, Raleigh County Commission on Aging, Beckley, WV Annual Elder Abuse Conference, “Abuse – From a Different Angle”

July, 2010 Presenter, 32nd Summer Institute on Aging, Morgantown, WV, “ Brain Health: The Final Frontier”.

June 4, 2009, Co-Presenter, 31st Summer Institute on Aging, Morgantown, WV, “The Boomers Are Coming - Bingo Won’t Cut it Anymore!”

May 16, 2009, Presenter, WV Women’s Expo, Charleston Civic Center, Charleston, WV. “The Sandwich Generation: Caring for kids and parents without losing it!”

April 25, 2009, Presenter at Tri State Regional Pilot Club Convention Charleston Town Center Marriott, Charleston, WV,

November 2008, Presenter, WV Rural Health Conference Glade Springs Resort, Daniels,WV.

July 18, 2008, Presenter, National Leadership and Community Service Conference, Charleston WV, “From Eight Tracks to Ipods, Generational Differences that Impact Fundraising”.

April 2008, Presenter, WV Social Work Conference, Charleston, WV, “Educating about Alzheimer’s.

February 2008, Presenter, National Leadership Conference, Alzheimer’s Association, Chicago, Illinois “Building a Culture of Advocacy”

2007 Presented at both the Eastern and Western Administration on Aging Alzheimer’s Demonstration Grant Regional Workshops

2005 Presented at the White House Conference On Aging Solutions Forum on Aging held in Morgantown WV.

In both 2002 and 2005 presented workshops on legislative tactics at the national Alzheimer’s Association Public Policy Forum in Washington DC.
2002 Testified before the WV Silver Haired Legislature and LOCCHRA, the WV Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Resources Accountability. Instrumental in the passage of numerous pieces of legislation including mandated dementia care training for long term care staff, silver alert, funding for Alzheimer’s Helpline, and comprehensive state plan for Alzheimer’s.