J. Wesson Ashford, M.D., Ph.D.
Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University
 
From 2003 to the present, J. Wesson Ashford, M.D., Ph.D., has been a Senior Research Scientist at the Stanford / VA Aging Clinical Research Center and is now the Director of the War Related Illness and Injury Study Center the VA Palo Alto Health Care System and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University (affiliated).  He is Chair of the Memory Screening Advisory Board of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America and Clinical Editor of the Journal of Alzheimer’s disease.  He is currently developing early detection and measurement methods for Alzheimer’s disease.
 
Dr. Ashford’s dissertation was a finalist for the Lindsley Prize, for the best in Behavioral Neuroscience, in 1984.  He also made the first proposal and physiologic demonstration of massive parallel information processing in the cerebral cortex (Ashford et al., 1985); which has critical implications for understanding memory, particularly that aspect of memory affected by Alzheimer’s disease (Ashford, Coburn, and Fuster, 1998).  His work in Alzheimer’s disease and neurophysiology led to the water-shed observation that neuro-plastic memory mechanisms of the brain are specifically affected by Alzheimer pathology (Ashford & Jarvik, 1985, Teter & Ashford, 2002).
 
Dr. Ashford graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1970.  At UCLA (1970 – 1985) he attained an M.D. (1974) and Ph.D. (1984). He trained in psychiatry (1975 - 1979) and was a founding member of the Neurobehavior Clinic and the first Chief Resident and Associate Director (1979 - 1980) on the Geriatric Psychiatry In-Patient Unit.  He conducted the first double-blind study of an anti-cholinesterase drug (physostigmine) to treat Alzheimer patients (Ashford et al., 1981), a therapy which is now standard treatment for Alzheimer patients.  

 

In his short time in long-term care, Dayne DuVall has made a mark on the industry. He has received a couple of national awards, attends all the important national and regional conferences, and is in high demand for speaking engagements. DuVall’s outgoing personality (and fashion sense) makes it easy for him to meet important leaders and form relationships that would take others years to develop.

 

For the past three years, Dayne has served as chief operating officer of National Certification Board for Alzheimer Care (NCBAC). He has developed dementia care training programs that are being used nationwide in workforce development. He presents lectures and workshops on various topics, including business development, communication, dementia care, social media, and is also involved in government relations and public policy on state and federal levels.

 

Dayne’s mission is to ensure that people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and their families receive the best possible care. He says that the most important way to accomplish this goal is through training and education of direct care staff. Not only does this improve care, but it also provides staff with better skills for advancement. He specializes not only in Alzheimer’s training, but he also has experienced the disease first-hand as a caregiver for his father who died five years ago after a 13-year journey.

 

 

Luke Fannon founded Premier Coaching and Training in April 2005, and currently serves as CEO. Luke’s sales and marketing experience in the health/senior care industry is extensive and includes acute, sub-acute and outpatient rehabilitation, adult day health care, independent and assisted living, home healthcare, hospice and durable medical equipment. 

 

For nearly 25 years Luke has provided sales and marketing leadership to both employers and clients developing sales and marketing teams, identifying successful marketing strategies and tactics and creating sustainable revenue growth. Since 2005 Luke and PCT have assisted numerous clients and trained nearly 5,000 healthcare professionals.

 

Joshua J. Freitas is an award-winning memory care program developer, researcher, and author. His care and training philosophies have been featured in prominent publications, including Long-Term Living Magazine, Healthcare Provider Magazine, Science Today Magazine, local news channels, and much more. Freitas serves as the Corporate Director of Memory Care and Resident Engagement for LCB Senior Living, LLC, where he oversees memory care philosophy and initiatives throughout the company.

 

He holds five certifications related to dementia care and has studied at some of the world’s most renowned institutions, including Lesley University, Harvard University, and Berklee College of Music.

 

With his new book, The Dementia Concept, Freitas hopes to change the way society views individuals who are living with Alzheimer’s disease and related forms of dementia. A dementia diagnosis should not be viewed as the end of life. “To break the stigmas that impede progress and quality care,” Freitas says, “we must all advocate for those with memory impairment, and support their families and friends.”

 

Lynn Biot-Gordon is currently the Chief Operations Officer with the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners (NCCDP), and is a longtime dementia care expert.  As a licensed clinical social worker with a Bachelors degree in psychology and a master of social work degree from Boston University, Lynn Biot-Gordon's social work experience spans 20 years and includes mental health, hospice, long term care, and school social work. 

 

Gordon has served in the areas of administration, direct practice, health education, and clinical supervision. She founded Gordon Social Work Consultants in 1997 to provide consultation services for long term care facilities which includes training and in-services on a variety of topics for residents, families, and health care staff.

Judi Kulus, Vice President of Curriculum Development at the American Association of Nurse Assessment Coordination (AANAC). Judi is a lifelong learner who has become an expert in long-term care resident services, the Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) and Minimum Data Set (MDS) process, Medicare integrity, and regulatory compliance. During her nearly 29 years in the long-term care field she has worked extensively in a variety of administrative and reimbursement roles, managing multiple-facility operations, MDS, Medicare consulting, and nursing department system improvement consulting.  

 

Committed to supporting other long-term care nurse leaders, Judi joined AANAC in 2012 to oversee the development and integrity of the content and curriculum for the Resident Assessment Coordinator Certification (RAC-CT), Medicare University, and other educational programs. She also serves as the executive editor of AANAC’s LTC Leader newsletter, a resource for MDS, Medicare, and quality resident care information and regulatory updates for long-term care nurses.

 

Judi holds a master’s degree in nursing with a specialty in informatics and a master’s degree in education. She is a regular contributor to Provider and Long-Term Living magazines as well as a renowned speaker in the field. 

 

Leah Klusch's education and consulting to healthcare professionals is defined by her dynamic style, sense of humor, no-nonsense advice and innovative ideas. Her ability to focus on learning rather than teaching makes her a welcomed and applauded industry speaker, educator, and nurse leader. 

She's the founder and director of The Alliance Training Center, an educational foundation focused geriatric care issues in Alliance, Ohio and the author of numerous published articles in industry journals, periodicals, trade publications, books, video trainings, and lectures nationally on current industry topics. Leah is passionate about her work and her energy is contagious when helping clients and industry members manage:Care Delivery, Wellness & Restorative Care Giving, Regulatory Compliance, Leadership, Re-engineering & Facility Planning, Nursing Home Management, Payment & Reimbursement, Assessment, and Assessment Documentation

 

As a healthcare industry consultant with a penchant for bridging clinical, financial and compliance needs in an easy-to-understand, fun way, Leah’s insights are captured and read throughout the industry, online as well as offline.

 

Cynthia K. Morton, MPA, serves as the Executive Vice President of NASL and leads a national trade association representing providers and suppliers of ancillary services and products to the long-term and post-acute care sector.  NASL member companies provide speech-language pathology, physical, occupational and respiratory therapy; portable x-ray/EKG and ultrasound; pharmacy, long term and post-acute care software systems and other ancillary services.   NASL members also provide products such as complex medical equipment and clinical lab services for post-acute care settings nationally.

 

Prior to joining NASL, Cynthia served as the Vice President for Political Affairs for the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL). In more than a decade with AHCA/NCAL, she represented the long term care profession before Congress, the Washington health care community, and the media. She also was responsible for lobbying, political strategy and building relationships with Members of Congress.  She developed policy and positions primarily on Medicaid and related long term care issues such as provider tax, Intergovernmental Transfers, dual eligibles, ICF/MR and developmental disability issues, Medicaid block grants, waivers and reform.

 

Previously, Ms. Morton served as the special assistant to the director of the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (the Virginia Medicaid agency), where she covered issues such as Medicaid managed care, long-term care, the children’s health insurance program, provider reimbursement rate setting and strategic planning activities. Cynthia has also served as an appointee in the Offices of Governors Douglas Wilder and Gerald Baliles of Virginia. Earlier she worked in the health care and government relations practice area of the law firm Mezzullo and McCandlish, representing the nursing home sector before the state legislature.

 

In 2005 and 2006, Roll Call magazine named Cynthia Morton as one of the leading long term care lobbyists.

 

Cynthia graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Science in political science and holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. 

 

Christopher Müller joined Eliza Jennings in January 2015 and is responsible for all operations of the SAIDO Learning Institute, including oversight of sales and training. Müller has more than 10 years of international operations and marketing experience in Japan, with expertise in communications and staff development. Prior to joining Eliza Jennings, Müller was with Kumon Institute of Education (Kumon) of Osaka, Japan, from 2003 – 2015. During his tenure with Kumon, his roles included marketing and brand communications, strategic planning, staff training and development, and communications liaison/facilitator.

 

Muller served as communications liaison and interpreter throughout Eliza Jennings’ collaboration with Kumon for the first U.S. SAIDO Learning research trial in Cleveland in 2011, and the subsequent implementation of SAIDO Learning throughout Eliza Jennings’ communities and in aging services organizations across the United States.

 

Müller holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Japanese from Griffith University; he earned the highest level of certification in Japanese proficiency. Müller also holds a Pacific Language School English Instructor Certificate.

 

 

With more than 20 years of experience, Ms. Sereda leads the Eliza Jennings Advancement team comprising the organization’s development, public relations, and marketing functions.  She develops and oversees the implementation of the Eliza Jennings’ marketing and public relations plan, oversees overall organization positioning, and builds brand awareness. Ms. Sereda also directs all development efforts including foundation relations, major gifts, the annual fund and special events programming.

 

Prior to joining Eliza Jennings 2011, Ms. Sereda served as chief development officer for YWCA Greater Cleveland where she was responsible for that organization’s marketing and development functions. Ms. Sereda began her career as associate producer for a weekly documentary program, MONTAGE, broadcast on NBC’s affiliate station in Cleveland and other major cities. She also served as director for advancement for Hawken School and as executive director for the Cleveland Cultural Coalition, an association serving arts and cultural institutions in Northeast Ohio.  

 

Ms. Sereda holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry from the University of Nebraska. 

 

Pamela Tabar is editor-in-chief of Long-Term Living, and has worked as a writer, editor, and contributor for a variety of publications across the healthcare business media landscape since 1998, including for Long-Term Living's sister publication Healthcare Informatics.

 

Tabar has a master’s degree in journalism from Kent State University, and a master's degree in English from the University of York, England.

 

Kim Warchol is an Occupational Therapist specializing in dementia management and she is founder and President of Dementia Care Specialists, a CPI specialized offering. Kim has educated thousands of therapists and other healthcare professionals on an abilities-focused, person-centered approach to dementia evaluation, treatment, and programming.  

 

Acting as a consultant, Kim has set-up many long-term care memory care environments and programs using this innovative, stage-specific model. Kim has published numerous articles and she lectures nationally on various topics related to quality dementia care and design. Kim is passionate about creating a Dementia Capable Society.