On-Site Training and Consultations:

Expertise for on-site consultation and training is provided in the following areas:

Case Management: Seminars on case management focus on community based care and on the following topics: Introductory practice skills and principles; best practice principles; ethics; interviewing skills for case managers; conducting the functional assessment; strengths based case management; service plan development; models of case management and client centered case management. Case studies, role play, videos and lecture-discussion are all incorporated into the seminar to facilitate application of new concepts.

Person Centered Dementia Care: A unique focus on dementia care that is seldom taught in the US is presented to community based and facility based professionals working in the field of aging and long term care. The Person Centered Care approach to dementia was developed by Dr. Thomas Kitwood – University of Bradford UK and places the person with dementia at the focal point of caring with the professional working to honor the individual person at all stages of the dementia process. This seminar will focus on identifying and understanding caregiver behavior as it impacts the well being of persons with dementia. Key indicators of well being will be defined and participants are taught how to develop care giving responses that are positive reinforcement of personhood. Indicators of malignant social psychology (Kitwood 1998) will also be identified and defined to help participants recognize the presence of behaviors that interfere with quality of life for persons with dementia. Case studies, role play, videos and lecture-discussion are all incorporated into the day so that participants may have ample opportunity to learn to apply the new concepts presented in the seminar.

Cultural Competency: Seminars on cultural competency introduce participants to awareness, knowledge and skills that will facilitate culturally compatible and quality work in health and human services. The following topics are examples of the types of important issues that are worked with during seminars and include: Understanding the personal importance of culture, ethnicity and heritage; working with new immigrant families; effective work with interpreters; the culturally competent assessment process; defining the principles and practices of cultural competency at the professional and organizational levels; explanatory models of illness; ethnogeriatric assessment; socio-demographic trends. Participants will be able to conduct a self-assessment to identify their level of cultural competency and also evaluate where their organization is on a continuum of cultural competency. Ample time will be provided for lecture and participants will view videos, participate in role plays and work with case studies.

Social Gerontology: Seminars in this category are designed to advance the knowledge of base in aging for professionals working in the field of long term care and aging with a special emphasis on the following topics: normal physical changes of aging; ethnicity and aging; personal adaptation and aging; psychological development and aging. Lecture – discussion, video and case studies are used to facilitate the learning experience. This are of training is designed update professionals on important concepts and facts about gerontology that will allow them to improve their direct work with older adults.

All seminars are half or full day learning experiences.

Health care professionals, human service staff, community based case managers, psychotherapists and other clinicians in private practice, nursing facility and assisted living personnel, schools and/or educational groups, governmental agencies, health care organizations/HMOS/Clinics.

Suzanna Waters Castillo, MSSW, PHD and Faculty Associate in the Department of Professional Development and Applied Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she develops and teaches continuing education courses in: long term care and aging; cross cultural care and person centered dementia care. She has worked in the field of gerontology for over 25 years and brings direct practice experience as a provider and administrator to her teaching and research in aging and long term care.

Dr. Waters Castillo earned her PHD in Continuing Education with a focus on gerontology and cross cultural health care from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She holds an MSSW the University of Wisconsin- Madison, School of Social Work with an emphasis in Long Term Care Policy and gerontology. Her B.S. in sociology with an emphasis in gerontology is also from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

As part of her research and outreach education efforts in gerontology, Dr. Waters Castillo has worked extensively in Latin America with the University of Puerto Rico, University of Guadalajara, University of Javeriana in Bogotá Colombia. She has also completed training on Person Centered Dementia Care with the University of Bradford UK. She was also a fellow at Stanford University-Ethnogeriatric Education Center.