Dementia support group to feature speech- language pathologist, virtual museum tour

Crisostomo

Certified speech-language pathologist Sibyl Crisostomo from Guam Regional Medical City will be offering a free virtual presentation at 6pm this Wednesday on swallowing and dysphagia in persons with dementia. Her presentation is part of the ongoing online support groups for family caregivers of persons with dementia being conducted by the Guam/Micronesia Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program of the University of Guam School of Health. 

Crisostomo specializes in preventing, assessing, diagnosing, and treating disorders in speech, language, cognitive communication, and swallowing. Crisostomo will be available after her presentation to answer questions from the group participants. 

Also this month, the Guam/Micronesia Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program and the Guam Museum are collaborating to offer a virtual tour of the Guam Museum’s seventh gallery “I Finaloffan Yan I Ma’mai’la,” which translates to “Our Past and Our Future.” The tour is specially designed for families with older adults and persons with dementia who might not be able to visit the museum in person. 

The gallery highlights Guam’s political and economic development, including the CHamoru revitalization of cultural traditions and language, as well as the future of the island. The Guam Museum virtual tour series is conducted by Guam Museum Curator Michael Lujan Bevacqua, who holds a doctorate in ethnic studies and specializes in CHamoru history, language, and culture.
 
Swallowing and Dysphagia in Persons with Dementia
■ 6pm – 8pm, Wednesday, April 20
■ Register at https://zoom.us/j/92072878067.

Guam Museum Virtual Tour: “I Finaloffan Yan I Ma’mai’la” (Our Past and Our Future)
■ 6pm – 8pm, Wednesday, April 27 (Register at https://zoom.us/j/92072878067.)
■ 10am – noon, Saturday, April 30 (Register at https://zoom.us/j/92072878067.) 

Ongoing support groups 
The GWEP dementia support group sessions are held remotely on Zoom every Wednesday evening and Saturday morning, yearround. The sessions are free of charge to partners, family members, and other caregivers of persons with dementia who have ties to Guam and the Micronesian region.
For more information, contact Iain Twaddle or Nikolas Gutierrez at (671) 735-2883 or gwep.tgss@triton.uog.edu or Rhoda Orallo at (671) 735-3277 or nfcspmgr@teleguam.net. (PR)