Training and Community Programs

1. Caregiver Training

Right at Home Boston and North values our caregivers. We want to help them succeed in their careers and support them in their job roles. Brenda Forster, RN, Director of Nursing of Right at Home Boston and North offers monthly training programs in our Somerville, Salem and Haverhill offices. The training programs include:

• Hospice Care Training
• Geriatric Psychology and Dementia Training
• Difficult Behavior Management
• Dementia Live
• Compassionate Touch

About the Program Presenter Brenda Forster

An East Boston native, Brenda Forster, RN, joined Right at home Boston and North in 2009 as a supervisory nurse and became the Director of Nursing in 2011. She oversees the clinical care of all our clients in the North Shore, Boston and Merrimack Valley regions. She also performs clinical assessments, devises and maintains our clients’ care plans, monitors the changing needs of our clients, supervises as well as provides orientation program to our caregivers and nursing staff.

Forster is a graduate of Lawrence Memorial / Regis College in Medford, Massachusetts with a Degree in Nursing. She had previously worked in Beverly Hospital in the North Shore region.

2. CEU Workshops for Healthcare Professionals

In conjunction with our hospice partner CareDimensions, Right at Home Boston and North presents a number of CEU workshops for healthcare professionals including registered nurses, social workers and case managers throughout the year.

CareDimensions and Right at Home Boston and North are dedicated to advocating for end-of-life care services. Hospice and Palliative Care mean more than helping patients to manage pain at the end of their lives. They also cover senior care services for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, counseling services and advanced care planning.

Extended Reading: “Spirit, Mind, and Body: Caring for LGBT Individuals at End of Life”

Right at Home also sponsors free CEU webinars to family and professional caregivers. For more information, please visit our EVENTS section.

3. Community Outreach

We care about our community and volunteer with a number of local organizations such as the Arlington Street Church and The Greater Boston Food Bank. Events and activities we participate in on a regular basis include:

• National Parkinson’s Foundation--Moving Day® Boston
  
  
  
  

  Right at Home Boston and North proudly sponsors the Moving Day® event of National Parkinson’s Foundation in Boston. The annual fundraiser aims at creating awareness for people who live with Parkinson’s disease. We have been on the planning committee since 2013.

  Moving Day® Boston is hosted annually at the DCR Artesani Park in Boston, Massachusetts. The event is designed to highlight the importance of movement for individuals affected by Parkinson’s. Today, the progressive disorder of the nervous system affects approximately one million people in the U.S.. A cure is yet to be found, but organizations like the National Parkinson’s Foundation are committed to advancing research and treatments.

  Right at Home is the national partner of the National Parkinson Foundation. Each year, we set up an information booth to answer inquiries and distribute senior home care resources at the event, we also have a photo booth and handout giveaways.

  Join us in the effort to care for Parkinson’s patients and help find a cure for the condition! You may join our team in the upcoming Moving Day® Boston event, or volunteer at the local chapter.
  
  

• Alzheimer’s Partnerships Massachusetts / New Hampshire Chapter

The Alzheimer’s Association works to eradicate the disease through advancement of research. The organization provides support and helps to improve care services for patients and their families. Advocating for Alzheimer's disease and dementia is a cause close to our hearts, which is why we have been a member of the association’s Massachusetts / New Hampshire Chapter since our offices open.

Today, Right at Home Boston and North volunteers with the Massachusetts / New Hampshire Chapter and is a part of its events planning committee. Each month, the committee members meet in towns across the north shore including Beverly, Peabody, Danvers, Ipswich, and Newburyport. Our role mainly assists in the coordination of annual events, volunteer recruitment, promotion and the creation of marketing materials.

The Massachusetts / New Hampshire Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association has two main events every year in spring and fall. The Caregiver Connections Conference in November is one of the biggest events of the organization. All proceeds raised in the conference would be used to support Alzheimer’s education, training and advocacy campaigns.

• Memory Cafes

Right at Home Boston and North is hosting a Memory Café at Hope Community Church (11 Hale Street, Newburyport, MA 01950) every third Wednesday of the month.

Memory Cafes are meant to be safe places for individuals with Alzheimer's/dementia and their caregivers to feel welcomed, supported and engaged. Often individuals and their caregivers become isolated socially and disconnected from their communities due to stigma as well as difficulty in managing daily tasks. While medical and social service workers offer necessary assistance with health and resource needs, simple delights such as visiting a local café may still be inaccessible for patients and their families.

Right at Home Boston and North is determined to helping Alzheimer's and dementia patients and their families. In October, 2017, our team connected with Hope Community Church and set up a Memory Café for the Newburyport community. Our Memory Café offers a comfortable space for patients and their families, as well as caregivers to connect and support each other.

All are welcome to join, a diagnosis of dementia is not required. Guests who require personal care or assistance must be accompanied by caregivers. The Memory Café is coordinated by community advocates, care professionals, volunteers with experience or training in working with individuals with cognitive impairment.

• Friday Night Supper Program
• Brown Bag Program
  
  

For more information, contact our Community Relations Coordinator Victoria Guskiewicz at (781)-568-0623 or email at vguskiewicz@rightathomemass.com.