Jaime Cobb-Tinsley, Vice President of Family & Professional Education at the James L. West Center for Dementia Care, participated in a best-practices panel at the HEALTHTAC West Conference, held August 2–4 at The Phoenician Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Prominent healthcare leaders from across the country attended the event to exchange ideas and learn about best practices from experts in senior care. Organizers described the presenters as a “Who’s Who” of healthcare leaders in the dementia care field. The discussion, “Beyond the Care Plan: Training, Environment and Dignity in Memory Care,” addressed workforce training, how staff interpret residents’ actions, and how memory care communities can balance safety with residents’ autonomy, dignity, and quality of life.
Cobb-Tinsley shared how the James L. West Center measures safety and satisfaction to help ensure the security and comfort of its residents. At the same time, the West Center focuses on building caregiver confidence and trust in the organization, which can contribute to a higher quality of care. “When our caregivers have confidence in the skills they have acquired through training, whether it’s on-the-job training or orientation, that confidence helps them respond better in all situations,” she said.
Dementia care can be demanding, requiring patience, compassion, and a deep understanding of the challenges experienced by people living with cognitive change. For caregivers, specialized training can make an important difference in understanding and responding to residents’ needs.
Cobb-Tinsley noted that James L. West has a robust career ladder program for employees, providing them with opportunities to advance professionally. “We correlate a lot of that because we see team member retention and advancement as our ROI,” she said. “The more fulfilled our team members are, the higher level of care they provide to our residents.”
The need for effective caregiver training extends beyond residential communities into family homes. That makes comprehensive caregiver education increasingly important—an area in which the James L. West Center for Dementia Care has emerged as a local, state, and national leader.
Since joining James L. West 14 years ago, Cobb-Tinsley and her team have created more than 200 educational modules that are available free to the public. “Since the James L. West Center is a nonprofit, we see this outreach as part of our ultimate mission,” she said. “With the rapid growth of dementia, the only way to fully care for the growing number of people facing a dementia diagnosis is to train families and both volunteer and professional caregivers to provide compassionate and dignified care.”
The West Center has also focused on Spanish-speaking audiences, broadening the reach of the program and furthering James L. West’s commitment to quality caregiving.
“Speaking at conferences such as HEALTHTAC West reinforces our commitment to training caregivers across the entire United States,” Cobb-Tinsley said. “We may represent different senior living organizations, but we share the same priority: serving older adults and their families well. There is so much we can learn from one another, and when we collaborate and share best practices, we strengthen not only our own organizations but the quality of care available throughout our community.”
She adds that dignity is central to dementia care. How caregivers interpret and respond to those they care for during vulnerable moments can have a profound effect on a resident’s sense of security and well-being.
Other HEALTHTAC West Conference speakers addressed the topics of personal care, resident well-being and behavioral expressions, staff response training, and compassionate communication with residents.
Cobb-Tinsley noted that the West Center uses the term “expressions” rather than “behaviors” in its training. The distinction, she said, can change how caregivers interpret what residents are communicating and, in turn, how they respond. She summed up the importance of that perspective with a simple insight: A person with dementia is not giving you a hard time; they are having a hard time.
About the James L. West Center for Dementia Care For 33 years, the James L. West Center for Dementia Care, a not-for-profit organization, has served those impacted by dementia. Established by Eunice West in honor of her late husband, James L. West, who passed away due to dementia, the Center continues to build upon its excellence in compassionate care and caregiver and dementia education by expanding its service lines to meet the community’s needs. The Center offers residential care, a Senior Day Program, Short-Term Respite Care, and Rehabilitation, In-Home Services, and professional and family caregiver education, which was recently rebranded as Dementia-IQ Powered by James L. West. Jaime Cobb-Tinsley is the Vice President of Family & Professional Education and has been with The West Center since 2011.
