Time-Out Workshop

Every year the Elder Law Practice sponsors a workshop for health care professionals called “The Time-Out Workshop”. This is a workshop where doctors, nurses, nursing home administrators, social workers, and others in the health care profession that serve Seniors, can spend a day learning relevant, cutting-edge information, networking with each other and just having fun enjoying a day out of the office.

This year the Time Out Workshop is held on October 13th at the U of A Cooperative Extension Service at 2301 S. University Avenue in Little Rock. We start gathering at 8:00 for Starbucks coffee and Danish, browse vendor exhibits, then move to the auditorium at 8:45 for program kick-off. This year, our awesome slate of Time Out Workshop speakers are as follows:

Neal Wyatt, D.O.
Artificial Nutrition and Hydration: The Great Debate
Dr. Wyatt is the Corporate Medical Director for Arkansas Hospice since October, 2007 and has worked with Arkansas Hospice since December of 2006. He is Board certified in Family Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Medicine.
Very few medical topics over the years have garnered such great debate as the issue of artificial nutrition and hydration (ANH). This topic has stimulated great discussion among medical and social ethicists, the legal system, and medical care providers. Much of what is believed and practice in the clinical realm is contradictory to the few studies that have been published, in particular when discussing the issue of ANH in the terminal setting. Medical care has progressed to a place where it is not enough to ask if “we can”, but also to ask if “we should”. In this lecture and discussion, we will look at some of the clinical studies that should drive some of our decision making as health care professionals, and then will discuss the various ethical and legal principles that both drive and govern how we look at this complex issue. We will conclude by looking at a comprehensive way to begin this discussion with patients and families.

Morgan Sauer, M.D
I’d Rather Tap Dance on a Landmine
Medical providers and many of those in the health care system are “deathly afraid” to discuss death and dying with their patients. Conflict arises from unmet needs and unmet expectations. We will discuss ways to empower your patients by effectively communicating.

Carol J. Randolph, MSNc, RN, CDE, APN
Diabetes Management- Just when we thought we understood, the drugs and rules are changing!
Carol has completed a Master’s of Science in Nursing from UAMS and has become a board certified Advanced Practice Nurse in 2002. Since that time she has practiced in Endocrinology at LRDC in Little Rock. She has also been a certified diabetes educator since 1996 and will give us an important update on the topic of Diabetes Management for the Elderly.

Kim Curseen, M.D.
Ethical Issues in the Terminally Ill Patient – Part 1, Options of Last Resort. Dr. Curseen is a Palliative Care Fellow, UAMS Department of Geriatric Medicine. Her previous Fellowship was also in Geriatric Medicine (2007) at Yale Primary Care Internal Medicine Residency Program. Dr. Curseen will discuss the topic of Withholding and Withdrawing Life Sustaining Treatment.

We will have Starbucks coffee & Danish in the morning, lunch at noon, snacks at breaks, ice-cream truck during afternoon break, door prices, grand prize, 5.25 hours of CE Credit and a LOT OF FUN. If you haven’t registered, call us immediately at (501) 843-9014 to do so. Or send us an e-mail at doug@arkelderlaw.com and we’ll get a registration form to you. Either way, please act now. We don’t want to miss you at this year’s Time Out Workshop. See you there.