Register Now for Phoebe Institute on Aging’s Conference on Secondary Trauma and Resiliency in Senior Care

The Phoebe Institute on Aging (PIA) and the Allentown, Pa., area’s PBS channel —PBS39 — present its annual one-day conference — this year entitled “The Personal Cost of Caring: Secondary Trauma and Resiliency in Senior Care” — on Thursday, April 28, 2022. 

The virtual conference will examine the effects of COVID-19 on caregivers of older adults: physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Practical solutions will be offered, including self-care, discovering sources of energy and renewal, and how senior care organizations can care for those who care for others. The conference features best-selling author and founder of The Trauma Stewardship Institute, Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, who will present the keynote address, “Navigating Amidst Overwhelming Times.”

van Dernoot Lipsky, a TED talk presenter, is a self-reflective dynamic speaker who masterfully uses humor to convey her insights about trauma. In addition to health care providers, she has presented to diverse groups like public school teachers, private practice doctors, small non-profits, massive state agencies, libraries, community organizers, reconstruction workers, and the Pentagon. 

Her books include Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others, which addresses the under-recognized effects of caring for others and the planet, and The Age of Overwhelm, which aims to help ease the burden of overwhelm, restore perspective, and give strength to navigate what is yet to come.

“We can do meaningful work in a way that works for us and for those we serve,” she writes. “Taking care of ourselves while taking care of others allows us to contribute to our societies with such impact that we will leave a legacy informed by our deepest wisdom and greatest gifts instead of burdened by our struggles and despair.”

In addition to vanDernoot Lipsky’s keynote, 10 speakers will present, including Kelly O’Shea Carney, PhD, ABPP, Board Certified Geropsychologist; Morning Star Holmes, Founder, Transitional Wisdom, Laguna Beach, Calif.; Carole Dorr, MBE, Ethics Team Leader for Lehigh Valley (Pa.) Health Network’s Ethics Consultation Service; Joshua Schulz, PhD, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics, DeSales University (Center Valley, Pa.); and Brynn White, MDIV, BCC-MH, Mental Health Chaplain, Coatesville, Va., Medical Center.

The Northwell Health Nurse Choir, the singing group of nurses who advanced to the season 16 finale of America’s Got Talent in September 2021 and performed during the White House “Spirit of the Season” special, also will share their inspirational music throughout the conference.

Registration is $20 ($10 discount for Phoebe residents), and CEUs are available (some at additional cost). Register by April 21 to guarantee a spot at the conference.

For more information and registration, visit Phoebe.org/pia-conference or call 610-794-5132.