Nov 16, 2010

Alzheimer's panel

The Central Lakes College Psychology Club on Nov. 16 hosted a panel discussing Alzheimer's Disease. "Not All Wounds Are Visible" featured psychiatrist Peter Neifert, M.D., Laura Schoonover, RN, of the Good Samaritan Society, and Dick Ashmun, a retired university professor whose wife was a victim of the disease. The 75-minute program included the medical terminology associated with the ailment as well as the physical, emotional, and sociological aspects surrounding an illness that by 2050 will claim 14.3 million victims and already afflicts 5.3 million. Big-screen projections in the Lecture Hall of the Brainerd campus included the hole-filled brain of an Alzheimer's Disease victim. The Psychology Club has 10 members led by Steve Sabin, president; Luke Simonson, vice president; Melissa Paxton, secretary; Tom Britz, treasurer; and Jeremy Johnson, student senate liaison. Martha Kuehn is the adviser. On Dec. 6 the club hosts Stress Management Day to raise awareness of the sources and effects of stress and provide information and prizes to reduce stress. The club holds this event near the end of each semester in the cafeteria commons of the Brainerd campus.