Episode 47: Judy Cornish: My Journey to Dementia Care and Creation of the DAWN Method.
In Today’s episode, Saul Ebema and guest host Marie Conlin talk to Dementia expert and author Judy Cornish. Judy is an attorney licensed in Idaho and Oregon and a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). Before becoming a lawyer, Ms. Cornish worked in vocational rehabilitation with people who have brain injuries and as a Qualified Mental Health Associate with the mentally ill.
With her background in traumatic brain injury, mental illness, elder law and disability law, Ms. Cornish brings a distinctive set of abilities to her work with dementia and Alzheimer’s.
In 2010 Ms. Cornish founded the Dementia & Alzheimer’s Wellbeing Network (DAWN®) in Moscow, Idaho. Through her hands-on work with dementia, she developed a proprietary method for working with people who have dementia—one that helps them develop and retain a sense of security and wellbeing. The DAWN Method® is simple enough to be used by caregivers in the home and works in care facilities as well. It targets the emotional distress that accompanies cognitive decline so that behaviors are avoided and caregiver stress is minimized.
Today the DAWN Method is in use with seniors in Northern Idaho and Eastern Washington, using a two-tiered care system of case managers and dementia care specialists. Ms. Cornish provides training in the DAWN method and consults with families in the Northern Idaho and Eastern Washington region.