Sarah Stanisz, CDP, CADDCT, CDCM

Sarah graduated with honors from Iowa State University with a degree in child and family services and a minor in gerontology. Since 1999, her dementia experience in long-term care has included admissions, care planning, staff education, family education, staff development, support group facilitation, and developing interventions for residents with behavioral concerns. Sarah’s role at Arbor Springs is broad and inter-disciplinary. She is responsible for the initial and ongoing education of all staff members at Arbor Springs. This includes not only the minimum state and federal requirements for long-term care, but also the Arbor Springs-specific philosophy and standards. Sarah provides input into a variety of facility systems and care practices, and participates in Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement. A significant portion of Sarah’s time is spent with Certified Nursing Assistants, training and developing staff members that provide the direct care to our residents. Arbor Springs’ commitment to staff education is one of our core principles, and our education exceeds the state and federally required minimums as well as industry standards. Newly-hired CNAs are partnered with established CNAs that have completed a “train-the-trainer” program with Sarah. Arbor Springs is unlike many facilities that primarily utilize computer or video-based training for staff. Our initial training is predominantly done interactively in the classroom, supplemented by hands-on training with return demonstration, and computer educations. As a Certified Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Trainer®, Sarah teaches an Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Seminar, the course required for individuals to apply to obtain a Certified Dementia Practitioner® credential. Nearly 50% of Arbor Springs’ nursing staff, covering all shifts, is Certified Dementia Practitioners. Sarah was awarded the Distinguished Educator of the Year in 2016 by the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners for her outstanding work in staff education.