August 18-19 at the JW Marriott Indianapolis
Caregiver Extravaganza
CEUs: This event is approved for 8 CEUs for Indiana licensed administrators, social workers, & occupational therapists.
Schedule
Monday, August 17
4:00pm – 6:00pm
Pre-Registration/Check-in for Attendees and Exhibitors
Tuesday, August 18
7:00am
Registration/Check-in Opens & Continental Breakfast
7:00am – 10:00am
Exhibitor Move-in & Setup
7:45am
Members Meeting
8:00am-8:45am
Breakout Sessions
Breakout A: The First 48 Hours: Responding to Serious Incidents, Government Investigations, and Potential Litigation
In this session, legal representatives and LTC providers will discuss real-life scenarios and when to involve Legal, what to preserve, who to notify, and common early mistakes, as well as, addressing the litigation, regulatory, privilege, and outside counsel perspective.
Breakout B: The Validation Method®: Empathetic Trauma-Informed Caring for People with Dementia
Validation Method® techniques developed by Naomi Feil instead of less effective, even harmful ones, create successful communication with persons with dementia. Validation replaces the person-devaluing methods of lying/pretending, arguing/convincing and redirecting/ignoring with exquisite listening, empathy, and how to move into the disoriented person’s world to validate them and their emotions. Validation is trauma-informed care, helping all to know what to do and what not to do to help older people with what psychologists call old trauma. Knowing how to validate helps meet CMS requirements for staff competencies in trauma-informed care as well as dementia care and helps to prevent potential abuse by de-escalating and diminishing stress for all. In a Colorado project, documented episodes of stress REDUCED, many dramatically, for 35 of 38 people with dementia and one home reported a year later that individuals they serve with dementia don’t have any problems anymore.
Breakout C: Update with FSSA
In this session, we’ll hear from FSSA representatives on the assisted living waiver re-start program.
8:45am – 9:00am
Break
9:00am – 10:15am
Opening Keynote Session
National Healthcare Update
In this session, hear from Dr. Liz Burns, the Chief Medical Officer for the American Health Care Association, as she provides a national healthcare update.
10:15 am – 12:30pm
Expo Hall / Refreshment Break – Griffin hall
12:30pm – 2:00pm
Keynote Luncheon / Senior Living Awards & Quality Celebration
Off Balance On Purpose – The non-stop ride of the Care Giver’s Journey
If you’ve “bought a ticket” for the ride of being a care giver, you know it is never boring! You experience thrilling moments of meaningful contribution, sudden drops into challenge, and constant turns into the coming change and uncertainty. It takes a special person to thrive and contribute through it all. It takes YOU! Dan Thurmon is the author of Off Balance On Purpose and Positive CHAOS. He’s also a Hall of Fame speaker and HCA favorite. Dan will deliver an unforgettable keynote to help you turn change and even chaos into opportunities for growth and contribution. You’ll learn how to give your best without burning out, and you’ll leave his session inspired and empowered to get better and have fun doing the hard work you love.
2:00pm – 2:15pm
Break
2:15pm – 3:00pm
Breakout Sessions
Breakout A: Utilizing Employee Care Plans to Unlock Motivation: Part I
A pack can only run the speed of its slowest runner. Our research shows that when a team member is motivated and held accountable, the entire speed of the pack increases and runs together. But when that same team member is doing the bare minimum – or worse, quiet quitting – the team is dramatically held back from its full potential.
The key to motivation lies in the understanding of the emotions driving the actions of your team. That’s why emotion and motivation share the same root word. Discovering the motivation that pushes your team members to act is best achieved through the identification of their Goals, Passions, or Struggles, or what we call their GPS™.
Outcomes:
Participants will master two additional coaching techniques that have been proven to help people change behavior.
We will teach how to communicate with your team members and connect with their hearts using the GPS Transformational Framework™. If you can win over their hearts, you can win over their hands.
We will also teach how to reformat your questions to keep your team proactive instead of reactive.
Attendees will learn how to develop an Employee Care Plan to boost retention in the workplace.
Breakout B: Schizophrenia Audits in Long-Term Care: Risks, Realities, and Readiness
This session reviews the evolution of CMS schizophrenia audits in long-term care, highlighting what providers currently know, what remains uncertain, and how facilities can better prepare for scrutiny. The presentation discusses the history behind schizophrenia focused audits, common reasons facilities fail, documentation expectations, behavioral observation strategies, audit response planning, and recent changes to the CMS antipsychotic quality measure. Attendees will learn practical approaches to reducing audit risk while maintaining clinically appropriate, patient-centered care for residents with serious mental illness. The session emphasizes the importance of accurate diagnoses, strong interdisciplinary documentation, proactive audit readiness, and balancing regulatory expectations with ethical clinical decision-making.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify key CMS schizophrenia audit triggers, common deficiencies, and documentation vulnerabilities that place long-term care facilities at risk during survey and audit processes.
- Evaluate schizophrenia diagnoses and supporting clinical documentation to determine whether they meet current CMS expectations for exclusion from antipsychotic quality measures.
- Implement practical audit-readiness strategies, including behavioral documentation standards, interdisciplinary collaboration, and response planning to support both regulatory compliance and quality resident care.
Breakout C: Emergency Preparedness in Assisted Living: You can never be too prepared!
In this session, attendees will gain knowledge, resources and information related to emergency preparedness in the assisted living setting.
3:00pm – 3:15pm
Refreshment Break
3:15pm-4:00pm
Breakout Sessions
Breakout A: Utilizing Employee Care Plans to Unlock Motivation: Part II
This session is a continuation of Part I
Breakout B: Dementia Care Communication Strategies
In this session, hear from an industry expert on communication strategies, best practices, tips and resources for communicating with those with dementia or memory loss disorders.
Breakout C: Residential Rules Update & AL Trends
In this session, hear from the Indiana Department of Health as they provide an update on regulations and factors affecting the assisted living industry.
4:00pm – 4:15pm
Break
4:15pm – 5:00pm
General Session
The Main Attraction: How Gratitude-Based Leadership Keeps Caregivers Engaged, Connected, and Committed
Caregivers are the heart of long-term care. They show up every day for residents, families, and each other, often under pressure that never really lets up. When they feel unseen or undervalued, engagement drops, and turnover follows. This keynote puts the spotlight back where it belongs: on the people who make care possible. Built on the Six Gears of Grategy®, this session provides leaders with practical tools to recognize, engage, and retain their teams without requiring big budgets or extra bandwidth. From new hires finding their footing to seasoned caregivers who’ve seen it all, attendees will walk away with strategies they can put to work the same day.
Here’s what to expect:
Celebrate What’s Already Working: Recognition doesn’t require a formal program or a line item in the budget. Learn how small, consistent acts of appreciation build the kind of loyalty that sticks.
Strengthen Your Team From the Inside Out: Discover how attitude, appreciation, access, acts of service, applause, and accountability work together to create a culture where caregivers feel valued, supported, and motivated to stay.
Lead with Intention, One Gear at a Time: Move beyond motivation and into everyday leadership habits that build trust, reduce burnout, and keep your team connected to the mission that brought them to this work in the first place.
When caregivers feel celebrated, they don’t just show up. They stay, they grow, and they bring their best to the people in their care.
5:00pm – 6:00pm
Attendee Appreciation Reception
Wednesday, August 19
8:30am
Registration Opens
9:00am – 10:15am
Breakfast Keynote
State Healthcare Update
In this session, hear from Paul Peaper and other state representatives as they provide a healthcare update as it relates to the long term care industry in Indiana.
10:15am – 10:30am
Break
10:30am – 12:00pm
Panel sessions
How Our Caregivers & Quality Journey Can Take Center Stage
Learn from workforce development trainers and your colleagues in the long term care industry as we highlight healthcare workers and quality programming in our communities. This closing keynote panel session will review and discuss building up and retaining your current workforce, along with reducing turnover and burnout. This panel session will also highlight the quality journey of our fellow long term care providers.
Social Services/Activities Bootcamp
Tuesday, August 18
8:00am – 5:00pm
New this year is IHCA/INCAL’s Social Services/Activities Bootcamp, with breakouts focused on our valued social services and activities team members. Stay tuned for a schedule update.
Members Only
7 CEUs
8:00am – 8:30am
Check-In
Room: White River CD
8:30am-12:15pm
Social Services/Activities Bootcamp
Room: White River CD
12:30pm-2:00pm
Keynote Luncheon/Senior Living Awards Celebration
Room: White River EF Ballroom
2:00pm-5:00pm
Social Services/Activities Bootcamp
Room: White River CD
5-6pm (optional)
Join us for a fun carnival-themed reception with complimentary appetizers and drinks!
Room: White River Foyer
Speaker Information
Carmen Bowman
Carmen Bowman, MHS, BSW, is an author, consultant, trainer and owner of Edu-Catering: Catering Education for Compliance and Culture Change turning her former role of regulator into educator. She is a former Colorado state surveyor and federal surveyor, CMS policy analyst, and faculty of the Basic Surveyor Course. As a contractor to CMS, Carmen co-developed the Artifacts of Culture Change original, 2.0 and Assisted Living versions. She facilitated both CMS and Pioneer Network Creating Home National Symposiums on culture change and the environment, food and dining, and led the Dining Practice Standards task force. She co-founded the Colorado Culture Change Coalition, has led numerous CMP grant projects assisting homes to change institutional culture resulting in retained team members, improved satisfaction, quality of life and care outcomes. She blogs about using regulations to reject institutional culture and has authored Guardians of Normal Life and Individualizing Medication Administration using Regulations. Carmen moved from Colorado five years ago and now lives right down the road in Huntingburg, Indiana where she loves spending time with people who live at The Waters nursing home.
Dr. Liz Burns
Dr. Elizabeth (Liz) Burns, MD, is AHCA’s chief medical officer. Dr. Burns has more than 25 years of experience as a physician and clinical innovator, advising policymakers and providers on modernizing and integrating the healthcare system as well as public health emergency response strategies. Most recently, Dr. Burns served as the chief medical officer of Avamere, a skilled nursing and senior living provider with more than 30 facilities in Oregon and Washington. In this role, she led the design of “Centers for Excellence,” a designation for the organization’s post-acute care centers that elevated the standard of care while developing an integrated medical model aligned with hospital systems and payors. Dr. Burns was also a thought leader during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping to establish the first Emergency Health Care Center in the U.S. and serving as the sole post-acute care representative on the Oregon governor’s COVID Crisis Response Team, among other advisory roles. Previously, as the senior executive medical director at Regence BlueCross BlueShield, she helped launch the Pacific Northwest’s first post-acute value-based arrangement. Dr. Burns was also a hospitalist and quality improvement consultant across the Pacific Northwest.
Dan Thurmon
Dan Thurmon is an author, researcher, and peak performance coach with expertise in work-life integration and change leadership. Also a renowned speaker, Dan has delivered thousands of presentations across six continents for audiences including world leaders, Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurs, educators, and even troops on the front lines. Dan is a leader in his profession, having served as President of the National Speakers Association. He is one of less than three hundred people on the planet inducted into the prestigious Speakers Hall of Fame.
Dan is the author of the books Off Balance On Purpose and Positive Chaos, and he produces an ongoing, weekly video-coaching series which is filmed around the world. Dan is a health and fitness advocate. His hobbies include hot yoga, disc golf, and mountain unicycling. Dan is unique in his approach that incorporates physical stunts and demonstrations into his live presentations.
Dennis McIntee
Dennis McIntee, a business consultant, gifted keynote speaker, executive coach and author, travels across the world speaking at leadership summits, management training events and healthcare conferences, to name a few. His three-decade career included stints in Africa, Poland, Germany, and throughout greater Europe where he coached and consulted with growing leaders. Through his experience, Dennis developed a systematic approach to helping his clients reach their goals through coaching, speaking, courses, and teaching techniques that enact transformational change. Ultimately, Dennis is passionate about helping leaders create high-trust, high-performance cultures while becoming the best version of themselves they can be. Dennis is also the author of The 8 Qualities of Drama Free Teams, The Power of Pursuit, and Drama Free Teams in Healthcare. He has been married to his wife, Lisa, for over 30 years and together they have four children. Dennis is an avid runner and enjoys training for races.
Cassandra Skul
Cassandra “Cassie” Skul, MSN, MS, PMHNP-BC, is the Executive Director of Nurse Practitioners for ViaQuest Psychiatric & Behavioral Solutions, where she oversees psychiatric nurse practitioner services across Ohio and Indiana. A board-certified Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, Cassie has extensive experience providing behavioral health services to individuals residing in long-term care facilities and those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In her leadership role, she is responsible for clinical quality, provider development, regulatory compliance, program growth, and operational oversight for a leading provider of behavioral health services serving long-term care facilities and individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She has played a key role in expanding access to psychiatric services, developing clinical policies, implementing quality initiatives, and mentoring behavioral health providers. Cassie is a frequent presenter on topics including schizophrenia diagnosis and treatment, psychotropic medication management, quality measures, regulatory compliance, and best practices in long-term care psychiatry. She is passionate about improving outcomes for underserved populations and helping providers deliver high-quality, patient-centered behavioral healthcare.
Jill Schewe
Jill Schewe is the Director of Policy and Regulatory Affairs for the National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL). In this role, she partners with assisted living providers and State Affiliate staff to deliver guidance on licensing, regulatory compliance, payment policy, and operational practices. She also engages with state and federal stakeholders to ensure the needs and perspectives of assisted living providers are effectively represented. Before joining NCAL in June 2022, Jill spent a decade with Care Providers of Minnesota, the AHCA/NCAL state affiliate, supporting assisted living communities and collaborating closely with state agencies. Her career began on the operational side, where she opened and managed several assisted living communities – experience that continues to shape her practical, provider focused approach. A licensed assisted living director, Jill, brings deep operational knowledge and a strong commitment to supporting older adults and the full spectrum of home and community based services.
Rachelle Blough
I have worked in the senior living world since 1995, I am a Certified Recreational Therapist by background, Certified Dementia Practitioner and a Certified Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Trainer for the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners (NCCDP). Over the last 25 years I have held various positions in senior living at the community, regional, corporate and national director of programming for various senior living companies. I also currently work part time as VP of corporate training for the National Council for Certified Dementia Practitioners.
Suzanne Kuzemba
Suzanne Kuzemka is the Director of the Long-Term Care Division at the Indiana Department of Health, overseeing nursing homes and healthcare regulation statewide.
Tammy Alley
Tammy Alley began in long term Care in 1986 as a Nursing Assistant. She worked in Long Term Care from 1986-1994 as a CNA and QMA. After becoming a Registered Nurse in 1994, she worked in Long Term Care in multiple areas as a staff nurse, unit manager, Assistant Director of Nursing and Director of Nursing. In 2005, she started at the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) as a Public Health Nurse Surveyor. In 2013, she became a Public Health Nurse Surveyor Supervisor. In June of 2019, became the Deputy Director of Survey Management for Long Term Care.
Lisa Ryan
Lisa Ryan CSP® is an award-winning keynote speaker, author, and employee engagement strategist. Recognized as a Certified Speaking Professional™ and Corporate Event Speaker of the Year, she has inspired audiences at more than a thousand conferences worldwide. Through her company, Grategy LLC, Lisa helps organizations boost retention, strengthen workplace culture, and drive employee engagement through practical gratitude-based leadership strategies.
Hotel Information
Guest rooms are available at JW Marriott Indianapolis.
Book Online Room Rate: $269
Exhibitor Information
Note: Moving carts are not provided.
Note: Booths are 8X8.