05/14/2026
Dementia Friendly Lehigh Valley is grateful to see community partners creating meaningful opportunities for the next generation of healthcare professionals.
On May 11, Country Meadows Senior Care of Allentown welcomed 52 local high school students from Lehigh Career & Technical Institute’s Emerging Healthcare Professional program for a hands-on learning experience focused on supporting people living with memory-related diseases, including dementia.
With guidance from Carol Ditman, CDP, CMDCP, CADDCT, Executive Director of Programming, Joel Kroft, Executive Director for Memory Support Services, and the Country Meadows team, students explored interactive dementia-related experiences including Tovertafel Pixie, Crdl, and Dementia LIVE!
The students used a “Passport to Learning” as they moved through each experience, reflected on what they learned, and asked thoughtful questions during the wrap-up discussion.
This is not an easy topic, but it is such an important one for students preparing to enter healthcare. We were encouraged to see these young people engage with compassion, curiosity, and kindness toward residents and those living with dementia.
These students truly represent the future of healthcare, and we are grateful to Country Meadows for helping build a more dementia-friendly community. 💙
