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Connections
Connections

Caregiving for people with dementia

By Evan Dawson,
Megan Mack, Julie Williams
Published June 3, 2025 at 4:49 PM EDT
Five people sit in front of microphones in a television studio: a man at far left has short dark hair, is wearing glasses, a grey plaid blazer and white button-down shirt and sitting at a table covered with a blue cloth; a woman at near left has short blonde hair and is sitting in a chair wearing a maroon blazer, a black and maroon patterned dress and black shoes; a woman at center has long brown hair and is sitting in a chair wearing a black blazer, white blouse, bright pink pants and black sandals; a woman at near right has short grey hair and is sitting in a chair wearing glasses, a white and brown patterned t-shirt, blue capri pants and black shoes; a woman at far right has long brown hair and is sitting in a chair wearing glasses, a black cardigan, a black and white patterned dress and black sandals.
David Griffin
/
WXXI News
Carol Podgorski, Jennifer Lesinski, Barbara Smith and Katy Allen on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Tuesday, June 3, 2025
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
WXXI News

Dementia affects nearly six million Americans and causes more than 100,000 deaths each year in the United States alone.

For caregivers, that can mean myriad challenges: providing the right kind of support; understanding disease progression; financial difficulties; and more. We discuss what the experts say, and we hear from a local caregiver.

In studio:

  • Carol Podgorski, Ph.D., director of the Finger Lakes Center of Excellence for Alzheimer's Disease, clinic director of the UR Medicine Memory Care Program, and director of Alzheimer’s Disease Support Programs for the University of Rochester Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program
  • Barbara Smith, caregiver for her husband 
  • Jennifer Lesinski, vice president of marketing for St. John's Senior Living
  • Katy Allen, division leader for caregiver services at Lifespan

Connections
Evan Dawson
Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
See stories by Evan Dawson
Megan Mack
Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.
See stories by Megan Mack
Julie Williams
Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson" and is also the office administrator for radio, news and technology and operations. She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.
See stories by Julie Williams