Editor’s Note: McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, McKnight’s Senior Living and McKnight’s Home Care are profiling the McKnight’s 2024 Women of Distinction honorees daily from July 1 to Aug. 13. For additional McKnight’s Women of Distinction content, visit this page.
As a skilled communicator, patient instructor and enterprising leader, Cameo Rogers has all the right skills to enrich the lives of the staff members and residents around her, according to colleagues.
In fact, that’s her job. Rogers is the corporate life enrichment manager at Immanuel in Omaha, NE. In this role, she oversees programming for residents of all of Immanuel’s care and service levels. She runs the “Immanuel Explorers” travel club and has put together memorable experiences in places such as Branson, MO; Nashville, TN; and San Antonio, TX. Rogers also has developed innovative programs that involve virtual reality and music workshops and tap into residents’ unique melodic talents.
Colleagues said she has a particular knack for caring for residents living with dementia. Rogers has created multiple support tools to grow her team members’ understanding of the approach, communication and engagement skills necessary to effectively care for residents living with dementia, they said, and she organizes regular training opportunities to keep her staff primed.
As a result, Rogers has developed a reputation as a master educator. She has presented at conferences, spoken on panels and been recognized with numerous awards including the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioner’s National Certified Dementia Practitioner of the Year award, which she earned in 2017.
And she literally wrote the book, too. Rogers is a published author and has contributed to books on topics such as dementia and best practices in recreational therapy for older adults.
More about Rogers:
- She is pursuing a graduate degree in social gerontology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
- In her spare time, Rogers is a volunteer softball coach.
- Every year around the holidays, she will visit residents while dressed up as Santa Claus.
The McKnight’s Women of Distinction program is jointly administered by McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, McKnight’s Senior Living and McKnight’s Home Care. Healthcare Services Group was the Platinum sponsor of this year’s McKnight’s Women of Distinction Awards and Forum. PointClickCare was the Gold sponsor, and PharMerica was the Silver sponsor. Other sponsors included Curana Health, DirecTV for Business, Easyshifts, Hireology, Reliant Rehabilitation, ShiftKey and Sentrics.
Visit this web page to see lists of honorees from 2024 and previous years.
