As a new member of the Latham Management staff I recently had the pleasure of attending the Prader-Willi Alliance of New York, Inc.’s Annual Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) Conference in Albany NY, on April 28th and 29th.Anne McManus and several Latham Staff members spent two days presenting and attending informative sessions with providers, parents, and individuals living with PWS.The theme of this years’ conference was; “Changes Today for a Better Tomorrow.”
Several workshops were presented over the two-day event covering topics such as: Social Media Safety, Obesity Clinical Trials, Safe Restraint, and what I think was the highlight of the conference, the Panel of Service Recipients.This was a panel of four individuals living with PWS, who each told personal stories of struggle and triumph.Three of the individuals were residents from Latham’s Adult Residential Program.They each gave inspiring glimpses into their lives and answered questions from providers and parents in the audience, culminating in a raucous standing ovation from the clearly moved crowd.
This year’s conference was an incredible success boasting the most attendees in the history of the event and providing a forum for all members of the PWS community to share insights, information, and hope for a better future for all those impacted by PWS.I look forward to next year’s event.
By Christian Ryan, Residential Manager, Adult Program
