Our Trainers

Hope Yamasaki has 5 years of experience as a home care worker. She holds a master’s degree from Portland State University in Educational Leadership with a focus on Sustainability and Equity. Hope was the recipient of the Presidents Diversity Award for taking a leadership role in creating a socially just and inclusive sustainability culture.

She has extensive experience in developing curriculum, facilitating discussions, leading group dialogues, and training adult learners in both individual and group settings. Hope is dedicated to inspiring and supporting others as they find their role in creating a socially just and sustainable future while avoiding the perpetuation of dominant oppressive cycles within our collective past and present. She is passionate about solidarity and building community. She believes we really are better together.

Ms. Feimoefiafi is a psychotherapist, speaker and educator who specializes in the intersections of ethnic identity, food and body image. She attended Spelman College as an undergraduate and received a Master of Social Work from Portland State University. For over 20 years she has worked in Portland in positions including, Clinical Director, Private Practice Clinician, and DEI training associate of DeGruy Publications. She uses storytelling, humor and her passion for liberation to encourage engagement and growth. At the foundation of Ms. Feimoefiafi’s philosophy is the interconnectedness of Humanity, while recognizing imbalances in systemic power. She has raised 3 children in Northeast Portland and enjoys visiting family in the South. “My mission in life is not just to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.” (Maya Angelou)

Jessica Leitner, an accomplished Behavior Consultant and trainer, has spent more than 30 years advocating for adults and families with developmental disabilities in the Portland, Oregon area. She is owner of Jessica Leitner Consulting, LLC, a private consulting firm helping caregiving organizations navigate an ever changing set of rules and regulations while maintaining quality care. She served as an Oregon Intervention System (OIS) Trainer and Steering Committee Member and helped bring Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training to local law enforcement agencies in Clackamas County and Portland. Jessica earned a master’s in social work from Portland State University and a BA in Psychology from Oregon State University. Previously, she held positions with Multnomah County, Clackamas County and Edwards Center, Inc.

Kim Kasiah is an accomplished educator and founder of Unique Minds, a dementia caregiver and family support group for the Alzheimer’s Association. Kim is also a Positive Approach to Care certified trainer, conducting workshops to build better connections and understanding for individuals living with dementia while teaching family members and caregivers new resources to help the person in their care in a positive and productive way. Kim is a lifelong resident of Southern Oregon who’s first connection to dementia was through her grandmother who inspired Kim to begin working with older adults who were also living with dementia, helping the individual, along with their family and friends to navigate the journey of dementia through education and support.

Positive Approach to Care (PAC) Certified Trainer

Linda Bifano developed her nursing practice in geriatric care with more than 25 years of clinical experience in community-based care. She has managed a community health clinic serving older adults with mental illness and chronic health conditions; provided visiting nurse services working with interdisciplinary teams; developed training and operational systems as director of health services for a large assisted living facility; and been a nurse consultant and trainer for staff for numerous long term care companies. Linda earned a master’s in nursing from Oregon Health and Sciences University, a master’s in public administration in health care management from Portland State University, and a doctorate in nursing practice from Chatham University with a focus on older adult community-based care.

Lynda Crandall is a registered nurse with 44 years experience working with elders providing direct services through nursing home and gero-psychiatric hospital care, as well as indirect services through formal and informal consultation, community training, quality of care initiatives and state policy/program design. She served 4 years as Executive Director for Pioneer Network, a national non-profit aimed at changing the culture of aging and now has a consulting company, Lynda Crandall Consulting, Inc. She has authored several chapters in nursing text books and a number of training manuals on mental health and aging topics. She also volunteers for MOVE, Making Oregon Vital for Elders, the Oregon culture change coalition, and the Oregon Partnership for Improved Dementia Care.

Marya Kain started working in healthcare more than 36 years ago as a certified nursing assistant in a nursing home. Since then she has continued to work with seniors and people with different abilities in a variety of settings and roles, including administrator, activity director, support group facilitator, STAR-C consultant, powerful tools master trainer and more. She has taught classes on aging and memory loss since 1993, and currently works as an educator, certified behavior coach and certified geriatric care manager. Marya holds bachelor’s degrees in psychology and exercise science, and a master’s degree in exercise physiology with a minor in psychology.

Pamela Ruona is principal of P Ruona Consulting, which provides consultation services to long term care and community-based care providers as well as in-home care agencies and associations. She has a master’s degree in human relations with an organizational development focus, and more than 20 years of policy and program experience in the field of long term care. While a staff member for the Department of Human Services, Seniors and People with Disabilities, Pamela wrote and implemented the original rules for Alzheimer’s Care Units Endorsements (now Memory Care Units). She has extensive teaching and presenting experience in Alzheimer’s and dementia care. Pamela is a Certified PAC Consultant, providing consulting services to families and long term care communities who are working through dementia related challenges.

Positive Approach to Care (PAC) Certified Trainer

Shelly Edwards is a PAC trainer, coach, consultant, and advanced consultant with more than 30 years of experience in adult education with an emphasis on dementia education since 2007. Originally from Ohio, she relocated to the Pacific NW in November 2013 but has lived and worked all over the US and a few other countries as well.  She holds a BA in History from Mount Union College and a Masters of Library Science from Kent State University.

Positive Approach to Care (PAC) Certified Trainer

An expert with more than 35 years of experience in staff development and training, Suanne Jackson was an Aging and Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) program analyst for the Oregon State Unit on Aging, where she provided training and training coordination for Oregon’s ADRCs and Area Agency on Aging offices. Previously, she worked as project coordinator and trainer for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation national initiative “Jobs to Careers” grant (2006-2009) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative “Better Jobs Better Care” national demonstration grant (2003-2006), both in Oregon. She has a bachelor’s in social work from Humboldt State University.

Positive Approach to Care (PAC) Certified Trainer

As a professional within the home health care and assisted living industry, Tava has worked hand-and-hand with multidisciplinary teams in diverse long-term health care settings to ensure compliance with state and federal training requirements. His clients have also enjoyed an increase in employee engagement, decreased employee turnover, and higher levels of inclusivity and ethical treatment for staff and clients. 

 He is passionate about social justice and the promotion of cultural diversity. 

With over fifteen years of exceptional experience in coaching and leadership, Tava has proven to be a visionary leader, adept with the knowledge of organizational development through visioning, strategic planning, evaluating, monitoring, and trusted advisory support. Devoted to teaching, training, and empowering others with all the truth and tools needed to achieve a higher level of success both personally and professionally. His expertise lies in creating the masterful coaching conversation, paying attention to detail, and in nurturing a space for growth and opportunity that leads these people to an overwhelming shift in outcomes.   

Oregon Care Partners collaborates with Consonus Pharmacy and their team of highly qualified nurses and pharmacists to deliver quality training to help make medication use safer and more effective for older adults. Operating for over 30 years, Consonus provides rehab, pharmacy, and consulting services in over 700 facilities nationwide. Consonus’ nurses and pharmacists bring a wide range of experience in older adult care to each training, including long term care, skilled nursing, geriatrics, aging and dementia, transitions, medication storage and error prevention, Admission Medication Regimen Review, and more.