With 42 years of expertise in Alzheimer's and dementia as a gerontological nurse practitioner, Susan Scanland narrowed the focus of her practice in 2000 as a consultant for long-term care (LTC) physicians and interdisciplinary staff, specializing in dementia behaviors. Most recently, she spearheaded the establishment of a UCLA-affiliated outpatient dementia center in Northeastern Pennsylvania, where she adeptly diagnosed and managed mild cognitive impairment and dementia. In 1999, Susan established Dementia Connection®️, a dementia education and consulting firm founded in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. She has delivered more than 750 seminars to nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, pharmacists, physicians, LTC staff, and caregivers across 42 states and internationally. Susan is one of ten authors contributing to "The Alzheimer’s Association Clinical Practice Guideline for the Diagnostic Evaluation, Testing, Counseling, and Disclosure of Suspected Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders." Soon to be released, this guideline represents the first evidence-based and practical consensus on Alzheimer’s diagnostics in a decade. In collaboration with geropsychiatric colleagues, she has actively participated in two Gerontological Society of America (GSA) national advisory workgroups: Dementia-Related Psychosis and Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease. The published outcomes include "Agitation In Alzheimer's Disease: A Decision Tree For Healthcare Providers" and "Understanding Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease." Susan was recently received the national annual award from POCN (Point of Care Network) for 2023 Top US Nurse Practitioner for Alzheimer's. Susan received the National Speakers Association’s Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) award in 2014, earned by less than 15% of professional speakers. Susan taught clinical geriatrics from 1987-1999 at a family medicine residency creating an interdisciplinary geriatric education model. She mentored students from three nurse practitioner programs, four medical schools, one PharmD program and residents at ALF/LTC facilities, patients’ homes and a geriatric clinic. Since 2000, Susan held faculty appointments in Binghamton University’s gerontological/family nurse practitioner programs and University of Scranton’s undergraduate nursing program. Susan has contributed her expertise to 25 pharmaceutical advisory boards and has published in multiple nursing, geriatric, and business journals. She earned her BSN degree from Wilkes University, completing a senior internship at the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Subsequently, in 1981, she graduated from the inaugural nurse practitioner master’s program at the University of Pittsburgh, focusing her thesis on dementia.