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The Hartford Partnership Program for Aging Education at the University of Maine
(Formerly the Geriatric
Practicum Partnership Program)
A
program funded by the John Hartford Foundation in New
York, in partnership with the Social Work Leadership
Institute and the New York Academy of Medicine
Lenard Kaye,
DSW/Ph.D.
Project Director
Email: len.kaye@umit.maine.edu
Phone: 207-262-7922
Nancy Kelly,
MSW
Project Co-Director
Email: nakelly@maine.edu
Phone: 207-581-2378
Marjie Harris,
LCSW
Project Coordinator
Email: marjie.harris@umit.maine.edu
Phone: 207-581-3570
The goal of
the program is to increase the number of students who
specialize in working with older adults by developing
aging–rich field internships in graduate social
work education programs. Ultimately, the goal is to
increase the number of social workers to be leaders
in the field of aging.
The program
is founded on the belief that the practice community
must, of necessity, respond to changing needs in the
community more quickly than academia. Therefore, to
educate students effectively, both the community agencies
and practitioners and academe must work together as
educational partners. The benefits of a university-community
partnership will have a transforming effect on social
work education in geriatrics.
The primary
outcomes of the PPP model are:
- Creation and implementation of an excellent field
education program for graduate social work students
specializing in aging.
- Increased interest in aging as a field of practice
among students, due to the intensive effort of faculty,
increased presence of practitioners in the universities,
collaboration and openness of agencies.
- An increased cadre of well-qualified geriatric social
workers available to work in the community.
The PPP model
allows MSW programs to tailor their approach to educating
students according to the needs, philosophy, and characteristics
of their school. The PPP model was developed and refined
through 6 demonstration programs (comprising 11 MSW
programs) over a four-year period (1999-2003) and has
now successfully educated over 400 students, most of
whom are remained employed in the social work aging
field.
Our Rotation Model
(PowerPoint)
The program
is funded by a three-year grant from the John Hartford
Foundation in New York, under the New York Academy of
Medicine. The Center on Aging grant was one of only
10 awarded throughout the country during round one of
the grant. An additional 22 programs were funded to
begin training students in fall 2006.
Advanced year
graduate students are assigned to a primary practicum
where they spend two days/week for the academic year
working with older adults or issues facing older adults.
These may be in clinical or macro settings. In addition,
the students spend an additional day each week rotating
among as many as 12 agencies or programs serving older
adults. Rotation schedules are tailored to the individual
student’s learning needs as they relate to geriatric
social work competencies. These rotations expose the
students to a wide variety of issues affecting older
adults in areas such as legal, mental health, planning
and advocacy, wellness and health promotion. During
the course of the year, students will also attend seminar
discussions and workshops run by professionals in the
field of geriatrics. Four students are selected for
the program each year from matriculated advanced year
MSW students.
A
recent HPPAE consortium meeting.
An important
component of the project involves the development of
a consortium comprised of agencies interacting with
practicum students in some manner. Representatives from
the consortium agencies will be invited to participate
in monthly educational consortia events and to contribute
to the long term goals of the program, namely “designing,
implementing, and evaluating a field internship program
for graduate students in aging.” This university-community
partnership is critical as we strive to recruit and
train social workers to work with the rapidly increasing
population of older adults in our country.
The HPPAE depends
on the many agencies and professional to train our students.
Please click on the link below to read about our current
featured agency.
The annual colloquium was held on Tuesday, April 29 at the Buchanan House on the University of Maine campus. This year’s conference was entitled “Looking Beyond the Behavior: Serious Mental Illness in Older Adults” and featured Erlene Rosowsky, PsyD as the keynote speaker. Dr. Rosowsky is a national expert in the field of geriatric mental health with her particular focus being on older adults with personality disorders and other diagnoses presenting with behavioral issues for providers. The purpose of the conference was to bring providers from many settings together to discuss improving the quality of life for this population of older adults within a system that is less than ideal for their needs. Treatment issues were addressed from clinical and system perspectives.
Featured Speaker: Erlene Rosowsky PsyD
Dan Price MD
Panelists (from Left to Right):
- Lori Axelson, LCSW
- Laura Cote, RN
- Penny Lamhut, MD
- Denise O'Connell, LCSW
- Phil Walton, CSW-IP
Audience looks on during panel presentation
Policy Panelist: Emily Cain
An audience member asks a question during the session
A focused and attentive audience
 
Networking at the conference
Information tables were available for browsing
A key component
of the HPPAE initiative is an evaluation to measure the
impact of the program on both student learning and the
impact of the program on an institution level. This
will be accomplished in part by responses from students
and their primary field instructors to web-administered
instruments. The student evaluation component will be
completed in the form of a pre-test, interim self-assessment
early in their practicum, and a post-test following
their practicum experience. Field instructors will be
asked to complete an assessment of the students’
competency in geriatrics soon after the student begins
in the practicum and again after the practicum ends.
Aggregate data collected at the time of the grant application
will be compared to data collected from each site at
the end of the funding to assess the impact of the HPPAE
on the university’s aging curricula.
For more information
about our program e-mail hppae@mainecenteronaging.org
or call Marjie Harris, HAPPAE Project Coordinator at 207-581-3570
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