For 20 years, the Hartford Centers of Excellence (CoE) in Geriatric Medicine have been supporting the development of geriatrician faculty at schools of medicine across the country. These scholars have become researchers, educators, and clinicians, helping transform academic medicine to better prepare the next generation of physicians to care for older adults.
As we forge ahead with our new strategic plan to rapidly change health care practice to improve the health of older adults, our funding for the Centers is winding down. We are now intent on helping current CoE scholars and alumni, in addition to our academic superstars in nursing and social work, utilize their geriatrics expertise to change health care delivery for the benefit of older adults. We believe this is best achieved by helping them to connect and collaborate.
We are pleased that many of our existing grants are aiding in this transition. Funds within the CoE program, administered by our grantee the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), have been repurposed to bring together CoE Scholars and support their work to improve care for older adults. In doing so, we are offering five $40,000 grants to fund collaborative pilot projects.
While CoE Scholars are welcome to apply for collaborative research or educational projects, preference for this award will be given to proposals that align with Hartford’s new strategies or our new Hartford Change AGEnts initiative, i.e., projects that focus on changing health care practice, and do so in an interprofessional way.
The deadline is Feb. 1, 2014 and as CoE Scholars have been preparing their applications, we've heard lots of questions as has the team at AFAR. (See FAQ page that AFAR has developed).
We've also heard questions from our grantees in nursing and social work who are interested in working with their geriatric medicine colleagues. Additionally, we think these questions and answers capture the purpose of the Change AGEnts initiative, which will soon be offering other similar opportunities (some monetary and many through training, convenings, and technical assistance).
Here are a few of the top questions we've heard and our responses.
Does the application have to come from a Hartford Center of Excellence in Geriatric Medicine?
Yes, and the application has to be submitted from at least one Center Scholar (i.e., a physician). Moreover, the award will be made to support Scholars rather than the Center itself. CoE Scholars can partner with Hartford Change AGEnts or other collaborators outside of their discipline and home institution.
Can you clarify how you determine whether a project is collaborative in nature?
For the project to be considered a true collaboration: (1) There must be at least two project leaders, and (2) at least 30 percent of the total budget must be allocated to each of the project leaders (for example, 30/70, 40/60, 50/50). Projects under the direction of one project leader will not be considered. The collaborators must have joint responsibilities and oversight of the project.
Do the other collaborators have to be Hartford-supported Scholars?
While we encourage collaborations among Hartford-supported Scholars (medicine, nursing, social work), this is not required. However, preference is given to collaboration across professions, such as with other Hartford Change AGEnts.
Who are Hartford Change AGEnts?
A Hartford Change AGEnt is anyone who has been affiliated with a Hartford-funded program (scholars, mentors, advisors, etc.) who is interested in changing health care delivery and practice.
What is meant by "aligning with the Change AGEnts initiative”?
To receive the preferential score awarded to Change AGEnts projects, the project must have a focus on changing health care practice. The Center Scholar must be collaborating with at least one other scholar from a different profession who has been affiliated with a Hartford program.
What kinds of outcomes are expected with Change AGEnts projects focused on "practice change"?
Practice change includes a wide variety of efforts, from highly targeted improvements in services or care that directly impact the quality of care for older adults and their families on a specific unit, in a clinic, care setting, social service agency or community, to larger scale change such as the redesign of organizations or health and human service delivery systems, the diffusion of new interventions, or policy/advocacy work that informs how care for older adults is paid for or delivered.
For the project to be considered aligned with the Change AGEnts program, it should serve as a catalyst to inspire change in the way health care is delivered to our aging society. Therefore, traditional academic projects (i.e, white papers or setting a research agenda) would not be appropriate. Forming a community-based task force with an action plan or disseminating a toolkit are examples of appropriate activities.
While we have addressed some questions, there must be more. What other questions do you have? For questions related to the CoE Collaborative Pilot Project Awards, please contact Jillian Patton at jillian@afar.org. For questions related to the Change AGEnts initiative, please write to changeagents365@geron.org.