Volume 4, Issue 3
March 20, 2008

In This Issue

1. Hartford Trustees Award Six Grants (March 2008)
2. Social Work Practicum Program Announces 21 New Sites, New Name
3. Four Health Outcome Scholars Selected
4. Foundation-funded Hurricane Summit Receives National Recognition
5. JAHF Institute for Geriatric Nursing Featured in Health Affairs
6. Upcoming Hartford Program Deadlines
7. Lile R. Gibbons Elected to Hartford Foundation Board
8. Communications Tip: Develop an Elevator Speech Using Bandwidthonline.org

1. Hartford Trustees Award Six Grants (March 2008)

In March 2008, the trustees of the John A. Hartford Foundation approved six new grants, including renewals of Centers of Excellence in Geriatric Psychiatry.  The approved grants are: 

Geriatric Nursing Leadership Academy Implementation

The Foundation awarded a grant to Sigma Theta Tau, the honor society for nursing representing 130,000 members, to implement the Geriatric Nursing Leadership Academy program. Sigma Theta Tau will use the grant to enhance geriatric knowledge among members through biennial meetings, a geriatric interest group, and dissemination of evidence-based geriatric practice guidelines.  Funding will also be used to implement the Geriatric Nursing Leadership Academy, an 18-month training academy to develop the leadership and management skills of 20 competitively chosen nurse leaders across the country. For more information on Sigma Theta Tau and the Geriatric Nursing Leadership Academy, please visit: www.nursingsociety.org/LeadershipInstitute/GeriatricAcademy.

Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing
Indianapolis, IN
Mary Rita Hurley, RN, MPA
Grant amount: $1,666,413 over forty-four months

Centers of Excellence in Geriatric Psychiatry

To increase the number and quality of geriatric psychiatry faculty members who will teach future psychiatrists to provide good mental health care to older adults, the Foundation has renewed support for two Centers of Excellence in Geriatric Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego and the University of Pittsburgh.  Funding will support the training of at least 25 faculty scholars as educators, researchers, and leaders in the field of geriatric mental health.  The two awardees, first funded in 2005, are part of a network of 27 Hartford Centers of Excellence in Geriatric Medicine and Training at academic medical institutions across the country.

For more information on the two Centers of Excellence in Geriatric Psychiatry, please visit their websites: geropsych.ucsd.edu/hartford.html (University of California, San Diego) and www.aging.pitt.edu/educators/education/hartford-geriatric-psy.htm (University of Pittsburgh).

University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA
Dilip Jeste, MD
Grant amount: $750,000 over five years

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
Charles Reynolds III, MD
Grant amount: $750,000 over five years

Advancing Aging and Health Policy Understanding

The Foundation renewed funding to the non-partisan National Health Policy Forum to provide congressional and regulatory staff with information and materials to better craft policies and programs that meet the healthcare needs of older adults.  The Forum will use a variety of meeting formats and written products to help bridge the gap between academic and industry experts and Washington policy makers. The Foundation has supported the aging-related health policy work of the Forum since 1997.

For more information, please visit: www.nhpf.org.

National Health Policy Forum, Washington, DC
Judith Miller Jones
Grant amount: $940,896 over three years

Evaluating the Hartford Geriatric Nursing Initiative

The Foundation awarded a grant for the external evaluation of the Hartford Geriatric Nursing Initiative projects.  This objective assessment of the Foundation’s funding in geriatric nursing will help manage grant projects and guide future programming, as well as document the impact of the initiative on the field of nursing. Since 1996, the John A. Hartford Foundation has invested more than $68 million in geriatric nursing initiatives to improve the healthcare of older adults.

For more information on the Hartford Geriatric Nursing Initiative, please visit: www.hgni.org.

Research Foundation of the City University of New York/Baruch College, New York, NY
Shoshanna Sofaer, DrPH
Grant amount: $806,913 over four years

Creating a National Alliance on Improving Care for Older Americans

The Foundation awarded a grant to The Meridian Institute to facilitate the formation of a national coalition to advance the recommendations of the upcoming Institute of Medicine consensus report on the healthcare workforce needs for an aging society.  The Institute of Medicine is charged with advising the nation on healthcare issues, and its report, due out at the end of March 2008, will make several policy recommendations requiring broad support and advocacy in order to be enacted.  The Meridian Institute is a national non-profit organization dedicated to facilitating dialogue and coalitions in the public interest. This project is co-funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies. 

For more information on the Institute of Medicine report, please visit: www.iom.edu/CMS/3809/40113.aspx.

For more information, please visit: www.merid.org.

The Meridian Institute, Washington, DC
Timothy J. Mealy
Grant amount: $86,683 over nine months

2. Social Work Practicum Program Announces 21 New Sites, New Name

The Hartford-funded Practicum Partnership Program, directed by the Social Work Leadership Institute at the New York Academy of Medicine, has been renamed the Hartford Partnership Program for Aging Education (HPPAE). The new name was chosen to better reflect the aging focus of the program.

The program has awarded grants for $75,000 each over the next three years to 21 additional schools. These programs join 41 schools already running successful HPPAE programs. These efforts are meeting the workforce demand for geriatric social workers by training and educating more than 1,000 social workers in older adult care over the next eight years. They are also establishing a specialized aging curriculum for graduate students interested the aging field as the norm in Masters of Social Work programs across the country. For more information on the program, please visit: socialwork.nyam.org.

The new sites are:

• The University of Alabama
• Augsburg College
• Binghamton University, College of Community and Public Affairs
• California State University, Bakersfield
• California University of Pennsylvania
• University of Central Florida
• University of Cincinnati
• Colorado State University
• Columbia University
• Dominican University
• Indiana University
• University of Minnesota
• University of Missouri-Kansas City
• Silver School of Social Work at New York University
• University of South Carolina
• Southern Connecticut State University
• Wayne State University
• West Virginia University
• Helen Bader School of Social Welfare at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
• University of Wyoming
• Yeshiva University

3. Four Health Outcome Scholars Selected

The Hartford Geriatrics Health Outcomes Research Scholars Awards Program, administered by the American Geriatrics Society, has selected four scholars for its 2008 cohort. Recipients each receive a $200,000 grant over a two-year period to perform studies in outcomes research topics focused on the improved care of older adults. Research findings are presented at the American Geriatrics Society Annual Scientific Meeting at the conclusion of the recipient’s grant.

The 2008 scholars and their areas of research are:

Holly M. Holmes, MD, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Utility of Medications for Patients with Cancer in Hospice Care
 
Sei Lee, MD, University of California, San Francisco
Glycemic Control and Health Outcomes in Frail, Dependent Elders
 
Stephen Thielke, MD, MA, University of Washington
The Effects of Pain on Health and Quality of Life in Older Adults
 
Alexia Torke, MD, MS, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
A Prospective, Observational Study of Surrogate Decision Making for Hospitalized Older Adults

4. Foundation-funded Hurricane Summit Receives National Recognition

The Florida Health Care Association’s preparedness effort for long-term care providers, which received lead funding from the Hartford Foundation, has received national recognition.  Building upon the Foundation-funded initiative, the U.S. government has established the first long-term care work group within the national disaster planning efforts.

5. JAHF Institute for Geriatric Nursing Featured in Health Affairs

The January/February 2008 issue of Health Affairs featured the celebration of the John A. Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric Nursing’s 10 year anniversary. The article highlights the Institute’s accomplishments and impact on the field of geriatric nursing. To read the article, please visit: content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/full/27/1/288.

6. Upcoming Hartford Program Deadlines

March 21, 2008
Hartford/NIA Nursing Preconference and NIA Summer Institute on Aging Research
www.nia.nih.gov/NewsAndEvents/Calendar/summerinstitute2008.htm

April 2, 2008
The Practice Change Fellows Program
www.practicechangefellows.org
 
April 9, 2008
Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing Summer Scholars Institute www.hartfordign.org/research/scholarsFellows/HI_Summer_
Scholars_Program_Announcement_2008.pdf

April 15, 2008
Curriculum Development Institutes for Geriatric Social Work
depts.washington.edu/geroctr/Center2/sub2_1_3CDIApplication.html

May 1, 2008
Hartford Pre-Dissertation Awards in Geriatric Social Work
www.gswi.org/programs/predissertation.html

May 16, 2008
BSW Experiential Learning (BEL) Program
research.zarca.com/clients/CSWE/survey.aspx?sid=54〈=0
 
August 1, 2008
Hartford Doctoral Fellows in Geriatric Social Work
www.gswi.org/programs/hdf.html
 
February  2, 2009
Hartford Faculty Scholars in Geriatric Social Work
www.gswi.org/programs/hfs.html

Hartford Doctoral Fellows in Geriatric Social Work
www.gswi.org/programs/hdf.html

7. Lile R. Gibbons Elected to Hartford Foundation Board

Lile R. Gibbons was elected to the Board of Trustees of the John A. Hartford Foundation on March 14, 2008. Ms. Gibbons is a State Representative in the Connecticut House of Representatives, a position she has held since 2001; she currently is Ranking Member of the Human Services Committee and serves on the Energy and Finance Committees.

Ms. Gibbons serves on numerous civic boards in Connecticut and has been on the Board of Trustees of the Rasmuson Foundation of Alaska since 1997. In 2006, she received the first “Agewise Advocate Award” from the Connecticut Commission on Aging for her support of the state’s present and future generations of older residents. She also served on the Greenwich Board of Education from 1991 through 2000, the last three years as chair.

8. Communications Tip: Develop an Elevator Speech Using Bandwidthonline.org

Bandwidthonline.org, the online communications resource exclusively for Hartford grantees, offers a wealth of information and tools to help you create message-driven communications materials—everything from PowerPoint presentations, posters, news releases, brochures and more—just in time.

One section of the site that can help you drive home your message is “How do I…develop and deliver an effective elevator speech?” This page is located under the How Do I “tab.” Here, you will learn how to develop a short, 30-second or less, compelling “speech” that you can use in a variety of venues. You’ll find guidance on understanding your audience, crafting your main message, telling a story to illustrate your point, and tips on effectively delivering the speech. There are several links to additional resources as well as the opportunity to share your own elevator speeches with your Hartford colleagues.  We encourage you to spend a few minutes exploring all of www.bandwidthonline.org’s valuable resources and appreciate your feedback about your experience on the site.

Important Note: If you don’t have a password for the site, or would like passwords for your colleagues, please contact Chris Gherst at: cgherst@aboutscp.com or 610.687.5495.

Please Note

If you have received this message in error or would like to be taken off this newsletter mailing list, please contact jbeilenson@aboutscp.com.
Jim O’Sullivan coordinates the Report on behalf of the Foundation staff with John Beilenson of Strategic Communications & Planning. If you have items you would like us to mention, please call Jim at 212.832.7788 or contact him at james.osullivan@jhartfound.org. We look forward to hearing from you.

Copyright 2004 The John A. Hartford Foundation