Informatics, Qi & the Va Geriatric Scholars Program: Empowering Primary Care
Year: 2018
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: In response to the IOM recommendation to enhance the skills of the existing primary care workforce and a strategic plan to increase options for non-institutional long-term care, the VA launched the enterprise-wide Geriatric Scholars Program to provide longitudinal in-service education to build new skills and competencies through intensive didactics, self-paced and distant learning and practical experiences through quality improvement (QI) projects and clinical practica. Now in its 10th year, the program has engaged more than 800 interprofessional clinicians in more than 400 rural and urban VA clinics. Two papers in this symposium describe innovations to support QI: the development, testing and use of informatic tools, which are aligned with ACOVE quality indicators, to identify and reduce risks in older patients in ambulatory care settings. These dashboards were developed with ongoing jnput from Scholars and designed for the practical reality of work in VA clinics. This symposium also features two presentations reporting on recent program quantitative and qualitative evaluations, revealing that the success of the Geriatric Scholars Program is a result of empowering clinicians to become agents of change by enhancing clinical skills, adopting QI approaches, teaching-back within primary care teams and by maintaining a supportive learning environment across a national organization. Operational data reveal changes in providers’ behaviors pre/post participating in the Geriatric Scholars Program, with reductions in prescribing potentially inappropriate medications.
Source: Innovation in Aging
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,977
OpenAlex ID: W2899836679