HGNI New Directions

Welcome to New Directions, a publication of the Hartford Geriatric Nursing Initiative (HGNI). This e-newsletter is designed to inform interested academic and practice leaders, faculty members, students, practitioners and others about the work of the HGNI and provide the latest news and information relevant to geriatric nursing.

As many of you know, the HGNI is preparing professional nurses to play leadership roles in improving the health of older adults. In partnership with the nation's nursing schools and a variety of health care organizations and systems, this dynamic, national initiative, supported through a $38 million investment from the John A. Hartford Foundation, works in five areas, including:

Shaping nursing practice to best meet the health care needs of older adults;

Enhancing professional education to ensure all nurses are prepared to treat older patients;

Promoting research needed to guide the care and promote the health of older people;

Developing leadership in academic and professional settings; and

Demonstrating nursing's commitment to enacting public policy that improves older Americans' health care.

We are proud to represent this critically needed effort, which is involving the nation's top nurses—including you—in making a difference in the health care of our nation's older adults. If you would like more contact information about, and links to all of the programs of the HGNI, please visit the HGNI's Web site at www.HGNI.org.

In this Issue

1. Nearly All Eligible Hospitals Reporting Quality of Care Data
2. Announcements
3. Tools, Resources and Opportunities
4. HGNI Launches New Web Site
5. HGNI Link of the Month-White House Conference on Aging (WHCOA)

1. Nearly All Eligible Hospitals Reporting Quality of Care Data

Ninety-eight percent of the nation's eligible hospitals have begun reporting data on the quality of care they deliver, a vital first step in improving patient care according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) provides a financial incentive for hospitals to report quality of care data by linking it to the payments they will receive for treating Medicare beneficiaries. For more information visit: www.cms.hhs.gov/media/press/release.asp?Counter=1188.

2. Announcements

BAGNC Has Moved!
The BAGNC Coordinating Center moved into its new offices on September 9, 2004. After resolving some IT issues, the staff is up and running, catching up to the pre-conference speed we traditionally assume in September. The Coordinating Center is delighted to rent space within the Gerontological Society of America's headquarters. Our new contact information is below. In addition, the Coordinating Center is pleased to announce that Natasha Waples, BA, joined the staff in a permanent role this past month. She is a talented and welcomed addition to the team.

American Academy of Nursing
The BAGNC Coordinating Center
1030 15th Street, NW. Suite 250
Washington, D.C. 20005-1503

Phone: 202.842.1275 x. 142
FAX: 202.842.1150

E-mail:
Patricia Franklin: Pfranklin@aannet.org
Yolanda Johnson: Yjohnson@aannet.org
Natasha Waples: Nwaples@aannet.org

Best Wishes for AACN's Annie Alesandrini
Annie Alesandrini, Project Assistant, is leaving the the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to join Triad Communication as Project Manager. Annie has been with AACN since September 2001. We will certainly miss Annie and her endless enthusiasm and commitment to the Geriatric Nursing Education Project. Please join us in wishing Annie well, and in welcoming Jessica Kingsborough to the position. Look for more about Jessica in the next issue of New Directions.

BAGNC Scholars Featured in Nursing Spectrum/Nurse Week
Four BAGNC Scholars and their work were on the cover of their respective regional issues of Nursing Spectrum/Nurse Week. Their work, along with JAHF-funded geriatric nursing programs, were the featured article of those issues. The featured scholars are:

Amanda Floetke Elliott (2003 Pre Doc)
Nursing Spectrum, Florida Edition, August 23, 2004

Prudence Twigg (2001 Pre Doc), now Dr. Prudence Twigg
Nursing Spectrum, Mid Western Edition, September 2004

Emelia Amoako (2002 Pre Doc)
Nursing Spectrum, South Eastern Edition, September 2004

Karen Greco (2002 Pre Doc)
Nurse Week, Mountain West Edition, August 23, 2004

Advance Practice Licensure Under Review
An article in the September 20, 2004, South Central issue of Nurse Week reports, "The Texas Board of Nurse Examiners is expected to rule next month on a controversial proposal that would limit licensure of advanced practice nursing specialties to a selection of general health care categories - - and refrain from recognizing APN subspecialties..." Further, "the proposal would restrict advanced nursing practice" to areas recognized in the text of the proposal. The current proposal lists gerontological Advance Nurse Practitioner and Clinical Nurse Specialists as recognized areas for licensure.

If your state board of nursing has made a similar proposal, please contact Patty Franklin at Pfranklin@aannet.org.

3. Tools, Resources and Opportunities

BAGNC-Atlantic Philanthropies Partnership
The American Academy of Nursing and The John A. Hartford Foundation-funded Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity Coordinating Center are pleased to announce a new partnership with The Atlantic Philanthropies of New York City. Atlantic Philanthropies awarded funding for the BAGNC Postdoctoral Scholar Award Program. Beginning with the selection of the 2005 - 2007 Scholars, successful Postdoctoral Scholar Award applicants will receive a total of $160,000 during their two-year program.

For an application, please visit the BAGNC website at www.geriatricnursing.org, or call Yolanda Johnson at 202.842.1275, ext. 142.

Public Policy and Aging Report
The Public Policy and Aging Report, a quarterly publication of the National Academy on an Aging Society (www.agingsociety.org), a policy institute of GSA, explores policy issues generated by the aging of American society. For a yearly subscription e-mail: policy@agingsociety.org.

Standardizing Home Health Care Performance Measures
At the request of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, the National Quality Forum (NQF) embarked on the 'Standardizing Home Health Care Performance Measures' project in December 2003 to identify a set of performance measures for evaluating the quality of home health care. The draft report for this effort can be found at www.qualityforum.org/txHHreportFINALWEB.pdf.

New Online CE Course Targets Rural Nursing Issues
According to recent reports from the U.S. Bureau of Census, approximately 54 million people live in areas defined as "rural." Provision of health care, especially in regions defined as Health Personnel (professional) Shortage Areas (HPSAs) has been characterized as an insufficient, according to several measures, and has become a national priority in the past decade. The Independent Study Module Rural Nursing: Practice and Issues enables nurses to understand and describe the economic, social, and cultural factors that affect rural lifestyle and influence the health of rural residents and their health-care-seeking behaviors. It will also focus on the opportunities and challenges of nursing practice in more remote and sparsely populated geographical regions of the U.S. FREE for only a short time. For more information, visit: http://www.nursingworld.org/news/ananews.htm#cerural.

Leadership Activities
As part of the Creating Careers project, student scholarship recipients will attend the annual Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity (BAGNC) Leadership Conference and The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) Scientific Meeting in November. The scholarship recipients will participate in networking sessions with the AAN pre- and post-doctoral students and attend other sessions specifically tailored to meet their needs as master¡_s students.

In addition to the conference, site directors are developing individualized leadership activities for the students including mentorship activities, attendance at conferences, networking opportunities, mentored research practicals, participation on community health boards, and the completion of various community and agency projects. A few examples of this work are:

Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) sent two students to the Florence Cellar Conference on Healthy Aging. Sponsored by the CWRU Center on Aging and Health, which boasts a senior faculty of nationally and internationally recognized aging experts, the conference gave the students an opportunity to network with geriatric leaders in the regional community. PI Contact: Dr. Beverly Roberts, blr4@po.cwru.edu.

Two Radford University students studied at UNC-Chapel Hill School of Nursing over the summer with mentors they had met at the BAGNC Leadership Conference / GSA meeting in November 2002. The students are developing intervention and research projects within their respective areas of interest, and the students have presented posters at a local Sigma Theta Tau meeting. Additionally, the site director has mentored students to participate in community screenings and outreach programs, develop articles for publications, and make presentations to older adults at senior centers and local churches. PI Contact: Dr.Virginia Burggraff, vburggraf2@radford.edu.

A student from The University of Minnesota participated as a co-author in writing and submitting an abstract for the GSA Annual Meeting. The abstract was accepted for a poster presentation. The student has since been invited to co-author a manuscript for publication related to the research project. PI Contact: Dr. Christine Mueller, cmueller@umn.edu.

Two Creating Careers scholars at Yale University evaluated falls in the geriatric population from an epidemiological perspective. Although the data was collected for a clinical internship class project, the students presented the data to the Veteran's Health Administration. Now, with their instuctor, the students plan to develop and implement systems to reduce the number and impact of falls in this long-term care population. PI:Dr Deborah Chyun, deborah.chyun@yale.edu.

For more information on the Creating Careers project, please visit the AACN website http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Education/Hartford/creating.htm.

"Try This" Series
Recognition of Dementia in Hospitalized Older Adults

The John A. Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric Nursing has posted the newest issue of "Try This Dementia Series" developed in partnership with the Alzheimer's Association. "Wandering in the Hospitalized Older Adult" supports nursing identification of risks of wandering in the hospitalized older adult and offers approaches to minimizing these risks. Each "Try This" issue is a two-page document. On the first page is a description of why the topic is important when caring for older adults. On page two is an assessment tool that can be administered in 20 minutes or less. To download this, and other "Try This" assessment tools, please see: http://www.hartfordign.org/publications/trythis/wandering.pdf.

University of Delaware Announces Jeanne K. Buxbaum Professor and Endowed Chair of Nursing and Director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Gerontology Position
The University of Delaware is seeking nominations and applications for the newly-created Jeanne K. Buxbaum Professor and Endowed Chair of Nursing and Director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Gerontology. The endowed chair will be an experienced researcher and senior nursing scholar with an established record of extramural funding and evidence of commitment to the highest quality of life for aging individuals and their families. Candidates shall hold an earned doctorate and be eligible for a faculty appointment at the rank of professor. Demonstrated experience in leading interdisciplinary research teams, in developing strong, externally funded research programs, and in stimulating the work of others is highly desirable. he individual selected for this position will play a key role in developing the scholarship of nursing and creating strong collaborative partnerships for an interdisciplinary research agenda within the College of Health and Nursing Sciences and across the University of Delaware's academic units.

The successful candidate will establish and direct a center that addresses broad social and human services needs, influences public policy issues related to gerontology research, and improves the delivery of services to aging populations. A special emphasis will be placed on disorders that cause sensory deprivation and/or limit the optimal function of aging adults. Additionally, this individual will be expected to develop educational initiatives in gerontology and serve as a mentor for faculty and students.

The Jeanne K. Buxbaum Chair will have the opportunity to build upon existing gerontology resources and expertise at the University of Delaware such as education and research in the Nursing Center, research on gait, fine motor control, respiratory function, blood flow, and bone density in the human performance laboratory, prevention studies in the health promotion program, NIH funded center grants on arthritis and stroke, and expanding college research on muscle function and fitness. In addition, many academic units have ongoing research activity in areas relevant to gerontology.

Interested candidates should forward a letter of application, full curriculum vitae, and the names and contact information for four references to: Dean Robin Morgan, Chair, Jeanne K. Buxbaum Chair Search Committee, 113 Townsend Hall, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716. Review of applications will begin on November 1, 2004 and candidate reviews will continue until the position is filled.

4. HGNI Launches New Web Site

The HGNI is pleased to announce the launch of an exciting new Web site, www.HGNI.org. The site significantly expands the reach of the HGNI and provides a vehicle for sharing information among the HGNI partner organizations, nursing professionals and others interested in the field of geriatric nursing. The site includes information about the HGNI partners and programs, a calendar of events, resource information, back issues of New Directions, and more. Please visit the site at: www.HGNI.org. Feedback and comments about the site are welcome and should be sent to jbeilenson@aboutscp.com.

5. HGNI Link of the Month: White House Conference on Aging

The White House Conference on Aging (WHCOA) recently launched a Web site, http://www.whcoa.gov, which houses an array of information about the planning and progress of 2005 White House Conference on Aging. The easy-to-navigate site features conference information, a calendar of events and links to other resources. The site is designed to reach a growing number of individuals who increasingly use the Internet to gain information, conduct daily business and lead healthier, better quality lives.

Write to Us

We are committed to creating a monthly publication that serves your needs and interests. New Directions, therefore, welcomes your feedback and encourages you to supply ideas, stories, resources, news and other content for subsequent issues. To make a contribution, please contact Patty Franklin at Pfranklin@aannet.org, Deirdre Thornlow at dthornlo@aacn.nche.edu or Elaine Gould at elaine.gould@nyu.edu.

Please Note

If you know of someone or a group of people who would like to receive this newsletter, please send an email to John Beilenson at jbeilenson@aboutscp.com, and we will subscribe them.

If you have received this message in error or would like to unsubscribe to this newsletter, please reply to this e-mail and type the word "Unsubscribe" in the subject line. For more information about the HGNI's ongoing Evaluation, please see: www.geriatricnursing.info.