Ripples

The E-Newsletter of the Geriatric Social Work Initiative (GSWI)
Volume 7 Issue 8
October 29, 2008

In this Issue…
Announcements
Research & News
Funding Opportunities
Resources
Policy


ANNOUNCEMENTS

Congratulations newly selected Hartford Doctoral Fellows Cohort VIII
GSWI is pleased to announce the following five individuals who have been awarded the Hartford Doctoral Fellowship for 2008:

• Kristie G. Kimbell - Universityof Texas-Austin, School of Social Work
• Amanda J. Lehning - University of California-Berkeley, School of Social Welfare
• SoonHee Roh - New York University, Silver School of Social Work
• Jeannine M. Rowe - University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Helen Bader School of Social Welfare
• Karen A. Zurlo - University of Pennsylvania, School of Social Policy & Practice

They join Maria Brown, Kristen Gustavson, Emily Joy Nicklett and Paul Sacco
who were selected earlier this year.  The Hartford Doctoral Fellows Program is funded by The John A. Hartford Foundation and administered by The Gerontological Society of America. James Lubben, DSW, MPH is the Principal Investigator and National Program Director. For more information about the HDF program click here.
 
Hartford Faculty Scholars Attend Policy Leadership and Orientation Institutes
The Hartford Faculty Scholars Program held its annual Policy Leadership and Orientation Institutes this month in Washington, DC. The Policy Leadership Institute (October 15-17) provided an opportunity for Cohort VIII Social Work Faculty Scholars and Nurse Scholars to focus on the skills needed to make public policy a part of their academic life. Participants attended workshops and heard from experts in public policy, who provided information and training on key elements of engaging in the policy process. A highlight of the institute was a visit to Capitol Hill, where scholars met with staff members of congress to discuss their research. The Orientation Institute (October 17-20) consisted of skill-building educational seminars and workshops which focus on topics in research, teaching, and leadership. Cohort VIII and IX Social Work Faculty Scholars met with their respective National Research Mentors, who provided in-depth review and feedback of the scholar's research. The Hartford Faculty Scholars Program is funded by The John A. Hartford Foundation and administered by The Gerontological Society of America. Barbara Berkman, DSW and Helen Rehr/Ruth Fizdale Professor at Columbia University, School of Social Work - is the Principal Investigator and National Program Director. For more information about the HFS program click here.

YouTube™ Student Social Work Contest a Success
In celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Hartford Foundation’s Geriatric Social Work Initiative, AGE-SW and the John A. Hartford Foundation sponsored a special student YouTube™ contest: This Is Social Work & Aging. The contest closed on October 5th, 2008 with over 30 entries from BSW, MSW, and PhD students across the country! You can view the submissions online via the YouTube Web site. The top ten submissions will be screened at the Council on Social Work Education’s Annual Program Meeting later this week. The grand prize winner will be officially announced at the 2008 Gerontological Society of America (GSA) annual meeting, November 21-25, National Harbor, MD. The grand prize winner receives a $1,000 prize and paid travel expenses to the annual meeting. Many thanks to all those who entered!

Call For Presentations: 30th Annual Meeting of the Southern Gerontological Society
The Southern Gerontological Society (SGS) is accepting submission for their 30th Annual Meeting being held April 16-19, 2009 in St. Petersburg, FL. All individuals who are committed to gerontology, including practitioners, educators, researchers, policy-makers, seniors, and senior advocates, are welcome to submit an abstract/proposal for review. Online submission deadline is January, 9, 2009. Additional information now available on the SGS website: http://www.southerngerontologicalsociety.org

Sixth Annual Institute on Aging and Social Work
The College of St. Scholastica, presents its annual institute on aging and social work on  July 12-19, 2009 in Duluth, Minnesota. Nationally recognized experts in research methodology will lead a training institute specifically designed for social work faculty who received their doctoral degree at least three years ago in any area of social work. The institute, funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Research, and the John A. Hartford Foundation, aims to strengthen participants’ knowledge and skills essential for developing an active research agenda and integrating scholarship with teaching. For more information, click here.  

RESEARCH & NEWS

Social Security Announces 5.8 Percent Benefit Increase for 2009
Monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income benefits for more than 55 million Americans will increase 5.8 percent in 2009, the Social Security Administration announced on October 16. It is the largest increase since 1982. The 5.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, will produce an estimated average monthly benefit of $1,153 for all retired workers in 2009, $74 a month more than in 2008. For more information, click here .

NIH Director Ends Tenure
National Institutes of Health Director, Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D. – announced in late September that he will be leaving his position to pursue writing and other professional opportunities at the end of October. Under Zerhouni’s direction, NIH launched the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research , a program which brought together all of the NIH 27 Institutes and Centers to fund compelling research initiatives that no one institute could research alone. Dr. Zerhouni, a physician and scientist in radiology research, also launched new programs that encouraged interdisciplinary collaboration between the sciences across the NIH, such as the NIH Strategic Plan for Obesity Research , which included input from experts in obesity external to the NIH such as healthcare professionals, teachers and social workers. For more information on Zerhouni’s announcement, click here .

IOM Annual Meeting Focuses on Interaction between Biological, Behavioral and Social Detriments of Health
The Institute of Medicine held its annual meeting in Washington, DC on October 13, where several biologist speakers all discussed how their research interfaced with key
social and behavior factors in modulating health and illness. The session entitled, “Is Biology Destiny? The Interaction of Biological, Behavioral and Social Determinants of Health” was one of five panels and included individual presentations by researchers. To learn about IOM’s session, click here . PowerPoint slides of the presentations are viewable at the IOM website: http://www.iom.edu/CMS/2951/16671/16689/43074.aspx .

Survey Finds Older Workers Concerned about Medicare and Social Security Benefits
A survey done by Watson Wyatt revealed that older workers - aged 50-64, had little confidence that they would receive their Medicare and Social Security benefits once they retire. Not surprisingly - with the nation facing an unsure economy and recent stock market losses across the world, those who are nearing 65 are having to re-think retirement. To read more of this article featured in the Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch, click here .

Alliance for Aging Research Board Member Named NIA Deputy Director
Dr. Marie A. Bernard, one of the nation’s most noted geriatricians, accepted the position as Deputy Director of the National Institute on Aging. Bernard, who served on the Board of Directors at the Alliance for Aging Research for six years, in addition to being a professor of geriatrics at the University of Oklahoma and chief of staff at an area Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center, will apply her physician’s knowledge and compassion and wide experience in the medical, social and behavioral needs of older Americans. In a statement issued this week by the National Institute on Aging, Dr. Bernard said “There is quite a bit yet to do, particularly as we face the Silver Tsunami of Baby Boomers that will start turning 65 in 2011. There will be particular challenges, since there will be even greater diversity in this population as a result of increased numbers of minority and ethnic elders.” To read the press release, click here .

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

EPA Announces New RFP on Aging
The US Environmental Protection Agency released information concerning two new grants under the RFP “Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Training and Demonstration Projects”. Applicants must plan to:1.) train older adults to be environmental leaders, and 2.) demonstrate how greenways and sustainable streets can improve the environment, human health and the quality of life. The two grants totaling $100,000 each will be awarded in early spring 2009. For information on submission deadlines and requirements, click here.

US Administration on Aging: Open Solicitation
The US Administration on Aging (AoA) is accepting applications for proposed projects that further the purposes of Title IV of the Older Americans Act, (as amended) the AoA strategic plan, and the AoA mission. Title IV projects must: test new and innovative approaches to the design and delivery of programs and services for older persons; expand knowledge and understanding of the older population and the aging process; help meet the needs for trained personnel in the field of aging; and/or increase awareness of the need for individuals to assume responsibility for their own longevity. Application deadline is December 31, 2008. To read the full program announcement, click here.

RESOURCES

New Data Source Available for Researches on HRQoL Measures
The University of Wisconsin’s Center for Demography of Health and Aging recently added "The National Health Measurement Study: 2005-2006" to its BADGIR data extractor, an online data archive. The National Health Measurement Study (NHMS) is a new data source for researches on multiple health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) measures. It includes a suite of HRQoL indexes to allow comparison and cross-calibration of these instruments. The design oversampled African Americans and older individuals (ages 65+) to allow subgroup analyses. The BADGIR data archive uses NESSTAR technology to help users access data and documentation. Anyone may browse the data, but free registration is required before data can be extracted. To access the archive, visit http://nesstar.ssc.wisc.edu/ and click on "Browse."

Study Links Poor Sleep To Memory Trouble in African-American Seniors
The study, featured in the current issue of the Journal of Research on Aging, found that of 174 African Americans ages 65 to 90, those who said they often had a hard time falling asleep tended to have poorer scores on standard tests of memory. The link between sleep and memory problems held when the researchers accounted for several other factors, including depression and overall physical health. Click here to learn more.

Palliative Care Center Releases State By State Report Card
The Center to Advance Palliative Care released their report on state trends in palliative care. “America does a mediocre job caring for its sickest patients. The nation, as a whole, gets a C grade”, the report says. Hospital palliative care programs make patients facing serious and chronic illness more comfortable by alleviating their pain and symptoms and counseling patients and their families. Only Vermont, Montana and New Hampshire earned an A, according to America's Care of Serious Illness: A State-by-State Report Card on Access to Palliative Care in Our Nation's Hospitals, a report based on a study in the October 2008 issue of the Journal of Palliative Medicine. Three states — Oklahoma, Alabama and Mississippi — got an F. To read the report in its entirety, go to www.capc.org/reportcard.

New Resource for Chinese-American Dementia Caregivers
The Stanford Geriatric Education Center (SGEC) recently released a new resource for Chinese-Americans who are caring for a family member with dementia.  The new 2.5 hour DVD in Mandarin Chinese provides education about dementia, delivered by a Chinese gero-psychiatrist, and offers a series of specific scenarios about common behavior problems - depicting both "less helpful" and "more helpful" ways of responding to the situations.  A study showed that the DVD was an effective intervention for improving caregivers' knowledge of Alzheimer's disease and for reducing their stress and burden from managing the common problems.  The DVD, along with several resources on aging in minority populations may be found here.

Web Blog on Aging from the New York Times
The New York Times sponsored blog, “The New Old Age”  is written by reporter Jane Gross and focuses on the challenges faced by adults over 80 (the fastest growing segment of the population) and their adult children, who are the primary caregivers and decision-makers for their aging parents. While written from a consumer perspective, the blog covers a wide range of topics effecting older Americans and those providing care to senior loved ones.

Bandwidth: An Online Communication Tool for Hartford Foundation Grantees
Bandwidth is the John A. Hartford Foundation’s one-stop, online source for communication tools and information. This password protected site is designed to help grantees of the foundation enhance, strengthen, and add visual impact to their publications, presentations, and communications about aging and health. There are also many useful ideas and tips that can be accessed by anyone, in addition to Hartford grantees. Whether you’re a geriatric nurse, physician, social work faculty, or at the pre-dissertation phase of your career, Bandwidth can give you the resources you need to help craft your message- for a blog posting, a PowerPoint presentation, a scientific poster, or a brochure. Check out Bandwidthonline.org today.

POLICY

SAMHSA Awards Over $12 Million to Aid Mental Health Programs for Seniors
On October 16, the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced that they would award grants totaling more than $12 million to community programs that provide prevention, screening and treatment services to older Americans facing mental health and substance abuse issues. To learn more visit http://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/advisories/0810141013.aspx.

Bush Signs Continuing Resolution That Includes Funding for Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs
Earlier this month, President Bush signed into law a $630 billion continuing resolution to fund most federal programs, including Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs, at FY 2008 levels through March 6, 2009. The bill won approval in a 370-58 vote in the House September 24, and a 78-12 Senate vote, on September 27. Under the resolution, Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs will continue to receive funding at the FY 2008 level of $31 million. All Title VII Health Professions Programs and Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs will continue to receive funding at FY 2008 levels, of $194 million and $156 million, respectively. To learn more about Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs, click here.

AARP’s Public Policy Institute Examines Older Americans and the Mortgage Crisis
A report featured in AARP’s policy newsletter Insight on the Issues, reveals that homeowners age 50 and over have been significantly affected by the mortgage crisis. According to this first-ever analysis of data on the mortgage crisis by age, more than 684,000 homeowners age 50 and over were delinquent, were in foreclosure, or lost their homes during the six months ending December 2007. Older African Americans and Hispanics had higher foreclosure rates than whites of all ages. The study also finds that older Americans appear particularly vulnerable to home price declines and to sub prime loans. To read this report, click here.

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Ripples, an e-newsletter designed to keep interested deans and directors, faculty members, students, practitioners and others informed about the work of the Geriatric Social Work Initiative (GSWI). We welcome your feedback and encourage you to contribute any story ideas, stories, resources, news and other content to subsequent issues of the newsletter. To make a contribution, please contact Katherine Carter, Program Coordinator at kcarter@geron.org. If you have been forwarded this newsletter by a colleague and would like to subscribe, please reply to this e-mail and type the word “subscribe” in the subject line. Please be sure to visit our website at www.gswi.org. This newsletter has been sent from The Gerontological Society of America, 1220 L Street, NW, Suite 901, Washington, DC 20005-4018. To unsubscribe to Ripples, click here and type "unsubscribe" in the subject line.