For more than two decades, UNE's Interdisciplinary Geriatric Education Program (IGEP) has brought students from a variety of health professions together to learn from "elder teachers" in the greater Portland community.
This year, Laura Grover, coordinator for IGEP, had to create a new structure for the program because the pandemic prevented students from visiting elder teachers in person.
"My first thought was to reach out to Tom Meuser because I knew the Legacy Scholars program already had connections with older adults who were zoom-confident and also maybe looking for opportunities to connect," Grover stated.
Tom Meuser, Ph.D., director of the Center for Excellence in Aging and Health (CEAH), oversees the program for Legacy Scholars, a group of adults aged 55 and older who are participating as subjects in research studies on health and wellness in aging.
"I always like to say that older adults are the best experts on aging," commented Meuser. "They are living it after all. Our Legacy Scholars are committed to supporting the research and teaching missions of UNE. I have been so gratified and often amazed at their willingness to step up and volunteer even during a pandemic."
The students work in interdisciplinary teams, meeting with the same elder teacher two times over the course of each semester. The goal is to get to know these older adults through conversation, learning about their lives and in doing so, gaining a greater understanding of how to treat older adults in their various disciplines.
The students perform a medical history interview and actively listen to their elder teachers to learn about their individual goals, medications, and quality of life. After researching, discussing, and brainstorming what they heard, students come back and give thoughtful, optional, recommendations to their elder teachers for discussions with their doctors. The students also share information about community resources
Typically, IGEP teams up with residential independent living centers in the area, where residents sign up to volunteer.
This year, the elder teachers met virtually with students across the fields of physician assistant, dental medicine, and pharmacy. About 40 of the 60 volunteers were Legacy Scholars.
"It was so wonderful to have a wider range of folks who lived across Maine and not necessarily in a residential setting," said Grover. "It has us considering a Telehealth-practice aspect to this program for the future, even when the pandemic is behind us."
Grover says one student was so inspired by the meeting with her elder teacher that she is now considering creating a new virtual event for the volunteers where elder teachers would be matched with one another in small groups with the goal of creating consistent Zoom chats with new friends.
"The student's idea is designed to help her elder teacher battle the isolation she is facing under the restrictions created by the pandemic," Grover explained.
