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The John A. Hartford Foundation Trustees Award 6.6 Million To Five Centers Of Geriatric Nursing Excellence
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Washington, DC — Over the next three decades, more than 76 million Americans will turn 65. The question is whether or not the nation's health care system is prepared to handle the challenges and opportunities that this burgeoning number of elderly presents.
The John A. Hartford Foundation dedicates the majority of its resources to this very issue C increasing the nation's capacity to provide effective and affordable quality care to a rapidly expanding older population. Specifically, the Foundation has focused its grant making efforts in two areas: 1) increasing the geriatric capacity and competence of health care professionals and 2) integrating and improving services for elders. Most recently, the Foundation expanded its efforts in the nursing arena. At their December meeting, the John A. Hartford Foundation trustees approved awards totaling $6.6 million to create five new Centers of Geriatric Nursing Excellence (CGNEs). Each of these Centers will receive approximately $1.3 million in funding over the next five years. The Centers are schools or colleges of nursing at Oregon Health Sciences University, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, the University of California at San Francisco, the University of Iowa, and the University of Pennsylvania. The Centers are part of a new Hartford Foundation initiative to build academic geriatric nursing capacity. The trustees of the John A. Hartford Foundation have mounted this initiative in order to help address the challenges of the critical shortage of nursing personnel in general and in geriatric nursing in particular. Focusing on the need to produce expert academicians, practitioners and researchers who will lead the field of geriatric nursing and grow the next generation of practitioners and faculty, this initiative ultimately will enhance the care of older adults in our society. The five Centers are based in sites which have demonstrated the highest level of commitment to the field, have both current experience and future potential, and have outstanding capacity in research, practice and education. They manifest leadership that transcends their own institution and meet accepted criteria of excellence. The Oregon Health Sciences University CGNE is directed toward improving care of elders through collaborative efforts among researchers, scholars, providers, clinical agencies, clinicians, health planners and administrators, and policymakers. The Summer Post doctoral Fellowship Program provides 17 months of advanced research training in gerontological nursing. The B.S. to Ph.D. Fast Track Program in Gerontological Nursing is designed to attract younger students into careers in gerontological nursing research. The mission of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Nursing CGNE is to prepare a cadre of highly educated gerontological nurses at all levels. It will focus on innovative interdisciplinary programs in education, practice and research that promote functional independence in the elderly. The University of California, San Francisco CGNE will develop: a rigorous and creative recruitment program for doctoral students and postdoctoral trainees; a web-based interdisciplinary course in gerontology; an interdisciplinary, collaborative program (i.e., nursing, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and social and behavioral sciences); and a mechanism to attract faculty from other specialties (e.g., oncology and cardiovascular nursing) into gerontology. The primary mission of the Iowa CGNE is the generation of geriatric/gerontologic nursing knowledge and its dissemination in education, practice and policy arenas to improve the lives of older persons. The Iowa CGNE will build on the current research, training, and dissemination strengths of faculty in the College of Nursing, the strong supportive interdisciplinary gerontology/geriatrics network at the University of Iowa, and the beginning Midwest Regional Gerontological Research Consortium. The goals of the University of Pennsylvania's CGNE are related to expanding the science, developing and evaluating innovations in care, disseminating evidence-based best practices, and shaping the intellectual directions of geriatric nursing through strengthened educational programs and partnerships. Several initiatives will be undertaken, including new directions in practice-based scholarship, exportable models of care for frail vulnerable elders, web-based educational approaches for professionals, students, institutions, and consumers and preparation of the next generation of leaders in the field. This program is coordinated at the American Academy of Nursing and is under the leadership of Claire M. Fagin, PhD, RN. The American Academy of Nursing was established in 1973 to provide visionary leadership to the nursing profession and the public in shaping future health care policy and practice that optimizes the well-being of the American people through the synthesis of scientific and philosophical knowledge as the basis for effective health care policy and practice. There are currently some 1300 fellows in the Academy.
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