Strengthening geriatric knowledge and use of interdisciplinary teams amongallied health students and practitioners

With grant support from the DHHS Bureau of Health Professions, the Geriatri c Health Institute (a joint venture between Sioux Valley Hospital and the U niversity of South Dakota [USD] School of Medicine) collaborated on trainin g allied health students and practitioners in geriatrics and interdisciplin ary team assessment. Goals of the 3-year grant were to establish didactic a nd clinical education in rural areas and increase the number of allied heal th professionals serving medically underserved communities. Allied health p rofessionals and students enrolled at USD in the disciplines of Communicati ve Disorders, Dental Hygiene, Dietetics, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy were engaged in both didactic and clinical education during 1993-9 96. Results from this training grant included significant improvements in g eriatric knowledge over time, successfully attained attendance goals by dis cipline, placement of graduates in medically underserved areas, and strengt hened collaborative initiatives and interdisciplinary conversations among i nstitutions, faculty, and practitioners. The long-range impact of training on service providers in rural areas is discussed as well as recommendations for implementing a training grant.