Week In Review

AGS leadership starts with you! Serving on the AGS Board will not only give you the opportunity to set policy for the Society but also to assure its proper implementation. The AGS Nominating Committee also serves an important role in considering board nominations. Applications for both opportunities are open through Tues., Oct. 1. Click here for more information about becoming a Board Member, and here for more information about the Nominating Committee.

• What's the best way to safeguard online accounts while still granting access for someone with dementia?
• Have questions about fellowship clinic requirements?
• Can you share a job description for a Director of Geriatric Services? 

Congratulations to this week's most active members: Samir Sinha, Carl J. Christian Bergman, Sarwat Jabeen, and Anne Hill.

• From the Kaiser Family Foundation: Prescription Drugs and Older Adults
• From Kaiser Health News: What the Trump Home Dialysis Plan Would Really Look Like

The Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) and the Geriatrics Academic Career Award (GACA) Program under Title VII of the Public Health Service Act are two important initiatives for ensuring we have the healthcare workforce we need as we age. The GWEP is focused on helping to transform primary care for older adults by providing geriatrics training. The GACA is focused on developing clinician-educators in training the next generation of geriatrics healthcare professionals.

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) recently announced a new round of funding for both programs, including 48 GWEPs in 35 states and 2 territories and 26 GACAs across 16 states. View the 2019 GWEP awardees here, and the GACA awardees here.

Registration is now open for the AGS CoCare: Ortho™ Online Workshop: Introduction to Co-Management, taking place on Thurs., Sept. 19, from 2-5pm ET.

Led by AGS CoCare: Ortho™ Expert Faculty and complemented with 3 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™, this 3-hour workshop will utilize a "trigger video" and presentation of modules from the AGS CoCare: Ortho™ Online Educational Curriculum. The trigger video will lead participants through a realistic case that includes both appropriate and inappropriate elements of care, as well as a discussion of what happened and what could have been done differently. Learn more.

Registration remains open but is limited to one person per interested institution. Registration is

• $65 for individuals from current AGS CoCare: Ortho™ subscriber institutions, or
• $125 for individuals from an institution not currently subscribed to the program.
• Space is limited so click here to secure your spot today! For further information, contact Deena Sandos at dsandos@americangeriatrics.org. 

• The NIA 2020 Grants for Early Medical/Surgical Specialists' Transition to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR). The goal of the GEMSSTAR program is to provide support for early-career physician-scientists trained in medical or surgical specialties or early-career dentist-scientists to launch careers as future leaders in aging- or geriatric-focused research. To achieve this goal, the GEMSSTAR Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) provides small grants to conduct transdisciplinary aging research that will yield pilot data and experience for subsequent aging research projects. Candidates must have a faculty appointment at the start of funding in July 2020. The Letter of Intent (LOI) is due on Mon., Sept. 2, and the application is due Wed., Oct. 2. Learn more here, and send inquiries to niagemsstar@mail.nih.gov.
• The 2020 Paul B. Beeson Emerging Leaders Career Development Award in Aging (K76). The NIA and The John A. Hartford Foundation are collaborating on this initiative to develop a cadre of talented scientists prepared and willing to take an active leadership role in transformative change that will lead to improved health care outcomes. The award requires an early stage investigator status in health-related research or clinical doctoral degree, including, but not limited to: PhD, MD, DO, DDS, DMD, OD, DC, PharmD, DN and DVM. The LOI is due Sun., Sept. 22, and the application is due Tues., Oct. 22. Learn more here.
• Travel awards for early career clinical researchers to the Beeson Scholars Annual Meeting. The American Federation of Aging Research (AFAR) is offering 6 travel awards for early career clinical researchers who are interested in the Beeson Award (and may have applied but are not yet a Beeson Scholar) to the Beeson Scholars Annual Meeting, which will be held Nov. 20-23 in New Mexico. The application is due Tues., Sept. 3. For any questions about the program or the travel stipend, contact Hattie Herman at hattie@afar.org.

Resources for Integrated Care is offering a new webinar, "Self-Direction for Dually Eligible Individuals Utilizing LTSS," on Wed., Aug. 21, from 12:00-1:30pm ET. Self-direction, often referred to as consumer-direction, is a practice that allows consumers to direct and manage their own personal care services. Self-direction promotes personal choice and control over the delivery of LTSS, including who provides the services and how the services are provided. Evidence shows that individuals participating in self-directed LTSS programs are more satisfied with their services and experience better outcomes when compared to individuals receiving agency-based services. This may have important implications for the dually eligible population since about half of all beneficiaries dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid utilize LTSS.

The shift to offering consumers the choice to direct their own services has posed challenges for health plans, who must utilize new contracting methods. This webinar will discuss the importance of care coordinators, person-centered care planning, and assisting members with management tasks required for self-direction for plans seeking to support consumers in directing their own care. Learn more and register here.

The Junior Reviewer Program at the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS) is designed to bring new, fresh voices to the review process; to train high-quality reviewers; and to continue building a community of scholars in the field of aging. The application process is easy and open to early-stage junior faculty. Learn more.

• Webinar: The Range of Home Modifications and Decision Making. As part of an Administration for Community Living supported grant and in partnership with n4a, the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology invites professionals from the aging network to this webinar on Tues., Aug. 20, from 3-4pm ET to learn about the range of home modifications to support aging in place – from minor to major. Hear a first-hand perspective from an Architect and an Occupational Therapist as they discuss how design and cost can affect decision-making and consumer choice. Gain a better understanding of home modification to support your information and access services for older adults in your community. Register here.
• Webinar Recording: Age-Friendly Health Systems. Modern Healthcare hosted a webinar on Aug. 7, "Age-Friendly Health Systems — Improving Care for Older Patients." The webinar offered best practices from healthcare leaders who discussed what it means to be an age-friendly health system. The panel of clinical and administrative experts gave an introduction and overview of the Age-Friendly Health System initiative, and offered strategies for health systems looking to ensure quality and satisfaction among older patients. View the recording here.