Geriatric Fellowship Program Curriculum

The Christ Hospital-University of Cincinnati Geriatric Medicine Fellowship’s mission is to promote the health of our community as educators, community leaders, health system innovators, and evidence-based clinicians through training geriatricians prepared to practice in a variety of clinical settings. We are committed to preparing fellows to care for the underserved older adults in the community. 

Aims:

1. Provide evidence-based, patient- and family-centered care independently to promote aging in place and improved quality outcomes across a continuum of care, including independent community living, assisted living, skilled nursing facility, hospice, and long-term care.
2. Serve as a resource to community physicians by completing in-depth geriatric evaluations and communicating findings and recommendations to referring physicians, patients and families with empathy and transparency.
3. Provide evidence-based, patient- and family-centered care to promote aging in place and improve quality outcomes across a continuum of care, including independent community living, assisted living, skilled nursing facility, hospice, and long-term care.
4. Facilitate effective transitions of care to promote patient safety through ongoing quality improvement and leadership of interdisciplinary teams.
5. Develop geriatric clinician educators with necessary skills and attitudes to promote life-long learning and critical thinking.
6. Provide care to underserved populations with diverse cultural, educational and socioeconomic background through effective partnering and collaboration with community resource providers and interdisciplinary team members.

Curriculum highlights:

• Didactics are held every Wednesday from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm; these include palliative care lecture, Quality Improvement lecture, home visits debriefing, and journal club.
• Fellows give delirium lectures to family medicine residents and medical students one Wednesday a month
• Every fellow attends American Geriatric Society conferences; funded by the program.
• The program hosts bimonthly wellness activities and luncheons*

Core Curriculum

The fellowship core curriculum consists of weekly didactic lecture series. The curriculum, in addition to clinical training, is designed to support all fellows for board preparation, solidify knowledge in current geriatric literature, and develop robust practical skills in the management of complex geriatric medical and social needs.

The clinical opportunities allow geriatric fellows to explore both the depth and breadth of geriatric medicine through longitudinal primary care experiences and block rotations in a variety of clinical settings. The Christ Hospital Geriatric Medicine fellowship utilizes a variety of academic and community-based programs for clinical training. Cincinnati is filled with an ethnical and economically diverse population of elders. Cincinnati is a great place to learn Geriatric Medicine and get diverse training.

Weekly Didactics

• Journal Club
• Geriatric Review Syllabus and Question Review
• Palliative Care Lectures
• Quality Improvement Curriculum  
• Home Visit case conferences
• Patient Safety
• Teaching curriculum
• Practice Management Curriculum

Longitudinal Care Experiences

All fellows serve a panel of patients in the ambulatory continuity clinic one half-day a week throughout their training. Nursing home practice and periodic home visit blocks are also built into the continuity experience as below.

GEC: The Geriatric Evaluation Center was created to provide special care for older adults and their families, whether it’s a complete medical evaluation or advice about a lifestyle question. Conveniently located at Maple Knoll Village, the center offers expert advice to manage health concerns and maintain the well-being of people 65 and older. Fellows provide care in the GEC week with attendings Dr. Schlaudecker and Dr. June with progressive autonomy throughout the year.

Home Visits: Each fellow follows a continuity panel of two home visit patients monthly throughout fellowship. These patient are low-income, dual eligible Medicaid-Medicare patients in underservered communities near the hospital.

MKV Clinic and Nursing Home: Maple Knoll Village is owned and operated by Maple Knoll Communities, Inc. a non-profit, continuum of services provider dedicated to helping older adults live happy, healthy and active lives. Maple Knoll Village is a continuous living community, with independent living, assisted living, long-term care and SNF care. The nursing home also includes a locked dementia unit and a hospice unit. Finally, fellows rotate in the outpatient clinic that serves residents of MKV.

Rotations

• Introduction to Geriatrics in Cincinnati
• Dermatology
• ENT
• Hospice Care
• Inpatient and Outpatient Geropsychiatry
• Neurology
• Neuropsychology
• Palliative Care
• PM&R
• Podiatry
• Rheumatology
• Wound Care
• Geriatric Consults at the VA

Electives

There is a wide array of elective opportunities, which we customize to develop the skills needed for your individualized career path. Fellows have one month of elective time, as well as opportunity for longitudinal electives or elective experiences integrated in rotations. Recent examples have included: CHF management, additional nursing home experiences, and an away elective focused on care of LGBTQ+ older adults.

Community Collaborations:

• Maple Knoll Nursing Home
• VA Medical Center
• Marjorie P. Lee Retirement Community
• Geriatric Evaluation Center
• Ohio Living Llanfair Assisted Living

Yearly Conferences

Fellows have dedicated trip time available to participate in annual regional and national conferences. Abstract and poster presentations contributions are encouraged at:

• American Geriatrics Society
• Forum on Aging
• AMDA

Opportunities for Teaching, Service, and Scholarly Activity

Fellows are encouraged to develop skills in multiple areas and are expected to produce a scholarly project in collaboration with faculty. Fellows are also given the opportunity to familiarize themselves with ongoing research projects, choose a research mentor, and start a research project or collaborate in ongoing projects. With the collaboration of the VA and the University of Cincinnati Faculty, there are numerous scholarly activities fellows can join. Advocacy opportunities and mentoring are also plentiful.

For more information, please contact:

Natalie Seaburn
Department of Family and Community Medicine
Geriatric Fellowship Program Coordinator
Medical Sciences Building Suite 4012
231 Albert Sabin Way
Cincinnati, 45267-0582

E-mail: quinnne@ucmail.uc.edu