COAST-IT Project

 

To: Assisted Living Residences COAST-IT – Connecting Older Adults to Students Through Interprofessional Telecare   Older adults have been significantly impacted by social isolation during COVID-19. At the same time, health professional students in their first 1-2 years of training have lost opportunities to have interactions with patients. The team at the CU Anschutz Senior's Clinic is planning a social isolation outreach project where students (from a CU Anschutz pharmacy, Nurse Practitioner or medical school) will pair with a resident who they will have weekly to every other week phone calls with throughout the next semester (and possibly beyond) to provide support to the resident and to help students improve their communication skills with older adults. For many of these students, older adults will be their patient population, so working on communication skills is extremely important. The students will be available to start making calls mid-September. Good candidates for the project: Residents who have had significant mental or physical health effects from the social isolation that has occurred due to COVID-19 or other recent social changes. Residents who would enjoy interacting with a student regularly and volunteer to be a part of the project. The resident should know they are going to be contacted and be willing/wanting to participate. Please do not refer until you have discussed this with the residents themselves. Residents without cognitive impairment who could participate in regular (up to weekly) phone calls with a student over the next 3-4 months (fall semester) Residents who would enjoy extended conversations with a student. Residents who can operate a telephone independently (no hearing impairment that would prohibit their ability to use the phone) For more information and to participate please contact: Jodi Waterhouse, MHA Program Manager CU Anschutz Multidisciplinary Center on Aging Jodi.waterhouse@cuanschutz.edu O) 303.724.0832