Activities and Services

Seminars and Conferences

Seminars and conferences are offered throughout the year for faculty, students, and healthcare professionals.  Programs include certificate programs, panel presentations, workshops and seminars presented by recognized specialists in their fields.  Topics are developed within a multidisciplinary context. CME credits are available.  Programs are offered at several sites and can be custom designed for providers.

Geriatric Student Forum

The student forum provides an avenue for students from the schools of medicine, dentistry, graduate school and research to gain exposure, information, experience and opportunities in the field of medical gerontology.  The students meet for a program and light dinner every fourth Wednesday.
Programs include subjects chosen by the student officers and include such topics as Hoarding in the Elderly; Diabetes and the Elderly; The Good, Bad, and Ugly of sugar and sugar substitutes; Cosmetic Surgery; what is Geriatrics, and many other topics not covered in medical school training. Annual programs include:  screenings at Community Day and at Senior Exposition, a wellness program sponsored by the Area Agency on Aging and Disability and United Way.   Outreach programs include intergenerational activities at local churches and a tea dance at Meharry Dental School. The Forum selects a student to attend the Geriatric Training Program at Boston University each Summer.  Student officers are selected by the Forum group in the Spring of each year.  The 07-08 officers include: Samuel Williams, President; Magdalyn Thomas, VP;  Courtney Williams, Secretary.

Medical Gerontology Certificate Programs

Certificate programs in Medical Gerontology are offered every other month.  Certificate programs are not in sequence, no course requires a prerequisite! Courses meet for 7 hour sessions on three consecutive Fridays. Contact hours are awarded, partial days, a session, or for the complete program. For an additional charge, Continuing Medical Education credits (CMEs) are available.

Why attend these courses?

Participation improves the effectiveness of healthcare professionals through increased knowledge of the aging process.  A thorough understanding of aging issues results in increased client satisfaction, improved caregiver communication, reduced staff burnout and turnover, better professional performance, increased organizational effectiveness and efficiency as an interdisciplinary team.  As a result of increased knowledge and skills, successful providers of the future will be more capable to design environments that attract and improve the quality of life of the elderly.

Basic Course – Catalog Number BC120

This basic course focuses on the biopsychosocial model of aging, including the Aging Phenomenon; Aging and Communication; Polypharmacy; Nutrition; Cognitive Vitality; Memory; Care Giving; Elder Abuse; End of Life Issues; Oral Health; Exercise and Aging; Senior Services Resources.

The Clinical Course, Catalog Number CC120

This course includes: Aging and the Reproductive System; Respiratory Therapy; Falls and Osteoporosis; Podiatry; Sexuality and Aging; Ethics; Geriatric Assessment;  Incontinence; Movement Disorders in Late Life; Newly Recognized Disorders; Vaccinations; Diabetes Mellitus in the Elderly.

The Memory Course, Catalog Number, MC120

This course includes: Sensory Changes; Cognitive Vitality and Nutrition; Motivation; Exercise, Leisure and Aging; Depression; Sleep; Stroke;
Alzheimer’s and the MMSE; Pain Management; Substance Abuse; Memory Challenges;  Non-Alzheimer’s Dementia; Amotivational Syndromes in the Elderly.

The Special Topics Course, Catalog Number, ST120

This course includes: Grandparents and Grandchildren; Aging in the School Curriculum; The Truth About the Fountain of Youth; Quality Improvement and Housing in Long Term Care; Hoarding in the Elderly as a Psychiatric Issue. Music Therapy and Spirituality; Ethnogeriatrics in Tennessee; Elder Care and Law; Financial Strategies for Aging; Geropsychiatric Options; Senior Safety: Home and on the Road; Training Health Professionals to Present.; Health Care and Discrimination.