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Since 2002, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has provided a unique training opportunity in palliative care at six VA medical centers. The VA Interprofessional Fellowship in Palliative Care has trained chaplains, nurses, pharmacists, physicians, psychologists, and social workers to provide clinical palliative care and to develop as leaders in the profession. This article describes the program's origin, mission, outcomes, and lessons learned.

My term as the Editor-in-Chief (EIC) has come to an end. It has been a very rewarding 11 years and I feel confident that the journal is in good shape when I hand over the reins to the highly capabl...

To describe recent approaches by federal agencies to expand the rural healthcare workforce through training in geriatrics and gerontology. Publicly available information on federally funded training and continuing education programs was identified and these programs and initiatives described. Traditional training programs that expose learners to rural environments continue to be supported while new models of training and workforce development have emerged. Federal agencies have a lead role in supporting interprofessional training, adapting new technologies in curricula and facilitating academic, private, and public investments in the workforce. Veterans Health Administration has also undertaken a systematic evaluation strategy across various models with the goal of promoting broad dissemination and implementation. These training and continuing education models have reported successes and continue to be evaluated as innovations that may be broadly adopted to address the healthcare needs of older rural-dwelling populations.

The Rural Interdisciplinary Team Training Program (RITT) is a team-based educational component of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Office of Rural Health Geriatric Scholars Program. It is a workforce development program to enhance the geriatrics knowledge and skills of VA primary care clinicians and staff caring for older veterans in rural communities. The RITT workshop, accredited for 6.5 hours, is interactive and multi-modal with didactic mini-lectures, interactive case discussions and role play demonstrations of assessments. Clinic teams also develop and implement a small quality improvement project based on common challenges faced by older persons. This report is an evaluation of the effect of the RITT Program on geriatrics knowledge and team development as well as success in developing and implementing the quality improvement projects in 80 VHA rural outpatient clinics in 38 states.

For several decades, the history of interdisciplinary education and the development of AGHE initiatives have been closely linked. The need to educate colleagues on methods and benefits of interdisciplinary/ interprofessional cooperation toward service and research of aging has never waned. In this presentation we (a) highlight how AGHE has performed as a potent incubator for progress in this area and (b) use a few examples to illustrate how notable resulting efforts have improved geriatric care. For example, early and significant infusion of federal funds for gerontology training programs supported multi-disciplinary university-based centers, the Veterans Health Administration created interprofessional geriatric training programs, foundations such as John A. Hartford and Josiah Macy founded team training and interprofessional education programs, and the Health Resources and Services Administration funded Geriatric Education Centers and Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Programs. Efforts to advance interdisciplinary/interprofessional education have been fruitful and AGHE’s role as an incubator continues to evolve.

A telehealth program supports meaningful partnerships between urban geriatric specialists and rural health care providers to facilitate increased access to specialty care.

Interprofessional care is an important part of geriatric medicine. The most common teams are interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary. Successful interdisciplinary teamwork promotes strong team communication, resulting in higher quality of patient care.

The AGHE Symposium will highlight the many ways that education has advanced interdisciplinary work, innovative programs, intergenerational services and community engagement in the field of aging over the last decades. Presenters will reflect on how these educational modalities can inform the future of gerontology education. Educators have innovated over decades to develop a field characterized by a diversity of programs, including internships, applied learning experiences in research, policy and practice, and leadership. The history of AGHE and interdisciplinary education are linked, with AGHE serving as an incubator for the advancement of change in this area. Over the course of the last five decades, funding from federal and foundation initiatives have resulted in multi-disciplinary university based centers, interprofessional team training programs, and workforce development initiatives. These efforts have improved the health and well-being of older adults and contributed to the development of new collaborative care systems. AGHE members have also long been involved in intergenerational teaching and learning strategies, including service-learning and community activities. Intergenerational work in the field of aging has helped to shape the Age-Friendly University initiative which calls for colleges and universities to promote intergenerational learning through reciprocal sharing of expertise among learners of all ages. Finally, the AGHE community has long promoted engaged learning with opportunities for students to interact with community partners through programs such as community-based research and clinical experiences and local policy efforts. The ideas presented in the symposium will lead to reflection on how AGHE can expand its value as GSA’s educational arm.

GSA COVID-19 Task Force members collaborated with AGHE to develop multiple teaching briefs and biblio briefs on various topics to support faculty who had to adjust to online teaching quickly. Task Force members will review those documents, as well as the AGHE listening session to identify where educators and students need additional support.

This special section features the voices of gerontology and geriatrics scholars at all stages of their careers reflecting on why age matters to them and how they have been shaped by mentors through...

In this issue of Gerontology and Geriatric Education, the official journal of the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE) we share several manuscripts which are pertinent as we grapple w...

The AGHE Presidential Symposium, related to the theme of the annual scientific meeting, underscores the importance of networks, collaborations and partnerships in advancing education in gerontology and geriatrics. AGHE has been at the forefront of many innovative programs since it was founded in 1974, contributing to the growth of the field and the recognition of education as one pillar of the field of gerontology and geriatrics, along with research, policy and practice. This symposium highlights three ongoing initiatives that promote connections and collaborations. The first paper discusses the Age-Friendly University (AFU) network which is made of institutions around the globe who have committed themselves to becoming more age-friendly in their programs and policies. AGHE endorses the AFU principles and invites its members and affiliates to call upon their institutions become part of this pioneering initiative. The AFU initiative is one of several international activities that AGHE, global leaders in education on aging, has engaged in. The second paper describes international networking activities such as collaborations with international organizations including the World Health Organization and connecting international and US students. In the third paper, initiatives to connect disciplines and professions through competency-based education and curricula are discussed. For instance, the Gerontology Competencies for Undergraduate and Graduate Education and the Program of Merit promote competency-based gerontology education across disciplines and professions.

The innovative 5013c accreditation body, Accreditation for Gerontology Education Council (AGEC), is the first of its kind with its global purview of gerontology programs. The purpose of AGEC is to serve as an accrediting entity for bachelors and masters programs, both nationally and internationally. AGEC uses competencies involving skills, knowledge, and abilities necessary to educate a prepared workforce in the gerontological field. While this is a critical function, how is receiving an AGEC accreditation perceived by academic institutions? This paper will discuss survey results examining perspectives from both students and administrators. The survey examining attributes of institutions which influence student attendance decisions involved a sampling of graduate students and administrators from the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE) member institution directory. The discussion of results will highlight the perceived benefits and value-added to degree programs attaining an AGEC accreditation.

The Veterans Affairs Geriatric Scholars Program (GSP) is a continuing professional development program to integrate geriatrics into the clinical practices of primary care providers and select associated health professions that support primary care teams. GSP uses a blended program educational format, and the minimal requirements are to attend an intensive course in geriatrics, participate in an interactive workshop on quality improvement (QI), and initiate a local QI project to demonstrate application of new knowledge to benefit older veterans. Using a retrospective post/pre survey design, the effect of GSP on clinical practices and behaviors and variation of that effect on clinicians working in rural and nonrural settings were evaluated. Significant improvement was found in the frequency of using evidence-based brief standardized assessments, clinical decision-making, and standards of care. Significant subgroup differences were observed in peer-to-peer information sharing between rural and nonrural clinicians. Overall, 77% of the sample reported greater job satisfaction after participating in GSP. The program is a successful model for advancing postgraduate education in geriatrics and a model that might be replicated to increase access to quality health care, particularly in rural areas.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has been a leader in program development and service delivery in the areas of geriatrics, hospice and palliative care for decades. Zelda Foster, MSW, serving as the Chief of Social Work Services at the Brooklyn VA Hospital for almost 20 years, was a force in the early days of the palliative care and hospice movement in the United States, publishing a seminal article in 1965, and contributing through educational initiatives, program development, information dissemination and mentorship of countless social workers. With an early recognition of the demographic imperative of aging veterans, the VA established a number of innovative programs which have been widely replicated outside of the VA. Zelda Foster was a central figure in the evolution of these programs and a strong and effective advocate for the inclusion of social workers. She deserves much credit for the fact that social workers are now centrally involved in an array of leadership activities in palliative and end-of-life care both within and outside of VA.

(2007). Zelda Foster. Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care: Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 47-56.

(2006). Geriatric Education Centers Initiatives in Curriculum and Resource Development. Gerontology & Geriatrics Education: Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 1-5.

Frail elders living alone or in long-term care settings are particularly vulnerable to bioterrorism and other emergencies due to their complex physical, social and psychological needs. This paper provides an overview of the recent literature on bioterrorism and emergency preparedness in aging (BTEPA); discusses federal initiatives by the health resources and services administration (HRSA) to address BTEPA; describes the collaborative efforts of six HRSA-funded geriatric education centers (GECS) to develop BTEPA geriatric curricula and training; and offers recommendations for BTEPA education and training, clinical practices, policy, and research. The GEC/BTEPA collaboration has produced model curricula, including emergency planning for diverse groups of older persons; enhanced networking among stakeholders in a fast paced environment of information sharing and changing policies; and developed interdisciplinary educational resources and approaches to address emergency preparedness for various settings in the elder care continuum.

Despite the increasing public demand for enhanced care of older patients and those with life-threatening illness, health professionals have had limited formal education in geriatrics and palliative care. Furthermore, formal education in interdisciplinary team training is limited. In order to remedy this situation, proactive interventions are being undertaken so that education and training in palliative care is being embedded within the training of physicians, nurses, social workers, as well as other associated health team members. This article discusses various educational approaches to interdisciplinary team-based geriatric and palliative care, highlighting the interdisciplinary didactic and clinical educational opportunities offered by an Interprofessional Palliative Care Fellowship Program, as well as an Associated Health Training Program at the Geriatrics Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Bronx Veteran's Medical Center. The article further describes the educational initiatives in palliative care offered through the Veteran's Integrated Service Network (VISN). Innovative educational strategies are discussed within the context of the existing literature on interdisciplinary health care team training.

In this first issue of Volume 35 we are pleased to introduce a new journal series on the role of education in implementation science. Some of you may be asking yourselves, “what exactly is implemen...

The John A. Hartford Foundation, in collaboration with the Gerontological Society of America, has developed new models to create geriatric faculty capacity within social work. The Faculty Scholars Program is building faculty leadership in academic geriatric social work through a strategic approach that includes long-distance national and institution-based mentoring. While mentoring models have proven to be effective means of career development, this is relatively new in academic social work and little is known about the impact of long-distance mentoring in association with sponsorship from a mentor at the scholar's home institution. This paper describes the mentoring model and its conceptual underpinnings. Evaluation data from an ongoing evaluation is presented in discussion of the strengths and limitations of the mentoring model.

Summary Research has learned much in the last forty years about the factors critical in a gerontological social work assessment. However, assessment must be constantly readdressed, because the context of health care changes and the research technology that enables the study of factors critical to the assessment process becomes more sophisticated. This paper presents the evolution of assessment research and identifies critical assessment factors as related to the changing social work practice in the context of the country's changing health care environment.

The special health needs of older persons and the organization of managed care systems necessitate interdisciplinary team health care. However, there is a paucity of training or familiarity with team care among most health care professionals. This article describes one nationwide initiative, funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation, in which eight sites trained health care workers from different disciplines to participate as interdisciplinary geriatric health care team members. Although the goal of the initiative was to develop trained interdisciplinary team participants, a major concern of the programs was the initial overcoming of challenges to training professionals from different disciplines together. Both benefits and challenges are identified and several training modalities and techniques to meet the challenges are discussed. These include case studies, standardized patients, cross-discipline role-playing, glossaries, and use of the DISC Personality Profile. The benefits of each of these modalities...

In this issue we present a collection of articles which underscore the importance of continuing and longitudinal education and training to ensure optimal healthcare of older persons. Whether the ed...

There is a pressing need to upgrade the gerontological knowledge and skills of practicing social workers. Geriatrics and gerontology, as specialized fields of knowledge, have not been sufficiently integrated into formal academic training programs. There are major trends in the health care environment which impact on social work education, including technological advances, a shift from inpatient to outpatient and community care settings, increasing diversity of the older population, and client and family participation in decisionmaking. These trends necessitate social work education to emphasize new content areas in gerontology and the development of new skills in clinical, case management, care coordination, and teamwork. A significant obstacle to the preparation of future social workers to deliver the complex services needed by older adults and their families is a serious shortage of social work faculty in gerontology. Sustained and broad initiatives, such as the John A. Hartford Foundation funded Geriatric Social Work Faculty Scholars Program, are needed to develop academic and practice-based faculty in gerontology. This is crucial if social work is to maintain an important service role in the new millennium.

The Mount Sinai Medical Center Geriatric Interdisciplinary Team Training Program prepares future health professionals to work on geriatrics interdisciplinary health care teams through structured educational and training experiences. This article describes the Program's educational goals and teaching methods. A number of cross-disciplinary approaches have been developed to facilitate learning, including team teaching, a seminar series, workshops, journaling, standardized patients, “real time” experiences, and other program enhancements. The Program has had considerable impact at the trainee, faculty, management and institutional levels, but issues and challenges to cross-disciplinary team training remain. Suggestions for overcoming learning, professional culture, and implementation barriers are given.

While it is a widely accepted goal that integration of housing and services optimizes successful aging in place, this has generally been difficult to achieve (American Association of Retired Persons, 1997). It is a complex endeavor due to a variety of factors, most notably separate housing and health and social service funding streams and administrative agencies. In this article Linkage House is used to illustrate the opportunities and challenges in developing enriched housing which promotes independence and successful "aging in place." The rationale, need, model, goals, and guiding principles are described. The partnership approach used to develop Linkage House is also highlighted. Challenges in implementing our model, comprised of housing and services, are outlined. Many of the programmatic initiatives have been undertaken by the sponsors for the first time in a housing setting, requiring constant reevaluation and refinement. Further, our partnership approach, while enriching the programs, has made implementation more complicated and time consuming. Since one aim of Linkage House is replication of the model, information about program development and "lessons learned" is being shared in forums such as meetings, presentations and publications. Linkage House Linkage House is a 70-unit building for lower-income older persons funded by a capital grant under the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development section 202 program and HUD operating subsidies and rental assistance. The sponsors of Linkage House are The Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York City and three community-based organizations-The Union Settlement Association, Greater Emmanuel Baptist Church, and the Community Association of the East Harlem Triangle. The name Linkage House reflects the shared vision of the sponsors: to link the residents with safe and affordable housing, to link residents to the community through a variety of programs, and to link the generations through intergenerational educational and recreational activities. The concept of Linkage House was driven by the philosophy that older people deserve to live in settings that promote a quality of life involving mutual exchange and support, opportunities for productive roles, and involvement in the life of the community and with people of all ages. Linkage House is designed to facilitate communal living and the formation of friendships and support networks, while maintaining residents' privacy. Based on a shared-housing model, it has been physically designed to promote helping networks by creating distinct clustered household living arrangements on each floor. Five one-bedroom apartments are grouped around each common area, intended to eliminate isolation and promote interaction and socialization among neighbors. Residents of Linkage House, through a series of meetings, have designated many of these rooms as theme rooms for functions such as games, sewing, and exercise. The two ground floor community rooms and library are for social, recreational, health education, intergenerational, and after-school programs. There are also two examination and consultation rooms on the ground floor for onsite medical programs. All of these common and program rooms are intended to promote group activities, social and health interventions, and programs that reach beyond the residence walls and link tenants with the larger community. There is also a garden in the back of the residence as well as a community garden across the street. Our model for Linkage House was designed to be flexible enough to meet the changing needs of residents as they grow older. Care coordination by a licensed onsite social worker provides residents with communitybased and in-home services as needed. Through this care coordination, on-site programs, and linkages with community health and social services, opportunities for aging in place are maximized. As described below, the initial cohort of residents who moved into Linkage House when it opened during the summer of 1997 had a higher level of social and medical needs than originally anticipated, so care coordination and program implementation were important from the outset. …

This issue of Gerontology & Geriatrics Education presents an exciting set of themes that provide a backdrop for reflective and innovative educational strategies. These include life history narrativ...

Older patients who live in rural areas often have limited access to specialty geriatric care, which can help in identifying and managing geriatric conditions associated with functional decline. Implementation of geriatric-focused practices among rural primary care providers has been limited, because rural providers often lack access to training in geriatrics and to geriatricians for consultation. To bridge this gap, four Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Centers, which are centers of excellence across the nation for geriatric care within the Veteran health system, have developed a program utilizing telemedicine to connect with rural providers to improve access to specialized geriatric interdisciplinary care. In addition, case-based education via teleconferencing using cases brought by rural providers was developed to complement the clinical implementation efforts. In this article, the authors review these educational approaches in the implementation of the clinical interventions and discuss the potential advantages in improving implementation efforts.

This chapter provides a historical perspective of the evolution of policy, funding, training, and resources to address the age-appropriate needs of older persons and the healthcare workforce that serves them in planning, response, and recovery from disasters. The collaborative efforts are described of six U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources Services Administration (USDHHS/HRSA) funded Geriatrics Education Centers that have made a significant impact on training for health professionals, the continuum of geriatric care services, and the ability to leverage financial support. Academic courses, faculty development, clinical and practice training, and continuing education programs are described. Focused programs on mental health, acute care settings, community-based long-term care and populations with functional, access, and unique needs are included so they can be replicated in other settings to enhance academic and community disaster planning and response. Strategies are recommended to support and advance the national goals of preparedness for older adults and their families from mainstream communities as well as from culturally and functionally diverse communities. Lessons learned, unmet needs, and evolving trends are included that have significant implications for future education and resource development for geriatric emergency preparedness and response.

The progression of evaluation approaches shifting from counting training activities to measuring outcomes from evidence-based training is documented for six U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration-funded Geriatric Education Centers that have collaborated on geriatric emergency preparedness and response (GEPR) training and evaluation initiatives. The Kirkpatrick’s chain of impact evaluation model is used as the framework for describing modalities and outcomes at the reaction, learning, behavior, and results levels. The chapter provides examples of GEPR Collaborative training programs and resources that provide insight into evaluation approaches and their impact on the healthcare workforce, changes in geriatric/gerontological services, the ability to leverage support, development, and use of new resources and the provision of care for older persons. Outcomes are described that lead to lessons learned and recommendations for enhancing evaluation efforts. The importance of legislative and policy directives are explored relative to the creation of a national standard for culturally proficient preparedness and response to “all-hazards” disaster and governmental and community resilience as 17 million people with multiple chronic conditions (MCC) steadily grow with the aging baby boomer generation. In addition, the next generations and populations with culture-based survival and safety needs are aging as well. A case is made for using multimodal evaluation strategies to create standardized tools to measure GEPR training outcomes to meet Healthy People 2020 objectives and to strengthen preparedness and response skills of healthcare provider networks and populations of older adults from diverse communities across the nation.

The Geriatric Scholar Program (GSP) is a Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) workforce development program to infuse geriatrics competencies in primary care. This multimodal educational program is targeted to primary care providers and ancillary staff who work in VA's rural clinics. GSP consists of didactic education and training in geriatrics and gerontology and in quality improvement (QI) and support to implement a local QI project; in addition, elective options include webinars, audio conferences, clinical practica, and mentoring. The program is effective in improving core competencies in geriatrics and in improving clinical care for older Veterans who receive health care in rural clinics.

This article examines the history of accreditation in psychology and applies the lessons learned to the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education's (AGHE) consideration of forming an organization to accredit programs in gerontology. The authors identify the challenges met and unmet, the successes and failures, and the key issues that emerged from psychology's experience with accreditation. Psychology has been accrediting programs in clinical psychology for more than 65 years, and the process has been marked by several false steps, considerable tension, and some controversy and at times significant dissatisfaction. The accreditation process that has emerged today, which includes counseling, school psychology, graduate practica, and postdoctoral practica sites, is generally well received yet some tensions exist. The authors apply the lessons learned from psychology's evolution to AGHE. The experience of psychology suggests a need for clear minimum standards and consistency across programs in training goals, if not in curricula and practica. However, setting standards for specific curricula and practice content may result in a similar contentiousness that has plagued psychology. Ultimately, the authors conclude that the benefits of accreditation of programs outweigh the deficits.

Gerontology and geriatrics are interdisciplinary professions. The quality of the care and services provided by the members of these professions depends upon the strength and integrity of the partnerships between the professionals working together. This article summarizes the partnerships created by the Department of Veterans Affairs Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Centers. This myriad of partners has formed the basis of successful programming to improve clinical care, to expand research projects, and most specifically, to produce educational opportunities in geriatrics and gerontology that have the potential to improve the quality of life for older Veterans.

The elderly frequently suffer long lengths of hospital stay (LOS). These long stays are often associated with long social care stays which occur when patients no longer require acute care and are awaiting post-discharge services. In this study, actual acute care LOS and social care LOS were studied specifically in hospitalized frail elderly. Our data demonstrate that frail elderly receiving only acute care do not suffer markedly prolonged total LOS (TLOS). However, in hospitalized frail elderly patients who experience acute care and social care stays, social care LOS accounts for over half of all hospital days. When patients were grouped and studied according to the type of post-discharge services being sought by the health care team, significant differences in acute LOS and social care LOS were noted. Subgroups of patients were also identified among the various groups which differed significantly in their LOS parameters. Patients who required more than one discharge plan during the course of hospitalization experienced the longest hospital stays of all groups, and spent almost 70% of these days receiving non-acute social care. In a study of the relationship between the intensity of social work intervention and social care LOS in the frail elderly, a statistically significant relationship was noted between the timing and frequency of social work intervention and the actual length of social care stays. Early and frequent social work interventions were associated with significantly shorter social care LOS. We conclude that the study of TLOS should include acute LOS and social care LOS to obtain a reliable measure of the course and cost of hospital care for the frail elderly. The study of social care subgroups may facilitate future investigations to define the social care problems which contribute most to TLOS, and the patient populations which should be most heavily targeted for early and intensive social work intervention.

Upon completion of the chapter, the student will be able to: 1. Explain key psychosocial domains to consider in an assessment of an older patient. 2. Describe the standardized assessment tools available in conducting a comprehensive assessment, with a focus on psychological, emotional, environmental, spiritual, and social domains. 3. Articulate the role of a social worker in maintaining and enhancing the quality of life of older people. 4. Describe the tools to ensure culturally competent assessment and care. 5. Articulate the prevalent problem of elder mistreatment and neglect. 6. Describe issues related to caregiving and caregiving burden. 7. Delineate several ways that the clinician can work with older patients to maximize independence, productivity and quality of life.

As the World War II and baby boomer generations age, social work practice in the area of palliative and end-of-life care is becoming increasingly complex. Social workers are involved in palliative care no matter what setting or what population they find themselves in, because death and dying are universal experiences. This chapter addresses the settings of care for social work practice in palliative care, the role of the social worker in delivering palliative care, the social worker's role in assessment and service provision, psychosocial and financial resources, cultural and spiritual issues, and bereavement support services.

As part of the Geriatric Interdisciplinary Team Training (GITT) Program funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation, the authors of this article worked to create an instrument, the Trainee Test of Team Dynamics, to assess health care trainees' understanding of team dynamics. The Trainee Test of Team Dynamics is a five-question written test designed to capture GITT trainees' knowledge of team process and skills in addressing conflict that is administered after watching a five-minute videotape of a simulated interdisciplinary health care team meeting. The test was created to measure health professions students' abilities to recognize effective geriatric health care teams, to respond to effective and ineffective team behaviors, and to determine whether or not the team meeting achieved its purpose: to meet the patient's needs for an interdisciplinary care plan. Scripts and test items developed and tested by practitioners in social work, medicine, public health, nursing and others assured a product that compensated for differences in educational level and occupation, yet captured accurate and appropriate responses. The results reported here include an analysis of 740 trainees' baseline responses from the multi-site educational programs to determine the construct validity of the new measure.

The John A. Hartford Foundation, in collaboration with the Gerontological Society of America, has developed new models to create geriatric faculty capacity within social work. The Faculty Scholars Program is building faculty leadership in academic geriatric social work through a strategic approach that includes long-distance national and institution- based mentoring. While mentoring models have proven to be effective means of career development, this is relatively new in academic social work and little is known about the impact of long-distance mentoring in association with sponsorship from a mentor at the scholar's home institution. This paper describes the mentoring model and its conceptual underpinnings. Evaluation data from an ongoing evaluation is presented in discussion of the strengths and limitations of the mentoring model.

Considerable empirical research substantiates the importance of social networks on health and well-being in later life. A study of ethnic minority elders living in two low income public housing buildings in East Harlem was undertaken to gain an understanding of the relationship between their health status and social networks. Findings demonstrate that elders with supportive housing had better psychological outcomes and used significantly more informal supports when in need. However, elders with serious health problems had poorer outcomes regardless of their level of social support. This study highlights the potential of supportive living environments to foster social integration and to optimise formal and informal networks.