The Innovating, Maximizing and Advancing Geriatric Education (imAGE) program provides resources and products for comprehensive geriatrics education for health care and social service providers at all levels.
The imAGE program draws on the expertise of IU School of Medicine geriatrics faculty and staff, developed and honed since 1997.
The imAGE program trains current and future health care providers for older adults by:
Collaboratively developing and administering cutting-edge strategies to educate learners across disciplines with geriatric expertise.
Addressing the needs of entities seeking to train current and future generations of health care professionals to optimally meet the needs of the aging United States population.
Disseminating evidence-based clinical models of care for complex older adults.
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The Aging Brain Care (ABC) model focuses on brain health management, supporting adults living with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. The model-based program uses a team approach including the patient, their caregiver, and ABC-trained healthcare provider and ABC-trained care navigator, and their regular doctor. The care navigator regularly monitors the patient's thinking, mood, behavior, and functional status, and the caregiver's stress level. The team follows evidence-based guidelines to provide assistance to the patient and caregiver based on monitoring results, working alongside the patient's doctor to deliver extra support and resources.
imAGE uses the ECHO learning model to deliver education in a virtual, interdisciplinary setting. The ECHO learning model is based in an “all teach, all learn”, case-based philosophy in which participants discuss and make recommendations, guided by a specialist hub team1. The imAGE hub team is led by a geriatrician and includes other clinicians including a geriatric nurse practitioner, a pharmacist, dementia outreach specialist, older adult social services leadership, and a wellness specialist.
The imAGE team specializes in developing comprehensive geriatrics curricula tailored to meet the evolving needs of healthcare professionals. We design evidence-based educational programs that integrate best practices in geriatric care, focusing on clinical skills, interdisciplinary collaboration, and patient-centered approaches. Examples:
imAGE was contracted by IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital, to develop, implement, evaluate a geriatrics curriculum for all first-year residents at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital. Curricular objectives were created, and clinical application of the curriculum was determined to be optimally implemented IU Health North. At that location, short didactics as well as bedside teaching both in the inpatient and outpatient settings are featured. Evaluation from residents and the residency program director will be used to provide quality improvement of the one-month rotation.
The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) Bureau of Aging, imAGE provides all Indiana APS units with a statewide standardized core curriculum. The curriculum is based on 23 competencies from the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) as well as from feedback and identified needs collected from all Indiana APS units. imAGE staff provide oversight of the Canvas learning management system (LMS) used to deliver course content along with ongoing development and delivery of professional training continuing education.
Partnering with the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) Division of Aging, imAGE provides all current Indiana APS units with a statewide standardized core curriculum. The curriculum is based on 23 competencies from the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) as well as from feedback and identified needs collected from all Indiana APS units.
