USI GWEP partners with IUPUI for ECHO Initiative

The University of Southern Indiana Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) is collaborating with Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health to improve and enhance health outcomes for older adults. The IUPUI Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) Center launched the USI GWEP ECHO on March 14 with the first of six didactic presentations on timely topics and best practices in geriatric care. 

THE USI GWEP ECHO is in partnership with Teepa Snow’s Positive Approach to Care®. Snow, an occupational therapist from North Carolina, developed the PAC training model to support a skills-based approach to dementia education. She shares new information in a manner that anyone connected to dementia can understand brain change and ways to offer support.  

“During these ECHO sessions, Teepa and her team will use real case-based studies to educate and support clinical decision-making,” says Dr. Katie Ehlman, Director of the USI GWEP and Professor of Gerontology. “Partnering with IUPUI for this education series enables us to support care partners and people living with dementia locally and beyond.” 

The USI GWEP ECHO sessions will meet online from 2-3 p.m. CT via Zoom. Recordings will be available in the ECHO resource library for those who register for the program. 

Session Schedule: 

• April 14 – The Art of Person-Centered Care: Appreciating the Importance of Permission 
• April 21 – End of Life Dementia with Pain, Movement and Discomfort 
• April 25 – Engaging in Living: Responding to the Rhythms of People Living with Dementia 
• May 2 – Challenging Care Situations: Intimate Care with Dementia 
• May 5 – Trauma-Informed Care for Patients and Staff 

Register for the GWEP ECHO. 

IUPUI is offering free continuing medical education credits through this program. AMA Category 1 credits are available through the Indiana University School of Medicine: Division of Continuing Medical Education. For questions, email Caroline Kryder-Reid, Program Management Specialist.  

About Project ECHO 

Project ECHO is a movement to connect local primary care teams with interdisciplinary specialist teams to spread knowledge and amplify local capacity to provide best practice care for complex chronic health conditions. 

The IUPUI ECHO Center at the IU Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health currently hosts eight medical ECHOs and four unique applications of the ECHO model that are population specific, including the USI GWEP ECHO, which is targeting direct service providers in skilled nursing facilities, anyone who refers to nursing facilities, home care and hospice workers and health facility administrators. 

About the USI GWEP 

In 2019, USI received a five-year grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to implement the GWEP. The learning opportunities with Snow are one aspect of the GWEP, which is also focused on creating dementia friendly communities in southwestern Indiana and integrating geriatrics into primary care. Learn more at USI.edu/gwep. 

This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $3,691,706 million with zero percentage financed with nongovernmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.