In developing educational products for the millennial learner, some academic institutions have created collections of educational products that deliver content in a standardized style using a single format, an approach we’ve entitled a Product Series. There is a distinct advantage to a product series in that the learner becomes familiar and facile with the delivery style and how to effectively use the product. As learners become familiar with the format of content delivery, they are more likely to seek out other products of similar quality in the collection. Learners are also more likely to utilize these products because they know exactly what to expect from modules in the series.

Below, we describe six POGOe product series from five different institutions.

ELDER CARE: A RESOURCE FOR PROVIDERS
The Provider Fact Sheets are a practical, evidence-based synthesis of key geriatric syndromes and common diseases in older adults from the University of Arizona. The information is condensed, with an emphasis on lists and tables. The Provider Fact Sheets often have diagnostic criteria, screening assessments and treatment gems highlighted to reinforce sound geriatric practice in an approachable format. The material contained in this one page sheet would translate into a 15 minute didactic session and provide an efficient method for recalling information taught.

GERIASIMS
GeriaSims were developed by the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. The nine modules contain instructive and realistic, interactive cases of common key geriatric syndromes including delirium, dementia, urinary incontinence, failure to thrive, polypharmacy, functional assessment, palliative care, and ischemic stroke. The virtual patient chart serves as the resource for answers to specific clinical questions. It includes parts of the physical examination, test results and consultations. Important aspects of assessment and management are presented in an accurate, evidence-based, understandable fashion.

GERIAFLIX
Developed by the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, GeriaFLIX is a series of 73 digitized lectures of clinical geriatrics topics focused on the management of older persons. Each topic is presented as a streaming digital video with synchronized slides and lasts approximately 1 hour. The series is organized into broad categories: General Principles of Aging, Approach to the Elderly Patient, Geriatric Syndromes, Geriatric Psychiatry, Common Geriatric Diseases, Disorders, and Health Concerns and each episode is presented by leading experts in these geriatrics topics.

CURRICULUM FOR THE HOSPITALIZED AGING MEDICAL PATIENT (CHAMP)
CHAMP is a series of educational products from The University of Chicago. The material consists of 15 topics in the care of hospitalized older adult patients and is organized around four themes: frailty, hazards of hospitalization, transitions of care, palliative care and end of life issues. Each topic is set up as a module complete with a slide presentation, bedside teaching trigger, and pocket teaching card, updated references; web links as well as a session evaluation form.

CONTINUING MOBILE EDUCATION FOR EMS PROVIDERS
This product from the University of Rochester is a video-based educational program delivered through various video podcasts (vodcasts) which are grouped into 9 blocks or topic areas: Communication, Polypharmacy, End of Life Issues, Assessment, Psychosocial Issues, Procedures, Safety and the Older Adult, Respiratory Issues in the Older Adult and Geriatric Trauma. Each block contains 4 vodcasts (approximately 10 minutes each), which includes interviews with physicians, EMTs, paramedics, and patients, thus providing a full picture of care for older adult patients in the prehospital setting.

TEXAS TECH MEDCAST
Texas Tech University HSC in Lubbock, TX with their series "Medcast Reynolds Geriatric Series" offers audio podcasts of various key geriatric topics such as functional assessment, health literacy, polypharmacy and nursing home visits. The podcasts showcase experts in the field primarily from Texas Tech and occasional guests from the area. The discussions are fast paced with the lengths of the podcasts ranging from 12 minutes (heel pain among older adults) to 46 minutes (Alzheimer's disease and other dementias in 2 parts).

You can browse the list of series on POGOe at any time by clicking on the “Product Series” option on the left side menu panel. New products from the current series as well as new product series from additional institutions will be added as soon as they are available so check back regularly!

While growing older can be the beginning of a new and exciting phase of life, it can also bring on new health challenges. Navigating through the complex health care system can compound these problems. Any assistance that an older adult can get to understand the current health care system can empower older adults to be proactive and engaged in their care, not get overwhelmed by the system, and leave them the time to continue as active members of society. This is the primary reason that POGOe has selected the Elder Patient Navigator Program by Drs. Gary Blanchard and Sarah McGee from The University of Massachusetts Medical School as its Editors Choice for April.

This educational program assigns medical students in their pre-clinical years to older adults who specifically request assistance managing an office visit. With this Navigator Program, the benefits are two-fold. Patients benefit from having a student Navigator with them during their doctor’s appointments who can listen to the discussion, instructions and follow-up plans. When the clinical visit is over, the medical student meets with the patient to help clarify the patient’s understanding of the encounter and any questions or confusion that may have arisen. The older adult patient is provided with a reliable, written account of the visit, including test results or any changes in medication administration, in language they can understand. Participating pre-clinical medical students are the other beneficiaries. Through the program, the medical students witness first-hand - early in their medical education - a health care provider-older adult patient interaction. They are able to observe a practicing physician during an actual patient encounter and note the different issues that an older adult may face in the clinical setting. The participating students apply their basic skills and knowledge to address real-life needs of older adults who are from the community their institution serves. By helping the older adults navigate through real problems and challenges, medical students are able to apply what they have been learning in medical school to a real-world context. Hopefully, early exposure to the challenges older adults face, such as understanding what transpires during a clinical visit, will make them more sensitive to this issue before they transition to their clinical years. It therefore provides medical students a compelling reason to learn, which should increase their motivation, understanding and retention of material and skills they learn which are related to the needs of older adult patients.

This educational product includes instructions on program implementation, facilitators’ guides, sample brochures of the program, ready-to-use patient information worksheets as well as program evaluation forms. The worksheet encourages the medical students to pay attention to every detail during the clinical encounter. The product also includes useful tips on implementing the program such as piloting the Navigator Program at a single outpatient clinic site especially receptive to the program goals; finding a Student Navigator Leader, and recruiting older adult patients to the program. Soon to be added is a Student Navigator Resource Handbook, which will include Navigator orientation materials with a syllabus of relevant articles. This handbook will be a useful resource for students participating in the Program.

If you would like to know more about the program click the link to the product here in POGOe and get the materials for free! The Elder Patient Navigator Program was also presented at the Geriatric Education Materials and Methods Swap at The American Geriatrics Society Annual Meeting in Orlando in May 2010.

The Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) was developed by Dr. Sharon Inouye in 1988 to improve the identification and recognition of delirium. Its purpose is to enable non-psychiatrically trained clinicians to identify delirium quickly (under 5 minutes) and accurately (with a sensitivity of 91-97% and specificity of 85-94%). Because CAM can be administered and scored in a few minutes after a patient interview during clinical care, it represents a minimal burden on hospital staff.According to the CAM Training Manual and Coding Guide [Inouye SK. 2003; New Haven: Yale University School of Medicine], this method has become the most widely used instrument for detection of delirium. A note to our readers, the CAM was Dr. Inouye’s geriatric fellowship project!

In order to help learners to administer, score and interpret the CAM, the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and its affiliated VA Medical Center, Mount Sinai School of Medicine and the Harvard School of Medicine, developed the Interactive Confusion Assessment Method (iCAM).It has been adapted with permission from: Inouye SK et. al, Clarifying Confusion: The Confusion Assessment Method: A New Method for Detecting Delirium. Ann Intern Med. 1990; 113:941-8.

The iCAM module begins with a brief introduction to delirium and its symptoms. It then outlines the 4 Steps of the CAM: 1. Acute Change and Fluctuating Course; 2. Inattention; 3. Disorganized Thinking; and 4. Altered Level of Consciousness. During the explanation of each Step the learner is presented with a brief video scenario of a patient’s progression through the 4 Steps. Before moving on, the learner is asked to answer a multiple-choice question, and is provided with an instant feedback regarding the accuracy of their answer.

Upon completion of the module, learners have a chance to apply the knowledge acquired to a practice case in which they are presented with a new patient. After looking though the patient’s virtual chart (where pages actually flip as if you were turning them), a video describing his symptoms, and written notes from a nurse, a doctor, and a duty aid, the learner is asked to score the CAM via an interactive form and to make a decision as to whether the patient is delirious.

This self-paced tutorial has a user-friendly interface which allows the learner to fast forward, skip, or rewind through the module. Furthermore, it includes a printable version of the CAM worksheet which can be brought to patient consultations.

There certainly should be no confusion on how to use the CAM to diagnose delirium after a learner has completed using the iCAM. Available now on POGOe!

2nd Place WINNER: Product of the Year at the 2009 Reynolds Grantees Meeting in Las Vegas, NV

For those familiar with medical and graduate medical education, interactive games have been used as instructional methods for content delivery to make learning fun in a familiar and non-threatening format. The format for Jeopardy, the popular TV game show, has been applied in various forms by educators in different fields and to different levels of learners. The popularity of game-based learning is seen in the American Geriatrics Society’s use of Geriatric Jeopardy games, during its national meetings at pre-conference and conference plenary sessions and is a testament to the popularity of this format for instructional delivery.

Educators who are fans of interactive party games and trivia games should consider adding GER-ANIUM to their instructional repertoire. Inspired by the popular board game Cranium, this product is a creative mix of word games, sculpting, drawing, charades and more. Dr. Jonathan Flacker modified the game to teach geriatric concepts to his Internal Medicine and Family Medicine housestaff at Emory University School of Medicine. GER-ANIUM is played with 4 - 6 residents around a table, and takes approximately 90 minutes. Covered topics include pressure ulcer management, cognitive and mood screening, and falls assessment.

To play the game the following items will be needed: 1). Table and chairs; 2). Poker chips in 5 colors; 3). Play-Doh or similar type of reusable modeling clay in 4 colors for the sculpting assignments; 4). Blank paper for drawing and writing; 5). Copies of the MMSE, Geriatric Depression Scale, Confusion Assessment Method and; 6). GER-ANIUM Cards made by printing the accompanying presentation slides as a handout, with 4-6 slides per page, and cutting them up.

Play begins by having a resident select any card from the pre-shuffled GER-ANIUM card stack. The card chosen by the resident may be one in the following 4 categories: 1). YOU ARTIST YOU – a drawing or sculpting assignment; 2). CRAZY SKILLS – a task requiring some core knowledge or formula; 3). YOU ARE THE STAR – a physical demonstration of an answer; and 4). ALL PLAY – a task requiringcompletion of an assignment by the whole group. For each answer given, the faculty moderator assigns a point value of 1-5 and gives the resident (or residents in the case of an ALL PLAY) a poker chip of the corresponding value. The moderator should explain their decision by reviewing what was good about the answer given, and what could use improvement. Play continues for as long as time permits. At the end the residents add up their chips and a winner is declared. Consider rewarding the winner with a small prize!

The author provides detailed guidelines in the presentation slide notes on how to score a player’s answer for each card. The notes often contain citations for optional reading that could supplement the instructor’s (or trainee’s) knowledge of the subject.

An obvious limitation is preparation time. The game requires pieces that should be obtained by the instructor ahead of time, such as sculpting clay and scoring pieces. The cards must also be prepared ahead of time. The author suggests having reference material on hand in order to score certain cards. Depending on the time constraints, instructor will need to either obtain those materials or remove the corresponding cards from the game.

Content delivery through a game format begs the question: How do you ensure that learning occurred? It certainly does not mean that content presented through a game is less educational than the same content presented through a more traditional instructional method, say, a presentation lecture. However, there should be a proper method of evaluation that could measure the level of learning that happened. One suggestion would be for the moderator or the game master to interrupt the game to ask about tasks that have already been done. This would ensure that information has been understood and retained by the residents.

Overall, this is a fun and simple game to implement, and is a welcomed addition to the POGOe library. Play GER-ANIUM with your residents, and tell us what you think!

Almost one in five geriatric patients suffers an adverse event during the transition from hospital to home. Almost 1/3 of those are preventable! The Fast Forward Rounds (FFR) aims to improve these numbers by providing a curriculum that emphasizes for medical students the importance of transition of care. 

Introduced in July 2006 to teach key aspects of the discharge planning process for older adults with chronic illness, the program has been presented successfully for several years at the Weill Cornell Medical Center. The main objective of FFR is to encourage students to involve patients in the development of a comprehensive care plan, and to communicate that plan to the professionals who will provide post-hospital care. Geared for medical students in their clinical years, the course emphasizes the importance of transitions of care, teaches comprehensive discharge planning, provides an overview of services available, promotes interdisciplinary collaboration, and encourages students to develop comprehensive care plans. As the name of the course implies, learners are asked to fast forward to events that may affect their patients as they transition through the medical system, as well as to learn to anticipate challenges that may arise and to problem-solve ways to address them. 

This product provides the materials needed to implement a 3-hour course. The materials include a complete Facilitators Guide with detailed instructions for implementation of the course, reading materials for self-paced study, a DVD with two fictional patient-doctor interactions to illustrate the importance of the topic, a PowerPoint presentation for content delivery via a lecture, and a board game created using PowerPoint. 

The DVD is entertaining. It begins with a humorous introduction modeled after the scrolling text Star Wars intro, complete with dramatic music. The scenarios do a good job of highlighting an obviously bad, yet realistic, doctor-patient interaction in an emergency room setting, which provides an opportune start for a discussion. The Monopoly-style board game looks like a fun way to encourage the students to better comprehend the subject matter. The rules are very simple, and it looks like a relatively short game (not a 6-hour Monopoly game), which is perfect for a classroom setting. The PowerPoint portion of the game provides a visually interesting way to present the questions, instead of simply providing a stack of cards. The materials are sure to retain students’ interest and ensure that all types of learners can benefit, whether they learn better from a visual presentation, a lecture, or from the self-directed study of reading materials.

For better implementation, the educators who created the program suggest using medical residents as adjunct faculty. While designed to engage medical students as active learners, this process allows residents to enhance their teaching skills and reinforce their knowledge of chronic illness care. This resource is available right now on POGOe at no cost. For more information about the FFR course at Cornell University, go to www.cornellaging.com/medical/.

The demographic imperative challenging our health care system and society makes geriatrics one of the most important disciplines for the 21st century. To address this imperative, all physicians need to have some expertise in gerontology and geriatrics. Yet, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) 2007 Medical School Graduate Questionnaire (MSGQ) showed that only 48% of graduating medical students perceive adequate coverage of geriatric material in their curricula. In a timely Op-Ed piece for the The New York Times entitled The Patients Doctors Don't Know, Dr. Rosanne M. Leipzig writes that medical students have "no requirement for any clinical training in geriatrics, even though patients 65 and older account for 32% of the average doctor's workload in surgical care, and 43% in medical specialty care, and they make up 48% of all inpatient hospital days." In addition, "Medicare...contributes more than $8 billion a year to support residency training, yet it does not require that part of that training focus on the unique healthcare needs of older adults." To help resolve this problem, Dr. Leipzig suggests that "medical resident training programs that receive Medicare money should be required to demonstrate that their trainees are competent in geriatric care."

The Patients Doctors Don’t Know

Published: July 1, 2009

AS they do every July, hospitals across America are welcoming new interns, fresh from medical school graduation. Given how much these trainees have yet to learn, common wisdom holds that it’s not a good time of year to get sick. This may be particularly true for older patients, because American medical schools require no training in geriatric medicine.

Often even experienced doctors are unaware that 80-year-olds are not the same as 50-year-olds. Pneumonia in a 50-year-old causes fever, cough and difficulty breathing; an 80-year-old with the same illness may have none of these symptoms, but just seem “not herself” — confused and unsteady, unable to get out of bed.

Click here to view the full New York Times article: The Patients Doctors Don’t Know

With the recent publication of the Institute of Medicine’s Retooling for an Aging America and the recent publication of the Minimum Geriatric Competencies for Medical Students in the journal, Academic Medicine, it has become apparent that the education of tomorrow’s physicians must adapt to the needs of an aging nation. Achieving these competencies in medical school is a great first step; however, the care of older adults is complex and reaches beyond the basic concepts of general medicine. To reach beyond this base level of medical knowledge, competencies are being developed in specialty and sub-specialty disciplines as well. Educators in the field of emergency medicine are currently at work in defining the minimum geriatric competencies for their trainees in the care of older adults in the ED setting. This month’s Editors’ Choice selection, Geriatric Emergency Medicine Modules by Fredric Hustey, M.D. and Robert Palmer, M.D. from the Cleveland Clinic is aimed at improving knowledge of the basic principles of geriatric emergency care with an emphasis on quality of care issues.

The Geriatric Emergency Medicine Modules are web-based, self-guided, and interactive, covering five common geriatric topics encountered in the ED setting: Altered Mental Status, Geriatric Abdominal Pain, Geriatric Trauma and Elder Abuse, Inappropriate Prescribing and Adverse Drug Events, and Pain Management and Procedural Sedation.  These modules utilize the Center for Online Medical Education and Training (COMET) database and are targeted toward medical students in their clinical years, residents, fellows, and practicing physicians.  The authors designed these five modules to highlight some of the caveats in caring for older adults in an emergency care setting with a focus on quality of care. It covers the medical students' minimum geriatric competency domains of Medication Management, Cognitive and Behavioral Disorders, Self-Care Capacity, and Atypical Presentation of Disease.

The interface is clean and refined with a straightforward presentation of the material. Each module has 10 multiple choice pre-test questions that require the correct answers to be chosen before advancing. Feedback is provided for each selected response and is based on current literature review and expert consensus. While the test is not scored, the user is challenged to choose the correct answers, as they cannot proceed with the rest of the module without doing so. The modules are organized under tabs, allowing the user to track their progress, easily view the unfinished modules, and even peruse a ‘transcript’ after they finish the modules. The transcript provides the user an easy access to materials covered in the topic and allows concept reinforcement and further self-reading.  The case-based question format is extensive and very well designed, and this product will help the learner identify knowledge gaps and receive feedback on each answer.  This is not for use by beginning learners, as there is a need for a preexisting knowledge base to put these concepts into context. To access these modules, first email comet@ccf.org and ask for access to the Geriatric Emergency Medicine Modules. You will receive a login ID and a password along with a link to the site and specific instructions on how to access them.

Overall, Geriatric Emergency Medicine Modules is a great tool for acquainting a learner with the intricacies of caring for an older adult in the emergency room setting. It is an example of the positive steps that need to be taken in order to advance the level and quality of care for older adults in every aspect of medicine. Test it out today - the link to the site is available through POGOe.org!

Christine Montross, a resident in psychiatry at Brown University wrote in an Op-Ed piece in The New York Times that "many medical schools are beginning to argue that imaging technology has improved to the point where it should be used in place of the dissection of human cadavers as the central tool of instruction for young doctors-to-be. However, she believes that this is a mistake. She says that no matter how detailed and versatile they become, computer images can never provide the indelible lessons that novice doctors learn from real bodies." As medical students progress through their years of higher education, the introduction of patients can come abruptly. Whether they recognize it or not, the cadaver they meet in their Anatomy Class is truly their very first 'patient as teacher' whom they will get to know in great detail. To highlight this fact, Lisa Granville, M.D., from the Florida State University College of Medicine has developed an exercise where the cadaver is approached as a student's first patient. The "Anatomy Class: Introduction to the First Patient" guides instructors through the process of treating a venerable anatomy teaching tool as a patient. The purpose of this exercise is to apply clinical observation skills to the appearance of the cadaver, and to associate these clinical findings with the "anticipated impact on daily life."

Dr. Granville's product facilitates integration of patient exposure into the basic science curriculum of today's medical school experience. Treating a cadaver as a patient brings a clinical nature to dissection, treats a cadaver as a human being rather than a collection of bones and organs to be memorized, teaches students to have a critical eye in examinations without using technological aids or diagnostic procedures, and introduces the effects of the body's composition on critical aspects of an aging human's life and functioning.

This concise, two-page document describes the 35-40 minute exercise (divided between two sessions) by providing a time structure and bulleted descriptions of the student activities. With assistance from the gross anatomy lab teaching assistants and personnel, the students record their observations and hypotheses with the intention of providing an "Anatomy 'First Patient' Report" during a class following the anatomy segment (such as the Doctoring or Histology courses). These students' observations, recorded and displayed in PowerPoint format, are presented to classmates, clinical faculty, and basic science faculty. Based on the knowledge of the age, gender, and occupation of the cadaver, combined with their observation of the surface anatomy, thorax, back and spinal cord, upper extremity, abdomen, head, neck, pelvis, and lower extremity, student presentation groups are able to provide a reasonable hypothesis of the suspected cause of death and the probable functional ability before death.

Dr. Montross concludes in the piece that “the dissection of cadavers also gives young doctors an appreciation for the wonders of the human body in a way that no virtual image can match. It is awe-inspiring to hold a human heart in one’s hands, to appreciate its fragility, intricacy and strength. But most important, the cadavers on their stainless steel tables are symbols of altruism to medical students: They are reminders of how great a gift one can give to a stranger in the hopes of healing. Isn’t that the most fundamental lesson we want our doctors to carry to the bedsides of their patients?” This innovative approach to the basic science curriculum is a simple, refreshing, and exciting opportunity for medical students to begin honing their observation skills. This also acts as a dry run at assessing their first geriatric patient without the added element of social interaction. We hope that this provides yet another method of approaching anatomy in the classroom, as it expands clinical experience with older adults and provides an added dimension to the dissection of a cadaver. Download it today on www.POGOe.org!

One of the most palpable statements of maintaining independence, and a preference for a majority of older adults, is to remain in one’s own home environment. However, the risks associated with this are not necessarily considered, and are not always completely obvious. Environmental Geriatrics, developed by several health care educators at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, identifies the major consequences of an aging human body as they relate to the home environment with a 3-D animated course. Furthermore, this tool highlights the risks of a common living environment, ways to assess and address these issues, and methods to safeguard a home to properly address the risks of this common situation to best benefit older adults. Environmental Geriatrics uses a 3-dimensional model and animated computer graphics to emphasize the effects of aging on independent living. An elaborate model of a common suburban home displays the numerous hazards and solutions for elderly living at home. Numerous animations and images describe the aging processes which relate to independent living (or home dwelling). Topics ranging from the biomechanical changes in gait and balance abilities, to structural changes in bones, to vision impediments, to neurological degeneration, to sarcopenia, among many others, are addressed and illustrated with computer imagery throughout the program. As the winner of the “Product ofthe Year” at the 2006 Annual Reynolds Grantee Meeting, Environmental Geriatrics has already received many (well deserved)accolades. Consisting of 3 modules, the first, “Aging, Environements, and Excess Disability,” guides its user through the challenges and obstacles which face a domestic older adult because of decreased function, while also explaining the reasons behind these hurdles. The second module, “Assessment and Referrals” contains many external links to critical information such as ADL’s, IADL’s, and Cognition. Furthermore, this module leads a user to explore the many options available to caregivers and medical professionals alike. The final module, “Environmental Geriatric Interventions,” exposes the Medicare and Medicaid options for aides, home modifications/improvements, and equipment. This module also highlights, in great clarity and detail thanks to the 3-D and animated aspects of the course, the specific changes that will create a safe and comfortable home environment for older adults living in their own home. Overall, Environmental Geriatrics is packed with information, albeit simple and user friendly, it provides an interactive and fun educational experience. It can be found right here on POGOe, and I highly suggest Environmental Geriatrics for all disciplines and learning audiences.

WINNER: Product of the Year at the 2008 Reynolds Grantees Meeting in St. Louis, MO

Wikipedia defines podcasts as "a series of audio or video digital-media files which is distributed over the Internet by syndicated download, through Web feeds, to portable media players and personal computers." With portable media players such as iPods being quite ubiquitous nowadays, it is not surprising that geriatric medical educators have utilized podcasts as an alternative way for students to learn content outside the usual time of instruction as well as venue.

One of the first institutions to utilize this Web 2.0 tool is Texas Tech University HSC in Lubbock, TX with their series "Medcast Reynolds Geriatric Series." Produced by Betsy Jones EdD, Associate Professor of Family and Community Medicine, the series offers audio podcasts of various key geriatric topics such as functional assessment, health literacy, polypharmacy and nursing home visits. The podcasts showcase experts in the field primarily from Texas Tech and occasional guests from the area. The discussions are fast paced with the lengths of the podcasts ranging from 12 minutes (heel pain among older adults) to 46 minutes (Alzheimer's disease and other dementias in 2 parts). Requirements include a portable media player, a set of headphones and the ability to multi-task since most podcast users choose this instructional format due to the listener's ability to do the latter. Albeit quite passive and not for the visual learner, the student, resident or the practicing physician who utilizes this Texas Tech podcast series can receive geriatric content and have the ability to pause, rewind and repeat content while in the gym, walking, riding on the train or in a car - lifestyle befitting the generation that is always on the go and the generation that is trying to keep up!

Most of the podcasts are quite structured such as the podcast on "The Mini-Mental State Exam" with Drs. Tommie Farrell and Stephen Fath, which is done on location in Louisville, KY during the Annual Meeting of the Southern Group Educational Affairs (together with background noise from the meeting), and others having a discussion outline like the “Geriatric Functional Assessment" podcast with Drs. Lynn Bickley and Fiona Prabhu. Discussants' voices in the podcasts are clear and quite easy to follow. The podcast host's facilitation is also key to a successful podcast especially in topics that could have been enhanced with visuals. Since we are dealing with a purely aural delivery of content (they refer to the students as "our listeners"), hosts need to encourage the speakers to describe in greater detail the topics they are discussing.

The entire series is well thought out, offers a wide array of topics for all levels of learners (there are presently 14 podcasts in the series), and really offers an alternative content delivery that is fresh and current. The Texas Tech site also offers one page fact sheets that contains each episode's learning objectives, speakers and reference materials. True to the ubiquity of this format, the Reynolds Geriatric Medcast series is also housed in iTunesU. For more information go to http://www.ttuhsc.edu/fammed.

Educators often think of effective educational products as those that have the most bells and whistles to hold their learners’ interest. This POGOe product from the Stein Gerontological Institute proves the opposite, yet it is among the most effective products in the POGOe repository.

It is simple yet engaging, straightforward yet effective. Following the basic tenets of adult learning theory – that it is experiential and active; provides a safe climate to learn; and allows learners to receive immediate feedback – this activity involves an interactive and cooperative card-sorting exercise that provides an opportunity for participants in a small group to test their knowledge of depression, dementia and delirium (3D’s).

The 3D’s are a group of diagnoses that have elements of their presentation, diagnosis, and/or treatment which can be closely related or controversial, making them perfect for this exercise. In this small group activity, each learner is given a set of cards with symptoms, diagnostic tools, or other terms related to one of the 3D’s, and asked to place the cards in one of the syndrome categories. Just for fun, a “?” or “not sure” category is also added. As a group, learners discuss the rationale for their selections.

Discussion is the core of the educational process for this activity, promoting peer teaching and self-directed learning. This POGOe product provides the educator with a detailed faculty guide, card templates, evaluation forms, and in-house evaluation results, as well as with a list of references.

Winner of the Product Of The Year title at the 2007 Reynolds Grantee 6th Annual Meeting.