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That Extra Faculty Member You Have Wanted
(From UC Irvine faculty)

Our Program in Geriatrics discovered the value of POGOe during the submission process for the Reynolds grant. Reviewing the various curricula available on POGOe influenced our approach when setting up a new Internal Medicine R1 geriatric rotation. We wanted to increase didactic structure within the rotation, and sought a method whereby interns could learn about a topic and then reinforce their learning clinically.

To implement this method, the didactic topics are chosen by the geriatric medical education director and coordinator. The materials to cover these topics are then found through a basic keyword search on POGOe. We choose a variety of taped lectures, powerpoint presentations, and videotaped case presentations, periodically screening for new POGOe submissions.

During a two week intern block, we schedule a self-learning POGOe activity for an hour at the beginning of most days. Residents are provided a computer station with a headset, and asked to log in to POGOe to complete their assignments. Afterwards, they join the geriatric faculty in the clinic. The faculty, who are aware of the day’s didactics, ask residents to focus on the patients who illustrate that day’s learning objectives. In order to ensure that the curricular goals set for the day are met, our faculty follows the educational objectives outlined within the product description on POGOe.

We have received a positive feedback from both the faculty and the residents. Our method provides a teaching structure for faculty, and an opportunity for residents to learn new knowledge and then immediately apply that knowledge. We have not instituted pre and post tests to evaluate the learning, but this will be considered. This is a new rotation and samples of unsolicited comments are below:

“Very helpful rotation, I feel much more confident in my ability to deal with this patient population and will continue to work to improve during my residency.”

“Excellent learning experience! I learned a lot about geriatrics, especially about evaluating gait/balance problems, evaluating dementia, and recognizing the different types of dementias.”

A sample of assignments is listed below (IM interns are not in clinic on Fridays):

Week 1:

• Day 1: For Young Physicians-An Aging Mandate, Guest lecturer Dr. John Burton at the University of Arizona Item #20020; and DVD - Dr. Reuben from UCLA interviews a patient over time and the resident then focuses on functional assessment.
• Day 2: Geriatric Interview Presentation Item #20225
• Day 3: A pharmacist assigns each resident a set of medical conditions with corresponding medications which they are to take for one week. (The ‘medications’ are colored tic tacs in medications bottles with labeled instructions.); and Review of the Neurological exam- We make this available through our online library site.
• Day 4: Harvard-Reynolds Geriatric Virtual Patient Modules: Dementia, Elder Abuse, Driving Item #20281

Week 2:

• Day 1: Delirium in the Older Patient Item #20482
• Day 2: Common Causes of Dizziness in the Older Patient Item #18454
• Day 3: Polypharmacy Item #18570 ; and a follow up visit with clinical pharmacist.
• Day 4: Exercise Program for the Prevention and Treatment of Falls Item #18880; and The Timed Get Up and Go Test Item # 20202