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Mentor program teams seniors, students by Cindy Abole Public Relations First-year medical students have an extraordinary opportunity to create valuable, long-term learning relationships as part of their medical school curriculum. The experience will challenge knowledge across several generations and can influence the way practitioners relate to seniors and the normal aging process.      First-year medical students Ashleigh Owen, left, and Kelly Matmati get acquainted with senior mentor Pat Marks during the Jan. 6 luncheon.  On Jan. 6, about 143 students and 70 senior mentors gathered at The Citadel Alumni House to meet for the first time and commit themselves to a new collaborative program. They hope to build bridges that can ultimately influence the way physicians practice medicine.   Funded by a three-year Duke Endowment grant, MUSC’s Senior Mentor Program is an innovative program that draws upon the expertise of curriculum coordinators, medical course directors, geriatric researchers and other related specialists from the College of Medicine (COM) and MUSC’s Center on Aging and other community resources.       The program features teams of two medical students and a senior mentor spanning over the next four years or throughout their medical education. For this first year, the team will complete planned assignments, discuss healthy aging and social issues affecting their mentor’s health status.   The concept is not the first time both programs have worked together. They collaborated earlier on a similar pilot project bringing second-year medical students, senior mentors and medical school faculty together in a semester-long, interactive project.   Today’s program mirrors a similar one already established for students at the University of South Carolina’s School of Medicine. The success of both programs has the potential for developing a new cadre of experienced physicians who will be mindful to America’s growing generation of geriatric patients.   “Our aim is to establish a program that is well-suited to meet MUSC’s needs,” said David Bachman, M.D., professor of neurology and the grant’s principal investigator. “We’re hoping this partnership will prepare future practitioners and enhance geriatric training and aging research.”   The program is built upon existing educational components in the COM’s doctoring curriculum and expansion with other geriatric-related components that feature more hands-on learning, activities and other experiences. Elements of the project’s research outcomes will have the potential to change and enhance patient care.    “I see this as a program that will better organize and enhance our current teaching in geriatrics by expanding it in new directions that affect teaching and student learning,” said Amy Blue, Ph.D., associate dean for curriculum and evaluation, College of Medicine. “What’s key is how we will map out the program over the next four years.”   Mentors were chosen based upon their interest, ethnicity, education and socioeconomic backgrounds. The key was recruiting and involving active, healthy adults who represent the Lowcountry’s senior population, according to Deronda Corbin, education program coordinator, Center on Aging.   Corbin told participants that during the next four years, each of them will share the role of teaching medical students. Mentors will be able to provide students  with lifelong experiences not found by reading books or in the classroom.   Organizers tapped senior participants at Charleston’s Canterbury House retirement apartments, Ansonborough House and the Charleston Senior Center. As former professionals and non-professionals, they are active volunteers within their church or community.      “I’m impressed with what we’re able to do with this partnership between the College of Medicine, Center on Aging and our many senior resources in the community,” said Lotta Granholm, Ph.D., DDS, Center on Aging director. “Our senior mentors represent a real cross section of the Lowcountry’s population. Participants come from such diverse backgrounds.  South Carolina's senior population is composed of 30 percent minorities, which is extremely important for our medical students to understand because it can affect the delivery of good patient care.”   The project comes at a time where increased knowledge and collaboration in geriatrics education and gerontology research is much needed, especially among the health professions. Collaborating between campuswide programs also meets the institution’s continued focus on healthy aging, one of four initiatives defined in MUSC’s Strategic Plan.   With today’s seniors living longer and South Carolina emerging as a state of changing demographics due to the growth of retirees and seniors, innovative projects such as this provide  experiences and mutual exchange that is greatly needed.         “It is my hope that every medical student and senior mentor will establish a relationship that will culture an understanding between the generations and somehow influence a change in the way students see, interact and practice health care with elderly patients,” Granholm said. “I’m grateful to everyone who’s worked hard to make this project a reality. We’ve worked towards this goal for many years. I’m especially grateful to MUSC's faculty for welcoming this change.” Partnership provides hands-on learning When first-year medical students Ashleigh Owen and Kelly Matmati arrived at The Citadel Alumni house in early January for lunch and an initial meeting with their assigned senior mentor, the trio got a pleasant surprise.      Seated at their table was 73-year-old Pat Marks from Mount Pleasant, a nicely dressed, bright-eyed woman who was just as interested in meeting her new friends as breaking the ice. A retired educator, Marks is active  in keeping up with today’s health issues. She manages a neuropathy patient support group in Charleston.   “Sure, that first encounter can be a little intimidating,” said Marks. “But once we got through our introductions and started talking about each other and completing the Aging I.Q. assignment, everything was all right. I’m looking forward to getting to know my students.”      A Morrisville, N.C. native, Owen entered medical school already passionate for geriatrics and gerontology. “This is an awesome chance for us first-years to develop our interview, interpersonal and later our physical assessment skills. I’m hoping this experience will help me confirm my interests in this medical specialty.”   For the next few months, the team will meet, discuss and complete written assignments. Friday, Jan. 27, 2006 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. 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