IGSW to Provide Training to Emergency Psychiatric Service Providers
The Institute for Geriatric Social Work (IGSW), part of the Boston University School of Social Work (SSW), has partnered with the Massachusetts Behavioral Health Partnership (MBHP) to provide online training in aging to MBHP’s psychiatric service providers. As the “baby boom” generation ages, health and social service professionals are on the cusp of an unprecedented demographic boom. One of the major impacts will be on the provision of mental health services to older adults.
The need for workforce trained in elder care reaches across all states and most behavioral health settings. MBHP has contracted with IGSW to train 150 of its psychiatric Emergency Service Providers (ESPs) located in 26 Psychiatric Emergency Teams across Massachusetts. ESPs are contracted by MBHP and the Department of Mental Health to provide 24-hour service for adults in need of immediate psychiatric intervention. Individuals who need emergency care receive assistance with a psychiatric emergency through crisis support, information and referrals.
The ESPs will receive 21 hours of online training from IGSW to obtain a certificate in aging. IGSW‘s online training courses are internet based, effective and efficient for training a geographically dispersed group of learners. The courses are designed to increase knowledge and skills for practitioners in areas such as health, mental health, and substance abuse issues in the aging population. IGSW has developed an online course catalogue of over 40 courses and offers an IGSW online Certificate in Aging. Since 2002, IGSW has provided innovative training in aging to over 36,000 practitioners in every state of the country and in 13 countries worldwide.
Despite advances in mental illness treatment, older adults are still not receiving much needed services – largely due to a shortage of practitioners in the mental health workforce. Dr. Scott Miyake Geron, IGSW Director, explains, “For too long, serious treatable mental health and substance abuse problems have gone untreated, either because they have failed to be identified, or because they have been misdiagnosed. The lack of adequately trained mental health professionals contributes to the needless suffering, ineffective or insufficient treatment, and unnecessary costs to individuals, their families, and society.”
By combining resources, the collaboration between IGSW and MBHP strives to train practitioners as well as enhance mental health programs so they will be able to skillfully serve older adults now and well into the future. Enrollment has only just begun and supervisors at MBHP have already given positive feedback about the program and seen examples of how IGSW training can assist staff in their work with older adults.
Established in 2002 with a grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies, the Institute for Geriatric Social Work has become a leader in the effort to build a stronger workforce for an aging society through educational innovation and assessment. Over 36,000 IGSW-trained practitioners are currently working in the field and IGSW educational programs and training are now available in all 50 states and overseas. IGSW brings together expertise in instructional technology, educational design, and evaluation to improve the quality of practice of social workers and other social service practitioners who work with older adults and their families.