Interprofessional student group provides health screenings for older adults at Bessey Crossing

The front rooms of Bessey Crossing, 一个负担得起的, 55-plus living apartment community in Scarborough, were buzzing with activity on Friday, 4月7日. 太阳照在头顶上, but instead of taking advantage of the warm spring day, students from four of the University of New Engl和’s 卫生专业项目 used the time to meet with residents of Bessey Crossing to provide them with a range of health 和 wellness screenings.

全球网络赌博平台的学生 药店 和 物理治疗 programs performed medication reviews, fall 和 balance assessments, 血压, heart rate evaluations for the residents, 而 社会工作 和 职业治疗 students engaged in conversations about home safety, aging in place, life transitions, self-care.

“The student teams worked flawlessly together to create an open 和 inviting space for residents to learn more about their health 和 ways to enhance their quality of life,” remarked Shelley Cohen Konrad, Ph.D.，主任 UNE’s Center for Excellence in Collaborative Education. “They also gained a great deal of knowledge about each other’s expertise 和 what it means to be a smart team.”

The event was also a chance for the students to learn from the residents, as Housna Umutoni (Pharm.D.我发现.

“The residents of Bessey Crossing trusted us 和 allowed us to know more about their medications 和 lifestyle. I learned a lot not only about 药店 和 interprofessional collaboration, but also from older clients’ experiences 和 their perspectives of life,” Umutoni remarked.

斯科特·米利肯，埃德.D., HDFP, Bessey Crossing’s owner representative, was pleased with the outcome of the interprofessional 的服务培训 试点项目.

“We could not be happier with the work that UNE is doing with our residents in affordable senior housing,他说. “The work directly benefits our residents, provides field experience for UNE students 和 staff, engages all of us in authentic, inter-generational learning. We are most impressed with the professionalism, 组织执行, compassion of the UNE Team. UNE在这里总是受欢迎的.”

The residents, too, appreciated time with the students, noting their professionalism 和 care. 安泰勒, Bessey Crossing Occupancy manager, observed that residents found the UNE screening to be “informative, 有帮助的, applicable to their day-to-day activities 和 wellbeing.”

阿什利·波特文(M.S.W., ’24), said the experience was valuable to have as a student, working with peers from other 卫生专业项目.

"Many of the residents that I did intake with even commented that they enjoyed having the opportunity to learn 和 discuss their 物理, 精神, 社会, 以及情绪健康. 整体, I feel that it was a great experience for me as a student 和 that the residents at Bessy Crossing also enjoyed 和 benefitted from their experience,波特文说。.

The Bessey Crossing project is a broad collaboration between UNE’s Centers for Excellence in Collaborative Education 和 老龄化与健康 (CEAH); the 物理 和 职业治疗, 药店, 社会工作 programs; 和 Bessey Crossing staff. “The success of the screening day for both residents 和 students incentivizes us to continue it as an ongoing service to Bessey Crossing,科恩·康拉德说.