The Rural Interdisciplinary Team Training (RITT) Program is sponsored by the VA Geriatric Scholars Program. It is a manualized, on-site training that aims to strengthen inter-professional teams at rural VA Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC). Objectives are to increase geriatrics team-based expertise; provide primary care providers education and training in common geriatric conditions; and incorporate team-based geriatrics knowledge and skills into CBOC providers’ practice. The training meets a demand for enhanced geriatric knowledge and skills in the rural primary care setting. Furthermore, the benefits of inter-professional teamwork in a primary care setting are numerous: improved patient care, decreased duplication of services, potential reduction of costs, more efficient patient transitions between sites of care, reduction in medication errors, promotion of creative solutions to complex problems, enhanced involvement of caregivers, and the distribution of workload in overburdened practices. Accredited by the VA Employee Education Service (EES) for 6.5 hours or 3.75 hours, are co-facilitated by a clinician and an educator, combines didactic and interactive learning styles. Participants are provided with educational and clinical resources such as pocket cards, articles, interactive booklets, and DVDs.
For more information about RITT, or to schedule a workshop contact eugenia.dorisca@va.gov or visit the website www.Gerischolars.org/RITT.
Program Director:
Judith L. Howe, Phd
judith.howe@va.gov