UNE students and professor publish in international journal on nursing home immersion project
Ianna Hondros-McCarthy, Phillip Barber, students at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, and Marilyn R. Gugliucci, Ph.D., professor, had their article titled, “Learning by Living: Empathy Learned through an Extended Medical Education Immersion Project,” published in the International Journal of Clinical Medicine. The Learning by Living Nursing Home Immersion Project accelerates students learning about older adult care, and in the case of student physicians Hondros-McCarthey and Barber, the importance of empathy.
These second year medical students were “admitted” into two different nursing homes for 11 days each. The students were wheelchair reliant from their assigned diagnoses of dominant-side paralysis secondary to stroke and aspiration pneumonia, requiring standard procedures of care experienced by older adult residents with similar conditions. Their experiences imparted knowledge about aging, dignity, and the importance of making meaningful connections in order to thrive. These insights provided a gateway to establish a model of patient-centered care that is comprehensive and empathic for the older adult population.