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Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Descriptions

93.969:  Grants for Geriatric Education Centers

Objectives:  Grants are given to support the development of collaborative arrangements involving several health professions schools and health care facilities. Geriatric Education Centers facilitate training of health professional faculty, students, and practitioners in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease, disability, and other health problems of the aged. Health professionals include allopathic physicians, osteopathic physicians, dentist, optometrists, podiatrists, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, physicians assistants, chiropractors, clinical psychologists, health administrators, and other allied health professionals. Projects supported under these grants must offer training involving four or more health professions, one of which must be allopathic or osteopathic medicine, and must address one or more of the following statutory purposes: (a) improve the training of health professionals in geriatrics, including geriatric residencies, traineeships, or fellowships; (b) develop and disseminate curricula relating to the treatment of the health problems of elderly individuals; (c) support training and retraining of faculty to provide instruction in geriatrics; (d) support continuing education of health professionals who provide geriatric care; and (e) provide students with clinical training in geriatrics in nursing homes, chronic and acute disease hospitals, ambulatory care centers, and senior centers.

PROGRAM AND AWARD	FINANCIAL AND INFORMATION CONTACTS
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS	FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO.
APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS	INFORMATION CONTACTS
RELATED PROGRAMS	ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS
PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS	POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS

93.969 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

Applicant Eligibility:  Grants may be made to accredited health professions schools as defined by Section 799B(1) of the Public Health Service Act, or programs for the training of physicians assistants as defined by Section 799B(3), or schools of allied health as defined in Section 799B(4), or schools of nursing as defined by Section 801(2).

Beneficiary Eligibility:  Professional schools, faculty of institutions of higher education, and health practitioners.

Credentials/Documentation:  For existing schools: accredited by a recognized body or bodies approved for such purposes by the Secretary of Education. For new schools: a letter of reasonable assurance of accreditation from the Secretary of Education. Costs will be determined by DHHS Regulations, 45 CFR 74, Subpart Q.

93.969 APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS:

Preapplication Coordination:  Not applicable. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.

Application Procedure:  The new URL (Uniform Resource Locator) for the Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) Grants Web page is www.hrsa.gov/bhpr/grants.html. This year BHPr has decided to use Adobe Acrobat to publish the grants documents on the Web page. Adobe Acrobat Reader can be obtained without charge from the Adobe Web page (www.adobe.com) Detailed instructions on how to download and use the Adobe Acrobat Reader may be found on the BHPr Grants Web page under "Notes on this WWW Page."

Award Procedure:  Notification is made in writing by a Notice of Grant Award issued from the Headquarters Office.

Deadlines:  Application deadlines are available on the World Wide Web at address: www.hrsa.gov/bhpr/grants.html.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time:  From 3 to 4 months from receipt of application.

Appeals:  Appeals are available only to grantees.

Renewals:  Progress Reports must be submitted each year beginning with the second year of support. Competitive continuations may be submitted during the terminal year of support.

Criteria for Selecting Proposals:  Applications are reviewed according to the following criteria: (1) The potential effectiveness of the proposed project in carrying out the purposes of Grants for Geriatric Education Centers: (2) the extent of responsiveness to the purposes and project requirements; (3) the administrative and management capability of the applicant to carry out the proposed project in a cost effective manner; (4) the qualifications of the proposed staff and faculty; and (5) the potential of the project to continue on a self-sustaining basis.

Examples of Funded Projects:  Four new projects are minority focused: the Stanford Geriatric Education Center (GEC) offers course work in ethnogeriatrics; the New Mexico GEC collaborates with the National Indian Council on Aging; and the Meharry GEC conducts programming on-campus and in rural areas in support of improving health care for older Black Americans. Three GECs have interdisciplinary training in geriatrics as a major focus of their grants: Wisconsin GEC has training experiences in interdisciplinary rehabilitation; the Colorado GEC provides interdisciplinary training on Alzheimer's Disease and other geriatric topics; and the Northwest GEC program focuses upon an interdisciplinary training program of Health Promotion for Undeserved Older Adults. The Minnesota Area GEC focuses upon managed care and quality improvement. They have produced a training module on managed care and a workshop curricula for quality improvement. South Texas GEC focuses on the two illnesses that occur in the African-American and Hispanic communities: diabetes and hypertension. All continuing grants are involved in mental health projects, especially Alzheimer's Disease. Several have begun using distance learning methods to train their enrollees and participants. Notable among them are the GECs in Texas, the Texas Consortium and the South Texas GEC. The GEC/PA at the University of Pittsburgh, in addition to focusing on ethnogeriatrics and elder abuse, addresses older driver safety and issues for care givers of Alzheimer's patients.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance:  From $75,131 to $317,362; $201,714.

93.969 RELATED PROGRAMS:

93.969 PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

93.969 FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO:

Federal Agency:  HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Type of Assistance:  Project Grants.

Obligations:  (Grants) FY 99 $7,972,980; FY 00 est $7,949,375; and FY 01 est $0.

Budget Account Number:  75-0350-0-1-550.

Authorization:  Public Health Service Act, Title VII, Section 753(a), as amended by the Health Professions Education Partnerships Act of 1998, Public Law 105-392.

Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature:  Pertinent information may be obtained by contacting the Bureau of Health Professions Grants Office, Grants Management Branch, Room 8C-26, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD. Phone (301) 443-6880.

93.969 INFO CONTACTS:

Regional or Local Office:  None.

Headquarters Office:  Program Contacts: Diane Hanner, Coordinator, Geriatric Education Centers Program, Division of Associated, Dental and Public Health Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, Public Health Service, Parklawn Bldg., Room 8-103, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857. Phone: (301) 443-6763. Grants Management Contact: Wilma Johnson, Grants Management Officer, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, Parklawn Bldg., Room 8C26, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857. Phone: (301) 443-6880. Use same numbers for FTS.

(See Appendix IV for more contact info.)

93.969 ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:

Formula and Matching Requirements:  This program has no statutory formula or matching requirements.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance:  Project periods are for three years.

Uses and Use Restrictions:  Grant funds may not be used for: trainee costs; the construction of buildings (including initial equipment, additions, and extensions); the acquisition of land; or any costs prohibited in 45 CFR 74, Subpart Q. Grant funds may not be spent for sectarian instruction or for religious purposes.

93.969 POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Reports:  A progress report must be submitted annually. A financial status report must be submitted within 90 days after the end of each budget period. A final progress report and final financial status report must be submitted within 90 days after the end of the project period.

Audits:  In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised, June 24, 1997), "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations," nonfederal entities that receive financial assistance of $300,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that expend less than $300,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133. In addition, grants and cooperative agreements are subject to inspection and audits by DHHS and other Federal government officials.

Records:  Financial records must be kept available for 3 years after submission of expenditure reports, and 3 years after final disposition of non-expendable property. If questions remain, such as those raised by an audit, records must be retained until the matter is resolved.