Last June we came to you with a request to help us raise $30,000 so that we could provide grants over the next three years to offset the total cost of Interprofessional Post-Acute Care Education (IPACE) in our Health Center and Assisted Living. Thanks to you, we were able to cut our first check last fiscal year and will disburse the entire $41,000 you gave before the end of 2025.
The IPACE program has a trifecta of beneficiaries. It positively impacts our community by inviting medical students, residents, and fellows from the UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Heath to round in our Health Center giving them an important perspective on geriatric and long term care. Our residents benefit from an informed team working across disciplines to care for them. And our staff gain important insight from monthly educational sessions from our Medical Director, Dr. Ann Braus, as well as weekly huddles she holds with floor nurses, our social worker and pharmacist, Nurse Practitioners, and Medical Assistants.
"The monthly education sessions and weekly huddles that Dr. Braus hosts for our team members is not the norm in our industry," explains Kristi Vater, the Health Center Administrator at Capitol Lakes. "The IPACE program - also unique to our facility - provides an opportunity for her to work directly with our team to relay best practices, answer questions, and discuss each resident's individual care needs. This program and these tutorial sessions have had a big impact in improving patient care. For instance, since the program started we have seen a reduction in the number of people we need to send to the hospital."
Dr. Braus' monthly sessions for staff include topics like urinary tract infections in the skilled nursing facility, orthostatic hypotension, falls, sepsis, eye emergencies, physiology of aging, and congestive heart failure. We are grateful to our donors who ensure that this program can continue to benefit our community, our staff, and ultimately our Health Center and Assisted Living residents.
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