Wise Drinking for Aging Patients Online Spaced Education for Primary Care Practitioners

Summary This Phase SBIR study aims to provide primary care practitioners general internists family physicians geriatricians physician assistants nurses nurse practitioners with a prototype of Wise Drinking for Aging Patients an online educational program that is designed to aid clinicians in improving the quality of care they provide to older drinkers Most primary healthcare practitioners acknowledge that potentially risky alcohol use in older adults is a growing public health problem but many do not have the knowledge or skills to identify or treat their older drinking patients who are hazardous at risk for problems or harmful drinkers experiencing problems Older adults can incur alcohol related risks and problems even at relatively low consumption levels because of metabolic and central nervous system changes Also alcohol interacts adversely with many older adultsandapos declining health increasing medication use and diminishing functional status Wise Drinking for Aging Patients will be flexible so that consumers can match their learning style and learning platform smartphones tablets or computers The educational model will consist of an adaptation of Spaced Education SE an evidence based approach to provider education that presents material entirely in a test question format With SE new information appears when the correct answer is explained and elaborated upon Typically a course contains to questions spread across one to two months The spacing depends on the learnerandapos s answers an incorrectly answered question might repeat one week later and a correctly answered one after three weeks After two consecutive correct answers a question is retired The questions in this project will be linked to topics and take home messages that together constitute knowledge and skills associated with high quality of care for older patients who drink The messages will be derived from extensive literature and subject matter expert reviews and the formal consensus of an RAND UCLA Expert Panel of generalist practitioners and will be tested for feasibility with potential users The project is consistent with NIAAAandapos s interests in the development and evaluation of educational materials designed to intervene with the elderly around specific age related risks for alcohol problems and the development and evaluation of innovative materials for integration into existing programs such as primary care The product has commercial potential because with the aging of the population primary care providers will inevitably care for an increasing number of older drinking patients and this program will be directly targeted to their practice needs and they are reimbursed for screening and counseling The product is innovative in its incorporation of diverse user perspectives its emphasis on improving quality of care for an underserved but growing population and its foundation on evidence based behavioral strategies Relevance to Public Health Wise Drinking for Aging Patients will provide primary care clinicians with the skills they need to offer high quality of care to their older drinking patients Many older adults drink above recommended levels and as the U S continues to age primary care practices can anticipate seeing an increasing number of patients who are at risk for alcohol related problems Many providers have not been trained to identify and treat older drinkers whose risks may occur at relatively low consumption levels because of age related physiological and central nervous system changes and because of alcoholandapos s potential adverse interaction with declining health and functional status and increasing mediation use