Implementing Multidisciplinary Wellness Programs in Subsidized Housing: University–Community Partnerships

University–community partnerships (UCPs) are an important avenue for providing wellness services to seniors in subsidized housing, but there is sparse literature on this topic. The goals of this article are to (a) describe our UCP, which was unique in involving ethnically diverse older adults, and (b) discuss findings of an integrative literature review of UCP examples in subsidized housing. Results showed that UCPs typically received funding for program development and implementation; used multidisciplinary approaches to needs assessment and programming; and reported positive outcomes such as improvement in self-rated health or participant endorsements. This article provides insights and guidance for future UCPs that are much needed in subsidized housing.     

Aging services or services to the aging?focus of a university-community curriculum development partnership to increase awareness of aging issues in social work practice

This paper describes a partnership between social work faculty and community practitioners to develop gerontological curricula to increase awareness of aging issues among social work students. We describe steps taken to identify learning needs of students by examining gaps in the core curriculum and surveying community-based agencies that serve older persons who face a variety of problems. We also describe a unique field education assignment designed to increase awareness of how well community service agencies meet the needs of older clients and provide quantitative and qualitative data on students' overall learning experiences. The project highlights the role of community partners in developing relevant curricula for future social work practitioners.     

Causal attributions of dementia among Korean American immigrants

To better understand conceptualizations of dementia, this study explored causal attributions of dementia among 209 Korean Americans, using a self-administered questionnaire in Korean. Findings show that Korean Americans endorsed various causal attributions. Factor analysis yielded 3 dimensions of their attributions including psychological, physical/environmental, and cognitive/social. Bivariate analyses showed that younger age and higher education were related to more physical/environmental attributions, and younger age was related to more cognitive/social attributions. The study provides an understanding of causal attributions of dementia that practitioners need to understand to provide culturally competent practice and highlights a need to customize public education messages by specific ethnic groups.     

Causal Attributions of Dementia Among Korean American Immigrants

To better understand conceptualizations of dementia, this study explored causal attributions of dementia among 209 Korean Americans, using a self-administered questionnaire in Korean. Findings show that Korean Americans endorsed various causal attributions. Factor analysis yielded 3 dimensions of their attributions including psychological, physical/environmental, and cognitive/social. Bivariate analyses showed that younger age and higher education were related to more physical/environmental attributions, and younger age was related to more cognitive/social attributions. The study provides an understanding of causal attributions of dementia that practitioners need to understand to provide culturally competent practice and highlights a need to customize public education messages by specific ethnic groups.