National Elder Abuse MDT Training and Technical Assistance Center

The purpose of this award, funded under Purpose Area #2 of the OVC FY 2019 Transforming America's Response to Elder Abuse: Coordinated, Enhanced Multi-Disciplinary Teams (MDTs) for Older Victims of Abuse and Financial Exploitation Program, is to develop a National Elder Abuse Multidisciplinary Team Training and Technical Assistance Center that will provide training and technical assistance (TTA) for OVC-funded E-MDTs, to focus on identifying and promoting best practices and innovative strategies and to foster effective collaborative responses through the use of E-MDTs for cases of elder abuse and/or financial exploitation.

The grantee, Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University, Weill Cornell Medicine/New York City Elder Abuse Center, with four core organization partners (Lifespan of Greater Rochester, Red Wind Consulting, USC's Leonard Davis School of Gerontology and the Keck School of Medicine's National Center on Elder Abuse, and the National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life), will establish the National Elder Abuse MDT Training and Technical Assistance Center ("the Center") to provide case consultations, training and technical assistance to OVC-funded tribal and non-tribal teams throughout the country. Elder abuse cases are complex, often requiring multiple systems to respond to them. Developing a multidisciplinary team (MDT) is recognized as a potentially powerful solution that communities can initiate in response to elder abuse. The teams reduce service duplication and effectively respond to victims' myriad needs, improving the care provided when organizations and systems act in isolation. The Center will provide innovative strategies and materials for each team's daily operations; technical assistance for team support and case consultations; training for professionals serving teams; guidance on integrating specialty services into the work of the teams; strategies to ensure responsiveness to each community; guidance on trauma-informed and trauma-responsive approaches; and advice on sustainability and long-range funding strategies. Through collaboration with Red Wind Consulting, the Center will place special emphasis on culturally competent implementation of E-MDTs in Native American communities. The Center will also assess the impact of the training and TA assistance provided and share with professionals across the country.

CA/NCF