Catholic Health East : Best Practices
Catholic Health East
Best Practice Narrative

RHC: Sisters of Providence Health System

Providence Hospital
1233 Main Street
Holyoke, MA 01040

 

 Category: Care of the Poor

Contact: Brenda K. McCormick / Pamela A. Lamlein

Title: Vice President, Resource Development / Director, Community Programs

E-mail: bmccormick1@sphs.com/ plamlein@compuserve.com
Fax: 413.539.2559  / 413.747.0182
Phone: 413.493.2780 413.827.4289

Description of the Best Practice:

Using a multi-dimensional, intergenerational approach, Across Ages matches elder mentors with high-risk, sixth-grade boys and girls. The unique skills and experiences of the older adult (55+) mentors enable them to provided needed support and encouragement to help your resist alcohol, tobacco, and other drug involvement and address other challenges typical of the pre-adolescent period. Additionally, Across Ages offers students the opportunity to participate in community service activities, which benefit frail elders while increasing the students’ awareness of the aging process and issues facing older adults.

Implementation & Time Frame

Across Ages, a replication of a program developed by Temple University's Center for Intergenerational Learning for high-risk urban youth in Philadelphia, was implemented in three middle schools in Springfield, MA, by Brightside for Families and Children. Over a three-year period, 270 sixth graders participated in the project, which had four central components: 1) Use of Elder Mentors, 2) Community Service Activities, 3) Classroom-Based Life Skills Curriculum, and 4) Workshops to Parents and Families. The project was community wide in scope with extensive internal and external collaboration. External collaborators included the Springfield Public Schools, the University of Massachusetts Survey Research Department, who performed the formal evaluation, and the Greater Springfield Senior Services, who assisted in recruiting elder mentors. Internally, Across Ages staff worked with staff of the Sisters of Providence are Centers, which includes six nursing homes, assisted living, and rehabilitation facilities in the Springfield area, to plan students visits as well as other community facilities.

Outcome

The integrity of the project is demonstrated by its rigorous evaluation plan. The design, developed by Dr. Robert H. Aseltine, Jr., from Boston University, consisted of a comparison between a Curriculum Group, which received the Positive Youth Development Curriculum and participated in the community service activity, and a Mentoring Group, which received the mentoring component as well as the curriculum and community service components. Both groups were compared to a Control Group, which received no intervention. Results were compared in four areas:

  1. Personal Resources: Self-control and self-efficacy were significantly higher for the Mentoring Group than for either the Curriculum or Control Group.
  2. School Functioning: In this area, the Mentoring Group performed significantly better in school bonding, but its grade point averages were lower than for the Control Group, a surprising and disturbing finding. Further analysis showed, however, that GPA improved with more frequent and longer mentor contacts, indicating that "dosage," or the amount of mentoring, was a key factor in students’ success.
  3. Behavioral Problems: Problem behavior for the Mentoring Group was lower than for the Curriculum or Control Group.
  4. Fostering Positive Attitudes Toward Elderly: While knowledge of the elderly did not show significant differences among the groups, attitudes toward the elderly were better for both the Curriculum and the Mentoring Groups.

Overall, the Mentoring Group outcomes were better than the Curriculum and Control Groups, suggesting that the intervention does work in building protective factors for at-risk middle school students. Funding to continue the mentoring effort in collaboration with Springfield Schools has been requested from CSAP. The proposed new project will compare several mentoring approaches, which will vary in terms of intensity and quality of interaction. It is hoped that this project will identify the specific elements of the mentoring relationship which are most effective in achieving desired outcomes, following which results would be disseminated nationally.

Best Practice Narrative is limited to a one page summary.
Supporting data is limited to one page.