Tower Health Learning Hub: Advancing Healthcare Excellence Through Comprehensive Education
Tower Health is committed to pursuing academic excellence, a cornerstone of its mission embraced by leadership, faculty, staff, and learners. Academic Affairs serves as a central resource, ensuring the highest quality and excellence in education and research programs, along with accreditation compliance for all educational endeavors within the Tower Health system. This article explores the various facets of the Tower Health Learning Hub and its commitment to providing comprehensive educational opportunities for healthcare professionals.
Academic Affairs: The Foundation of Educational Excellence
Academic Affairs plays a pivotal role in overseeing Undergraduate Medical Education, Graduate Medical Education (GME), Continuing Medical Education (CME), the Clinical Trials Office, and Library Services across the Tower Health network. It also provides joint oversight, alongside Reading Hospital, for the Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences. Furthermore, Academic Affairs acts as an academic liaison between Tower Health and Drexel University College of Medicine, Tower Health’s primary medical education partner. This includes supporting faculty appointments and promotions at Drexel University College of Medicine for Tower Health faculty and facilitating clinical rotation experiences at Tower Health hospitals for Drexel medical students.
Graduate Medical Education (GME) at Tower Health
The Graduate Medical Education team within Academic Affairs is responsible for administering and supporting a diverse array of residency and fellowship programs throughout Tower Health. It also acts as a liaison between Tower Health and all accreditation organizations involved in Graduate Medical Education. The GME mission of Tower Health is to create and sustain a clinical learning environment that provides physicians-in-training with the education and experiences that will help them become skilled and compassionate healthcare practitioners. Tower Health offers unique training experiences in which residents and fellows have opportunities to be exposed to diverse patient populations across urban, suburban, and rural settings; to learn from dedicated, talented, and caring academic faculty; to thrive in a supportive and nurturing clinical learning environment; and to contribute to the growth and the future of Tower Health. The GME Academy and Faculty Development area teaches the principles of adult learning, as well as the administrative and regulatory requirements of Graduate Medical Education.
Continuing Medical Education (CME) for Healthcare Professionals
The Continuing Medical Education Office is dedicated to serving healthcare professionals across all Tower Health entities and their surrounding communities. It offers a wide range of continuing educational activities, including live and virtual events, as well as an extensive selection of internet-based enduring materials. The office plays a crucial role in supporting residency and fellowship programs in the development of grand rounds, faculty development initiatives, and other academic activities. Activities inform, update, and educate the target audience, utilizing independent presentations, departmental grand rounds, case conferences, specialty-focused seminars, symposiums, and departmental and/or multi-discipline-focused morbidity and mortality conferences.
Clinical Trials Office: Advancing Medical Research
The Clinical Trials Office supports faculty in conducting a wide variety of clinical trials across Tower Health and actively participates in the Johns Hopkins Clinical Research Network.
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Library Services: A Comprehensive Resource Hub
The Library Services Department provides information resources and services customized to the needs of healthcare professionals, residents/fellows, employees, and students across all Tower Health entities.
Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences: A Legacy of Excellence
Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences has a long-standing tradition of educating healthcare professionals since 1889. The school is recognized for outstanding academics and clinical experiences.
Locations and Target Audience
Tower Health offers a wide range of on-site continuing medical education programs at Reading Hospital and St. The principal audience is the medical staff of Tower Health, its affiliates, and its encompassing service areas and communities.
External Courses and Training Programs
While Tower Health focuses on internal education, it is also important to consider external resources that can supplement learning. For example, courses from Colorado's Behavioral Health Administration offer specialized training in areas such as:
Relationship and Sexual Health Support for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD): This course equips participants with the knowledge and tools to provide relationship and sexual health support to individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD). By the end of the course, participants will be able to identify challenges faced by people with IDD in developing relationships and managing sexual health.
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Understanding Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD): This course is designed specifically for both behavioral and medical providers to enhance their understanding of FASD and their unique impacts. Learners will explore the neurodevelopmental basis of FASD, their behavioral and physical health impacts, and their frequent co-occurrence with mental and physical health conditions. As many as 1 in 20 individuals in Colorado has a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). Often referred to as a "hidden disability," FASD is frequently misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or undiagnosed, leading to inappropriate treatments and interventions that can exacerbate medical, behavioral, and academic challenges.
Supporting Transgender and Gender-Diverse (TGD) Youth: This course is designed to help behavioral health providers in Colorado better understand and support transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) youth, who face significantly higher rates of mental health challenges due to discrimination and minority stress. The course covers key concepts such as Gender Dysphoria (DSM-5-TR) vs.
Addressing the Needs of Priority Populations in the Criminal Justice System: Individuals who navigate the criminal justice system encounter a range of hardships and challenges. However, some individuals face more challenges than others due to other factors. For this training, these priority populations include LGBTQ+ individuals, aging individuals, neurodivergent individuals, individuals with traumatic brain injuries (TBI), and women.
Supporting Older Adult Caregivers: This course is designed to equip behavioral health professionals with the essential knowledge and skills necessary to effectively support older adults who take on caregiving roles. You will gain insights into the unique challenges faced by older adult caregivers, including mental, emotional, and physical health issues that may arise from their caregiving responsibilities. In addition to exploring the specific needs of this demographic, the course emphasizes evidence-based interventions and strategies aimed at enhancing caregiver well-being. This includes practical tools for stress management, coping mechanisms, and resources for building a supportive network.
Addressing Homelessness Among Veterans: The goal of this course is to offer a deep dive into the foundational knowledge, evidence-based practices, and the intricate intersections and complexities inherent in addressing homelessness among Veterans. Through the lens of trauma-informed care and strength-based practices, participants will explore the biopsychosocial aspects of veteran homelessness, gaining a comprehensive understanding of the complexities of care.
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Telebehavioral Health (TBH) with Veterans and Military-Connected People: This course presents behavioral health providers with knowledge of the challenges, adaptations, and strategies for best practices when using telebehavioral health with Veterans and Military-connected people. Telebehavioral Health (TBH) services are an emerging modality for providing behavioral healthcare that has many advantages for both patients and providers. This course focuses on the provision of TBH with three neurodivergent populations: autistic people, the intellectually disabled, and people with ADHD. This course addresses when TBH is and isn’t a good fit across various case scenarios.
Trauma-Informed Care for 2SLGBTQIA+ Adults: This course offers behavioral health providers a trauma-informed perspective on the mental health experiences of 2SLGBTQIA+ adults, emphasizing the significant impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Drawing on data showing high ACEs prevalence among 2SLGBTQIA+ Coloradans, especially trans and non-binary individuals, the course explores how early-life challenges rooted in identity non-acceptance continue to affect mental health throughout adulthood. Participants will learn to define key terms and concepts related to 2SLGBTQIA+ identities and trauma across different adult stages. The course also examines the effects of heteronormativity, workplace discrimination, and community exclusion, equipping providers with the skills to implement trauma-informed, culturally sensitive practices.
Tower Health's Academic Partnerships
Tower Health has been a leader in establishing academic partnerships. Drexel University College of Medicine at Tower Health is one of many such partnerships and collaborations.
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