Gerontology

GERON 2170 Aging in America: Concepts & Controversies: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 2170. This course examines the major theoretical and service issues connected to the study of older adults and their families, using multidisciplinary perspectives. Students are provided with an introduction to the field of aging through an examination of current social issues and controversies. This course emphasizes student involvement through class discussion and applied activities, and is appropriate for students in the arts and sciences, business, communication, education, and nursing.

GERON 2220 Special Topics in Gerontology: 3 semester hours

Selected topics dealing with various aspects of gerontology. The specific contents of this course will vary from semester to semester. The course may be repeated with permission from the Gerontology director.

GERON 2256 Bioethics: 3 semester hours

Same as PHIL 2256. An examination of ethical issues in health care practice and clinical research and in public policies affecting health care. Topics include: abortion, euthanasia, health care, experimentation, informed consent and the right to health care.

GERON 3220 Selected Topics in Gerontology: 3 semester hours

This course covers selected topics dealing with various aspects of gerontology. The specific contents of this course will vary from semester to semester. The course may be repeated with permission from the Gerontology coordinator.

GERON 3280 Psychology of Death and Dying: 3 semester hours

Same as PSYCH 3280. Prerequisite: PSYCH 1003 or consent of the instructor. An exploration of end-of-life issues integrating the scholarly, social, and individual dimensions of death and dying. This course provides a solid grounding in theory and research, as well as practical application to students' lives.

GERON 3300 The Social Construction of Aging and Ageism: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 3300 and GS 3300. This course examines perspectives of age, aging, and ageism using several perspectives: the theory of social construction and the frameworks of essentialism and intersectionality. The materials, discussions, and assignments in this course will familiarize and provide students with tools to investigate age and ageism in a complex, multidimensional manner. The overarching focus of this course is located in the tension with the “nature versus nurture” debate, paralleling nature with essentialist ideas and nurture with social constructionism. Ideas, conceptions, attitudes, and understandings of age within the media, family, medical community, and other institutions will be investigated as biological and/or a development of society in effort to perpetuate social control, organization, and power dynamics. Through research, fiction and non-fiction work, creative assignments, and theoretical texts, students will approach the following questions: How do we value lived-experiences? How might situated knowledge affect social constructions of aging and ageism? What evidence is provided toward age and/or ageism as an essential or socially constructed outline within society? How are socially constructed ideas developed and perpetuated? How might one affect change in an essentialist and/or socially constructed society?.

GERON 3400 Environment, Society, and Aging: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 3400. This course examines the intersection of the environment and human society with an emphasis on aging. Drawing from research in environmental sociology, medical sociology, and gerontology, this course will address the following topics: climate change, natural disasters, community development, food production and distribution, waste and pollution, illness and disease epidemiology, and health and well-being.

GERON 4330 Advanced Topics in Gerontology: 3 semester hours

The course covers selected topics dealing with various aspects of gerontology. The specific contents of this course will vary from semester to semester. The course may be repeated with permission from the Gerontology director.

GERON 4376 Mental Health and Aging: 3 semester hours

Same as PSYCH 4376. Prerequisites: PSYCH 2245 and ENGL 3100, or consent of instructor. This writing intensive course provides a survey of theory and research on mental health issues for older populations, focusing on psychological and social aspects of mental health and functioning. The course details approaches to understanding healthy aging, along with the prevalence, etiology, assessment and treatment of psychological disorders in older adults. The course also provides an overview of health care and community-based delivery systems for behavioral health and allows students to explore information about careers in aging.

GERON 4400 Social & Community Services for an Aging Population: 3 semester hours

Same as SOC 4400. Prerequisites: GERON 2170 / SOC 2170 or consent of the instructor. This service-learning course is designed for students interested in working with and for the benefit of older adults in various settings. Students attend classes on campus and participate in defined volunteer placements with local agencies (e.g., St. Louis County Older Residents Program).

GERON 4490 Directed Readings: 1-3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Consent of instructor. Directed reading and research or field work. May be repeated for a maximum of three hours.

GERON 4500 Physiology & Pharmacology of Aging: 3 semester hours

Same as PSYCH 4500. Prerequisites: Junior/senior undergraduate or graduate standing, or consent of the instructor or program director. This course examines functional health in advancing age and the impacts of common disease processes on the aging body. Symptom presentations, diagnostic considerations, treatment and management issues are discussed. A special emphasis is placed on pharmacology, especially how the aging body responds to different medication types, risks for drug-drug interactions, and challenges associated with polypharmacy. The course emphasizes a "whole person" approach to health and well-being, and targets the learning needs of those wishing to work with older adults in health, social and community service settings.

GERON 4520 The Aging Body: 3 semester hours

Same as GS 4520. Prerequisites: GERON 2170 or SOC 2170 or another introductory course (2000 or higher) in Gerontology, Sociology, Psychology, Social Work, or Nursing; or consent of the instructor. This course focuses on the aging body with respect to health and function. Physiologic and cognitive concerns of older men and women are reviewed. Contextual factors (e.g., relationships, socio-cultural, spiritual, environmental) and issues in service delivery are also addressed.

GERON 4620 Dying, Grief & Death in Older Adulthood: 3 semester hours

Prerequisites: Junior/senior undergraduate or graduate standing, or permission of the instructor or program director. This course examines trajectories to death in older age, the dying process, influences of medical and aging-related conditions, euthanasia and suicide, life extension and longevity, personal beliefs and existential responses, how individuals and families cope, ethical concerns, and strategies for supportive intervention. Topics are addressed from clinical, supportive care, and interdisciplinary perspectives. Ideal for those planning to work with older adults in counseling, health care, hospice, and/or community support settings.

GERON 6443 Health Care Policy: 3 semester hours

Same as P P ADM 6430, POL SCI 6443, and SOC WK 6443. Prerequisites: Graduate standing or consent of instructor. Survey course examining current issues in health policy that face the nation. Policies are placed in a historical context to show how issues have been influenced by different political and economic conditions. Secondary consequences and limitations of current trends in health policy are explored.

GERON 6490 Directed Study: 1-3 semester hours

Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. Designed to give the student an opportunity to pursue a more in-depth study of a problem area in gerontology than is normally covered in more formal courses. May be repeated for a total of six credit hours.