National Elder Abuse Multidisciplinary Team Summit
Overview
The Elder Justice Initiative, in collaboration with the Office for Victims of Crime, hosted the first National Virtual Elder Abuse Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Summit on May 29-30, 2025. The goal of the Summit was to advance the elder abuse MDT field beyond systems collaboration toward the adoption of practices that contribute to increasing access to justice for older Americans. Adoption of these practices promotes engagement, provides older victims with a better experience while they are in the system, and contributes to their recovery and well-being long after exiting the system.
Program Highlights
The Summit will feature:
- Sessions focused on best practices, innovative approaches, and real world solutions
- Panel discussions on emerging trends and future needs in the MDT field
- Networking event to foster connections and collaboration among participants
- Resources to support MDT development and sustainability
Summit Materials
National Elder Justice MDT Summit Speakers
National Elder Justice MDT Summit Agenda
National Elder Justice MDT Summit Resource Tables
Status Updates and Recommendations from MDTs Across the Country
Definitions and Characteristics of Common Elder Abuse Networks
National Elder Abuse MDT Listening Session Report
National Elder Abuse MDT Summit Speaker Presentations
About the Hosts
The Elder Justice Initiative and the Office for Victims of Crime are committed to supporting communities in building multidisciplinary responses to elder abuse. We do this by offering training, technical assistance, and funding opportunities to ensure older adults have access to justice and the resources to support their recovery and well-being.
Agenda and Recorded Sessions
Day 1: May 29, 2025
Welcome and Opening Remarks
10:00am – 10:30am
Andy Mao
National Elder Justice Coordinator
Deputy Director Civil Fraud Section
US Department of Justice
Advancing MDT Practices
10:30am - 11:00am
Talitha Guinn-Shaver
MDT Technical Advisor
Elder Justice Initiative
US Department of Justice
Multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) are considered a best practice in the field of elder justice, and MDT models are being replicated nationwide. These teams are often noted to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of interagency collaboration on elder abuse cases. This session will examine practices teams can implement to optimally serve their clients and advance the field. Attendees will learn about a series of activities undertaken to shed light on emerging client/community needs, including proposed network definitions, best practices, consistent data collection, and program evaluation. These findings formed the foundation for the Summit’s agenda.
Making the Case: How Collaboration Among Law Enforcement, Prosecutors, and MDT Member Agencies Improves Prosecution
11:05am – 12:20pm
Page Ulrey
Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
Elder Abuse Unit
King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
There is some evidence that cases reviewed by an MDT have higher rates of referral for prosecution. That may be because MDTs are effective and efficient in ensuring better investigations and prosecutions of elder abuse crimes by bringing together many professionals to share their expertise, to share information, and to improve communication. Members of the MDT who attend to the needs of the victims play an important role in facilitating prosecutors’ ability to hold abusers accountable. This session will describe how MDTs benefit elder abuse prosecution, discuss best practice for collaborating with law enforcement through MDTs, and will showcase ways that MDTs have made elder abuse investigations more successful through case examples.
A Shift in Perspective: The Relevance of Trauma-Informed Practices for MDTs
12:50pm - 2:05pm
Joy Ernst, PhD, LLMSW
Associate Professor Emeritus
School of Social Work
Wayne State University
Some behaviors exhibited by trauma survivors are misinterpreted by MDT members as lying, or somehow inconsistent with how they expect a victim to behave. Lack of understanding of how trauma affects a victim can help determine whether the case even goes forward and thereby becomes an access to justice issue. Recent work on the impact of trauma across the life course underscores the need to recognize trauma and incorporate trauma-informed practices into systems’ responses to elder abuse. In this session, attendees will learn the six principles of trauma-informed practices and the application of those principles to the MDT context, including a discussion of the benefits and challenges of adopting trauma-informed practices.
Best Outcomes for Whom? The Application of Person-Centered Practices to MDTs
2:10pm - 3:25pm
Laura Mosqueda, MD, FAAFP, AGSF
Professor of Family Medicine and Geriatrics
Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California
Panel of Presenters:
- Bonnie Olsen, PhD
- Miles McNeeley, LCSW
- Fabiola Flores, MS
- Renee Rose, JD
- Francisco Javier Wong Jr, MPA
Related to trauma-informed practices, person-centered practices ensure that individual’s values and preferences are elicited and once expressed, guide all aspects of their care. In this session, attendees will learn about the foundational principles of person-centered practices, their applicability to MDTs, followed by a discussion of an MDT’s adoption of person-centered practices and the benefits accrued to older victims and ultimately, elder abuse investigations and prosecutions.
Best Practices for MDT Members Communicating with Older Adults
3:30pm - 4:45pm
Chris Dubble, MSW
CEO
Pursuit of Discovery Training and Consultation
The manner in which MDT members communicate with older clients has implications for whether older adults engage with MDT members as well as the accuracy and completeness of the information gathered. This session will help professionals understand how to communicate effectively with older adults. When an older adult experiences abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation, they need and deserve professionals who recognize their unique needs, strengths, and abilities during interviews. This session will provide information on practical methods to conduct effective and strength-based interviews to ensure useful information is gathered.
Day 1 Wrap-Up
4:45pm -5:00pm
Andy Mao
National Elder Justice Coordinator
Deputy Director Civil Fraud Section
US Department of Justice
Day 2: May 30, 2025
Welcome
10:00am – 10:15am
Andy Mao
National Elder Justice Coordinator
Deputy Director Civil Fraud Section
US Department of Justice
Confidentiality and Information Sharing on MDTs
10:15am - 11:15am
Alicia Aiken, JD
Director
Confidentiality Institute
Danu Center for Strategic Advocacy
Effective MDTs increase the ability of the criminal justice system to seek accountability and improve the victim experience when interacting with criminal justice. However, misunderstandings about the balance between sharing information and protecting confidential information can create barriers for new and existing MDTs. This session will provide a foundational understanding of confidentiality and describe ways of managing confidentiality that are respectful of all professions serving on elder abuse MDTs.
State MDT Initiatives
11:20am - 12:50pm
Robyn James (AL)
Director
Elder Justice Center of Alabama
Shelly Carlson, MPA (MN)
Special Projects Manager
Minnesota Elder Justice Center
Allison Granata (NY)
Director
E-MDT Initiatives
Lifespan of Greater Rochester
Kristy Preston (NC)
Director
Adult Protection Network
UNC School of Government
Robin Young (OH)
APS Policy Developer
Ohio Department of Job and Family Services
Jason Burnett, PhD (TX)
Associate Professor
UTHealth, Houston
Co-Director
Texas Elder Abuse and Mistreatment Institute
Jane Carlson (WY)
APS Program Analyst
Wyoming Department of Family Services
This panel discussion will showcase seven innovative state MDT initiatives and the benefits that accrue to the state and ultimately justice for older victims. Topics include state funding for MDT replication, providing funding for infrastructure development, accessibility of resources and experts, and tips and lessons learned that other states could utilize in developing their own MDT initiatives.
MDT Program Evaluation
1:20pm - 2:20pm
Julia Martinez, PhD
Director of Research and Evaluation
ReGenerations Aging Services
Although randomized control trials are considered the gold standard in program evaluation, they may be less applicable to MDTs, which are complex learning systems and potentially in a continual state of adaptive change. This session will introduce attendees to knowledge generation strategies and procedures that are more applicable to the complex and dynamic nature of MDTs. This session will explore alternative program evaluation strategies that can help teams understand their impact and adjust their procedures, with the goal of enhancing justice for older adults.
Putting These Principles into Practice
2:25pm - 3:25pm
David Burnes, PhD
Professor
Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work
University of Toronto
Patricia Kimball, MS, MS
Executive Director
Elder Abuse Institute of Maine
The RISE model is a victim service program designed to reduce harm, respect autonomy, restore relationships, and advance justice in a holistic and flexible way. RISE is an example of a program that has adopted all of the principles discussed over the past day and half. In this session, members of the RISE Collaborative will discuss the benefits to - and the struggles with - adopting these principles and how adoption of these principles has contributed to better outcomes for their clients, whether or not the case is prosecuted.