Prof. Myers (South Dakota) on elder law outreach

Prof Mike Myers (South Dakota) will present “How to Build a Law School Multi-Media Elderlaw Outreach Program from Scratch” at the Canadian Conference on Elder Law, October 29-30, Vancouver, BC.  Here’s the abstract:

This is a case study of how to develop—without funding– a university elderlaw outreach program that includes: (1) The nation’s only law school-based senior legal helpline; (2) A weekly “Elderlaw Forum” newspaper column appearing in 30-to-50 rural newspapers throughout an eight-state region, at no cost; (3) A weekly “Elderlaw Forum” radio program aired by  two multi-state commercial radio stations, at no cost, and (4) An “Elderlaw Forum” website containing  law student research papers, radio broadcast audio, newspaper columns, and links to select law-and-the-elderly-related websites.   Its developer is Michael Myers, 69, a former CEO of Mayo-St. Marys Hospital, Rochester, Minnesota, and CEO of Fairview Riverside Medical Center, Minneapolis, who spent 17 years in hospital law and administration, and 18 years teaching elderlaw and healthcare law and policy.  The USD Senior Legal Helpline provides pro bono legal information, advice, and limited assistance to persons 55 and older through a toll-free number and an email address.  The helpline was established after two grant applications seeking start-up support were turned down.  Helpline calls are used as anonymous fact patterns for the newspaper column.  Radio broadcasts are eclectic, consisting of half-hour interviews with pundits, authors, educators and policymakers.  The three-year-old program has yielded hundreds of calls to the helpline, the publication of 138 columns and the airing of 165 radio broadcasts.  The outreach activity is accumulating field data that will be used to identify the type and severity of legal problems confronting the elderly.  In that regard, it should have research value.   Also, the program is viewed as part of the law school’s service mission.    

Prof. Myers’ radio program can be accessed on-line at the Elderlaw Forum, University of South Dakota School of Law.