$1M Geriatric Training Project for Highland
November 16, 2010
Dr. Robert McCann
The University of Rochester Medical Center's Division of Geriatrics and Aging has been awarded a $1 million grant from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation to expand physician training in geriatrics. URMC was one of 10 medical schools in the nation to receive grants totaling almost $10 million.
Dr. Robert McCann, Chief of Medicine at Highland Hospital, and Dr. Annette Medina-Walpole, Associate Professor of Medicine Division of Geriatrics & Aging, are principle investigators. They will lead development of innovative geriatric training for non-geriatricians at URMC affiliate Highland Hospital, a center of excellence for geriatric care, research and education.
The grant will allow geriatricians at Highland to share their knowledge with hospitalists and specialists in orthopedics; physical medicine and rehabilitation; emergency medicine; and neurology. The nation is facing a growing shortage of geriatricians to care for older adults, and in years to come seniors will depend on these physicians to provide inpatient hospital care. The project aims to give non-geriatricians a greater understanding of the special needs of the frail elderly patient. The four-year grant will annually impact 260 students, 188 residents, 14 hospitalists, and 85 subspecialty faculty. Benefits will continue long after the grant funding period, because physicians who have completed the training will become trainers themselves - they’ll be able to pass on what they’ve learned about geriatric care to their colleagues.