Geriatric Medicine Fellowship

Program Director: Thomas Caprio, M.D.

Program Description

Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Clinical Training Program

Thomas Caprio, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine,
Division of Geriatrics & Aging
Program Director,
Geriatric Medicine Fellowship

The Geriatric Medicine Fellowship is a one-year ACGME accredited training program for board-eligible internists and family practitioners. The fellowship is an integrated experience based at several sites: a teaching nursing home, an Acute Care for Elders Unit (ACE) in a community hospital, a Program for All Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) site, and a Veterans Administration Medical Center (VAMC). The fellowship is clinically focused and includes longitudinal nursing home care, rehabilitation, neurology consultation, primary care of outpatients, home care, and comprehensive geriatric and psychiatric assessment. Fellows also participate in the Geriatric Division's educational activities including: journal club, grand rounds, and fellows' conference, as well as participating in the education of internal medicine and family medicine housestaff, as well as medical students.

At the end of twelve months of sub-specialty training the geriatric medicine, fellows are eligible for subspecialty board certification in geriatric medicine. They are fully prepared to provide primary and consultative health care to geriatric patients in hospital, nursing home, and office settings. The fellows' training includes a multi-dimensional biopsychosocial view of assessment, treatment, and management of health problems in older adults. Fellows will gain skills through a combination of supervised clinical experiences and formal didactic conferences. In addition to the requisite body of knowledge, each fellow develops leadership and teaching skills, professional attitudes, and practical experiences required of a geriatrician. Additional years of research-based training are available to qualified fellows.

Training and Rotation Sites

Monroe Community Hospital

MCH is a 566-bed residential health care facility providing quality long-term care to individuals with complex or chronic health conditions.

Geriatric Assessment Clinic - The program aims to maintain frail older adults in the community at the most independent level as possible through an interdisciplinary approach of comprehensive geriatric assessment. The clinic features a Geriatric Health Care Team that thoroughly evaluates the health and functional ability of older persons by examination, and interviewing both patient and family, in addition to gathering information from the primary care physician.
Long-Term Care - Each fellow is assigned a panel of long-term care patients, at Monroe Community Hospital, which they will follow longitudinally with an attending physician during their tenure as a fellow. Other experiences include participation on a closed wandering/behavior unit at MCH and a respiratory unit for ventilator-dependent patients at an affiliated facility.
Neurology - Fellows participate in inpatient neurologic consultation at Monroe Community Hospital and outpatient consultation and neurology clinic at Monroe Community Hospital. They are involved in didactic teaching rounds with an attending geriatric neurologist.
Psychiatry - The Psychiatry Department at Monroe Community Hospital is world-renowned for its groundbreaking work in cognitive disorders and dementias and continues to actively participate in innovative clinical trials. Fellows participate in a two month rotation of inpatient psychiatric consultation on long-term care patients at Monroe Community Hospital as well as outpatient evaluation in the neurology and psychiatry clinic. (Their involvement is also encouraged in the ongoing research and clinical trials in Alzheimer's Disease and other dementing disorders and behavioral disturbances.)
Rehabilitation - MCH is home to one of the most experienced short-term rehabilitation programs in the region providing individualized care to people with disabling conditions as result of an illness or injury. Geriatric Medicine fellows participate in a three month rotation on a comprehensive, interdisciplinary teaching service and are responsible as team members for the primary care of the patients. Fellows interact with specialists in medicine, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language pathology, recreation therapy, social work, clergy, audiology, nursing, and nutrition. The treatment team is committed to restoring each patient's physical and cognitive skills, enabling him or her to be as self-reliant and independent as possible.

Highland Hospital

Acute Care for Elders (ACE) unit. Highland Hospital is a community hospital that has a long tradition of outstanding care with research and education in the biopsychosocial model and physician-patient communication. It is quickly becoming the center for the care of the hospitalized elderly with its innovative ACE Unit. Fellows have an opportunity to both learn and teach during this required rotation. Fellows also participate in peri-operative geriatric consultation and comanagement on the Geriatric Fracture Center and Palliative Care Consultation.

Independent Living for Seniors (ILS)

A PACE (Program for All-inclusive Care for the Elderly) replication site. A PACE site provides an interdisciplinary, adult daycare centered comprehensive plan of care to nursing home eligible individuals in their own home. Most disciplines including physicians, nurse practitioners, skilled nursing, rehabilitative services, social work, pastoral care, dental care, eye care, podiatry, dietary, and aide services are offered at the three day center locations.

Veterans Administration Medical Center Canandaigua, NY

The Department of Veterans Affairs has a long history of supporting geriatrics educational and research activities. The Canandaigua VA Medical Center is a 300-bed facility affiliated with the University of Rochester which provides extended care for veterans with physical and mental disabilities. The 150-bed nursing home program includes post-acute care, medical nursing home care and a 30-bed dementia unit. The Canandaigua facility and an affiliated Rochester Clinic located proximal to the University and Monroe Community Hospital, also offer a variety of outpatient services. Fellows rotating through the VA have opportunities for involvement in the outpatient clinic services, palliative care services and the Home Based Primary Care programs.

The fellowship also utilizes several other sites as part of the training including Visiting Nurse Services for the home care rotation and palliative care rotation; Lifetime Health and Unity Geriatrics Associates for primary care ambulatory clinic experiences and Strong Health Geriatrics Group, Highlands at Brighton and Highlands Living Center for additional long-term care and medical directorship exposure.

Current Fellows

Geriatric Medicine Fellows 2011 -2012

Kenya McIntosh, MD

Dr. McIntosh will be completing her fellowship training in Geriatrics in September 2011. She received her undergraduate training at Clark Atlanta University, in Atlanta, Georgia and attended medical school at the University of Rochester. She then joined the Family Medicine residency program at the University of Rochester/Highland Hospital and completed coursework for a Master of Public Health degree. She has a strong interest in community health and continues to work on a successful patient program during her residency to support lifestyle changes for improved management of chronic health conditions through education, exercise, cooking demonstrations, and field trips to supermarkets.

Ryohei Otsuka, MD

Dr. Otsuka is from the Iwate Prefecture in Japan (which is the geographic area affected by the Tsunami in March 2011). He completed his medical school training at St. Marianna University in Japan where he received the honor of “Best Teacher of the Year.” Dr. Otsuka then completed a 1-year rotating internship at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, followed by a 2-year rotating residency at Saku Central Hospital. He then worked as a staff physician at the National Medical Clinic in Tokyo, Japan, prior to coming to the United States. He then joined the University of Rochester Family Medicine Residency program at Highland Hospital. As a resident, he founded and served as director of a local “Japanese Health Program” for which he received grant funding from the Center for Community Health at the University of Rochester. Dr. Otsuka has also served as Vice President of the Student, Resident, and Young Physician Committees of the Japanese Academy of Family Medicine. Dr. Otsuka has also been active in writing review book chapters and translating English medical texts into Japanese.

Sorour Rahgoshay, MD

Dr. Rahgoshay completed her medical school training at the Iran University of Medical Sciences in Tehran, Iran. She then completed a transitional Internship at the Iran University Affiliated hospitals prior to working as an Assistant Faculty member and advisor for public health at Seman University Affiliated Hospital. She then came to the United States and spent time providing clinical care at Griffin Hospital in Connecticut and then joined the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center in which she provided medical care for uninsured patients and conducted research in hematology/oncology and endocrinology. Dr. Rahgoshay then joined the Internal Medicine Residency Program at the Unity Health System, in Rochester, NY. As a resident she has received grant funding and has been active in clinical research focusing on patients receiving hemodialysis.

Chrystal Jenkins, MD

Dr. Jenkins is completed her undergraduate training at Washington University in St. Louis and medical school at St. Louis University School of Medicine. She then joined the University of Rochester Family Medicine Residency program at Highland Hospital. Dr. Jenkins has served on the board of directors of the New York State Academy of Family Physicians (NYSAFP) and is the current President of the NYSAFP University of Rochester Chapter. In June 2010, she was recognized for her work by receiving the NYSAFP President’s Award for Political Advocacy and Leadership. Dr. Jenkins also has past clinical research experiences and publications in neonatology and psychiatry. In 2009, she served as a research assistant to Netlife, a nongovernmental organization working in Senegal, West Africa. Dr. Jenkins will be officially joining the geriatric medicine fellowship program in October 2011.

Applying to the Program

The application (in Word format) for a Fellowship with the Division of Geriatrics can be viewed on-screen and can be printed (if a printer is attached). Typed applications are preferred or hand-written legibly. Applications are also accepted through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS).

Click here to download the application

If you are unable to print the application, please submit a request either in writing to:

Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Program Coordinator
University of Rochester
Division of Geriatrics & Aging
435 East Henrietta Road
Rochester, NY 14620

or fax (585-760-6376)