Advancing quality health care for the elderly

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Click on the Conference tab for all related details.

Please NOTE:      50 SCHOLARSHIPS are available for Virginia-based providers, on a first come, first served basis with preference to first or second time VGC attendees who are not geriatricians.  This generous benefit is made possible by Geriatric Training and Education (GTE) funding designated by the Virginia General Assembly.  Within the Conference tab, there is a link to “Scholarships”.   Please take time to apply.  (NOTE: our 50 slots for 2010 are full, but please still apply, in the event we attain additional funding.  Also, your name will be carried over for the 2011 conference if not chosen this year.)

Health reform experts predict transitional care will become more common across the country in the next few years, as long as health plans and hospitals are willing to pay for the extra staff required. “Trans Care” has already caught on in Virginia, with improved outcomes accompanied by significant cost savings.

This article from Clinician Reviews examines the topic:

http://www.clinicianreviews.com/index.asp?page=8_13510.xml

Click here http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/10/31/ap/national/main5477029.shtml

 for the complete story (via CBS news website) 

Photo (AP)

In an article on August 25, 2009, the LA Times takes a look at the positive impact — in health outcomes and health care spending — that VCU’s House Calls program is making in the lives of critically ill patients on Medicare. Read the full story »

Despite the increased need for geriatric specialists as the population ages, fewer medical school graduates — often deterred by the prospects of relatively low pay — are choosing to become geriatricians, writes Tammie Smith, for the Richmond Times Dispatch. Read the full article and view the video below »

In August 2009, the Richmond Times Dispatch took an in-depth look at some of the issues facing geriatric care in the Richmond area, and solutions that VCUHS is developing to address them. Watch the video below or visit the Times Dispatch website for the article.

Dr. Peter Boling, Professor of Geriatric Medicine at VCU Medical Center, explains how the Independence at Home Act can dramatically advance the health outcomes and care chronically ill patients by providing care in the community. Watch the video below, or view Dr. Boling’s message here »

For frail and immobile patients, getting to a doctor’s office or clinic is difficult or impossible. High quality at-home health care can prevent expensive emergency room visits and ease the burden of illness on patients and their families.

Act Today – Call or write your U.S. congressman or senator. You can also donate to the Home Care Action Fund. To learn more, visit www.aahcp.org.

The AGS Foundation for Health in Aging has published a new tip sheet discussing the benefits of early influenza vaccinations for seniors. Read more »

An article in the New York Times cites several factors, many linked to low income or cultural dislocation, which may put Hispanics at greater risk for dementia, including higher rates of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, stroke and possibly hypertension. [Read more →]

One frightening reality Alzheimer’s caregivers face is the potential for a loved one to wander and not be able to find their way home. A new idea has emerged–an Amber Alert system for the elderly, appropriately called Silver Alert.

Currently, 11 states have Silver Alert-type programs, and legislation has been introduced to turn state efforts into a nation-wide program. [Read more →]