Why older adults need geriatricians

In his post, “The geriatrician shortage: The problem isn’t what you think,” I completely agree that the current gap in health care professionals’ skills to care well for our aging population is exceedingly complex, reaching well beyond lack of medical school training or funding.  Funding for graduate medical education needs to be transformed to match the workforce needs of the nation, with special attention to filling workforce gaps in rural areas. Other health professions (nursing, pharmacy, social work, rehabilitation, and many others) need to enhance geriatric competencies in their schools and residencies so that health care teams have adequate expertise to care for older adults. However, I would like to point out misperceptions on Dr. Young’s part. He wrote that most ailments among older adults “are the same ones middle-aged people have: hypertension, heart failure, diabetes, arthritis, etc. The elderly just have more of it.” This is simply untrue. Older adults have dementia (now the sixth leading cause of death in that population), falls (the number one injury-related death in people over 65), pressure ulcers, and many other illnesses seldom seen in middle-aged adults. Conversations with older adults and their families often include counseling to retire from driving, manage caregiver burnout, and assist families in finding a long-term care environment suitable to a frail elder’s needs. These syndromes often give rise to difficult conversations,...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: Journals (General) Authors: Tags: Physician Geriatrics Primary care Source Type: blogs