UCLA receives $5 million to expand geriatric care and training

Longtime UCLA supporters James and Carol Collins have donated $5 million to the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA to improve services and enhance well-being for older adults. The new Carol and James Collins Endowed Fund in Geriatric Medicine will enhance current programs and enable future investments in innovative research and education.The gift will support such programs as the  UCLA Alzheimer ’s and Dementia Care Program, which helps patients and their families address home safety, caregiver support and other needs; the Medical Home Visit Program; and  Generation Xchange, an intergenerational mentoring program that engages older volunteers in kindergarten through third-grade classrooms in South Los Angeles.The fund also will help expand the professional pipeline of geriatricians. According to the American Geriatrics Society, fewer than 250 fellows completed geriatrics programs nationwide in 2016 –2017. UCLA has produced 12 to 15 of those fellows annually for the last several years, but service demand is growing as the baby boomer generation ages.To increase the number of qualified geriatricians, the Collins fund provides an opportunity to strengthen UCLA ’s numerous fellowships, residencies and training programs for medical students and physicians. The VA-UCLA Multi-campus Fellowship Program in Geriatric Medicine, a partnership with the Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, is one of the oldest, most sought-after fellowships in geriatric med...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news