Geriatrics News and Research

RSS

Disenrollment from hospice increases costs of care for cancer patients

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that the costs of care for patients with cancer who disenrolled from hospice were nearly five times higher than for patients who remained with hospice. Patients who disenroll from hospice are far more likely to use emergency department care and be hospitalized. The results are published in the October 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

24 Sep 2010

Emergency physicians to present research studies at Research Forum 2010

The risks associated with boarding admitted patients in the emergency department – including patient mortality – as well as proposed solutions will be key themes of Scientific Assembly, the annual meeting of the American College of Emergency Physicians. In addition, emergency physicians will present more than 450 research studies during 2010 Research Forum, the premier, annual scientific research event focused on the latest advances in the practice of emergency medicine.

14 Sep 2010

Health risk assessments

At various points in our lives, we're curious about our health risks, wondering about our susceptibility for everything from high cholesterol to a deadly inherited disease. We might want to learn more about our risks when we reach a certain age or experience a bout of bad health; when we hear about a friend or co-worker coping with a dreaded illness; or read the latest headlines about disease research.

13 Sep 2010

Clinica of Virginia offers medical services to Medicare and Medicaid patients for $1.00

In an effort to promote wellness and help those who are struggling to make ends meet, Clinica of Virginia, LLC. is providing quality medical services to Medicare and Medicaid patients for only $1.00. The national economic downturn, combined with national bureaucracy, has created a shortage of physicians and clinics who accept Medicare and Medicaid. Chronic, multiple medical conditions plague those Americans who can financially afford it the least, and physicians' offices who accept Medicare or Medicaid are now far and few between. Clinica accepts both.

10 Sep 2010

New national assessment tool for nursing home residents

A fundamental shift will take place in skilled nursing homes beginning in October following the work of a California-based researcher and a team of investigators that has developed a new national assessment tool for nursing home residents.

10 Sep 2010

Risk factors for indoor and outdoor falls for elderly adults are different: Study

The risk factors for indoor and outdoor falls for older adults are different, according to a new study by the Institute for Aging Research of Hebrew SeniorLife, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, a fact that is often missed when the two are combined and may affect how falls prevention programs are structured.

8 Sep 2010

NSU receives grant to improve geriatrics care

Nova Southeastern University recently received a $2.1-million federal grant to provide training to improve care for South Florida's large geriatric population now and for the future.

3 Sep 2010

Veterans with PTSD at greater risk for dementia

Results of a study reported in the September issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society suggest that Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have a greater risk for dementia than Veterans without PTSD, even those who suffered traumatic injuries during combat.

31 Aug 2010

U-M research results show potential for discovering new avenues for anti-aging drugs

A team of University of Michigan scientists has found that suppressing a newly discovered gene lengthens the lifespan of roundworms. Scientists who study aging have long known that significantly restricting food intake makes animals live longer. But the goal is to find less drastic ways to achieve the same effect in humans someday. The U-M results offer promising early evidence that scientists may succeed at finding targets for drugs that someday could allow people to live longer, healthier lives.

19 Aug 2010

Consortium on Aging created at The University of Texas Health Science Center

To meet the escalating patient care, research and healthcare education needs for a rapidly aging population, a university-wide Consortium on Aging has been established at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

18 Aug 2010

Telemedicine helps care for seniors, while pediatricians increasingly care for young adults

As part of a special section on aging, The Washington Post reports on telemedicine for seniors: "Imagine a 75-year-old receiving wireless medication reminders, straight to his beeping wristband. ... Although developers and advocates have promoted telemedicine for years, Alice Borelli of Intel points to barriers -- including Medicare reimbursement policies and inadequate broadband in parts of the country -- that have kept telemedicine a mostly conceptual solution.

11 Aug 2010

HHS Secretary announces $159.1M in grants to health care workforce training programs

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today will announce $159.1 million in grants to health care workforce training programs. These grants build on the multimillion dollar investments made under the Affordable Care Act and Recovery Act to strengthen and grow our primary care workforce. The grants will target three types of programs: Nursing Workforce Development programs; interdisciplinary geriatric education and training programs; and Centers of Excellence programs for underrepresented minority students.

6 Aug 2010

Disparities in cardiovascular disease risk linked to socioeconomic differences between races: Study

A new UCLA study suggests that disparities in cardiovascular disease risk in the United States are due less to race or ethnicity than to socioeconomic status.

2 Aug 2010

Company creates cottages for aging, disabled relatives; Report examines rising costs for elderly health care

"On Monday, N2Care, a company formed by a Methodist minister in Salem, Va., showed off its first MedCottage, a 12-by-24-foot prototype filled with biometric technology that would allow a family and health-care providers to monitor the condition of an aging or disabled relative. … [T]he Virginia General Assembly this year passed legislation, HB1307, that supersedes local zoning laws and allows families to install such a dwelling on their property with a doctor's order."

21 Jul 2010

Responding to access-to-care challenges: Ideas from a rural doctor, a Washington, D.C. hospital

Evansville (Ind.) Courier & Press reports on the struggles rural physicians face in providing care by focusing on Dr. Lloyd "Pat" McGinnis, a family medicine and geriatrics specialist who was "one of only five doctors in Spencer County, a rural area of Southwestern Indiana. … Doctors throughout the country are struggling with the same issues of providing quality care to patients with limited incomes in an environment of uncertainly as major provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are phased in over the next five years.

20 Jul 2010

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center ranks first: U.S. News & World Report survey

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center ranks as one of the top five American hospitals -- and the best hospital in the western United States for the 21st consecutive year -- according to a U.S. News & World Report survey that reviewed patient-outcomes data, reputation among physicians and other care-

17 Jul 2010

Johns Hopkins Hospital takes top spot in annual rankings of American hospitals for 20th year in a row

Once more — and for the 20th year in a row — The Johns Hopkins Hospital has taken the top spot in U.S. News & World Report's annual rankings of American hospitals, placing first in five medical specialties and in the top five in 10 others.

16 Jul 2010

VCU Medical Center ranked in 2010-2011 Best Hospitals

The Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center on Thursday was ranked in the 2010-2011 Best Hospitals in the country by U.S. News and World Report, making it one of 152 medical centers nationwide selected out of nearly 2,000 eligible institutions.

16 Jul 2010

St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital ranked among America's elite healthcare institutions

In its annual survey of "America's Best Hospitals," U.S. News & World Report has ranked St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital (SLEH) among the elite healthcare institutions in the nation in five major areas of care. This includes the Texas Heart® Institute (THI) at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, listed in the top ten nationally in heart and heart surgery for the 20th consecutive year.

15 Jul 2010

U-M Hospitals and Health Centers ranked 14th among America's best hospitals

The University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers have been ranked among the country's best hospitals, placing 14th overall for the second consecutive year by U.S. News & World Report magazine. This year, U-M was ranked in every specialty and those rankings went up in 11 of the 16 specialties.