AGS-logo-300pEach year, staff of The John A. Hartford Foundation look forward to May and the annual scientific meeting of long-time grantee and partner, the American Geriatrics Society (AGS). This year’s meeting in Long Beach, CA will once again offer us the chance to showcase the work of grantees, learn about the latest advances in aging and health research, meet with colleagues in the field, and celebrate those who have made important contributions to improving care for older adults.

We offer congratulations for another outstanding meeting to AGS President Steven R. Counsell, MD, director of The John A. Hartford Foundation Center of Excellence in Geriatric Medicine at Indiana University; 2016 AGS Annual Scientific Meeting Chair, Heather Whitson, MD, MHS, of Duke University who is a Beeson Scholar; and AGS CEO Nancy Lundebjerg, who has been instrumental in long-running Foundation projects such as the Geriatrics-for-Specialists Initiative as well as new grants including the Geriatric Emergency Department Collaborative and the Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program National Coordinating Center.

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Flaherty_100pWe also are excited to welcome Ellen Flaherty, PhD, APRN, AGSF, who is succeeding Counsell as the 63rd President of AGS. A member of AGS for two decades, Dr. Flaherty is Co-Director of the Dartmouth Centers for Health and Aging and a Co-Principal Investigator of the Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program at Dartmouth and Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program National Coordinating Center administered by AGS. Dr. Flaherty has a joint appointment in Geriatrics at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, but also spent nearly 30 years working to advance clinical practice at the New York University (NYU) College of Nursing/Hartford Institute in New York.

One of the great benefits of AGS’s annual conference is that these projects have the opportunity to convene their participants in adjunct working meetings, obtain input from other experts, and move their efforts forward. Similarly, many of our grantees are presenting their work through submitted sessions and symposia.

Just this afternoon, a symposium on Integrating Patient-Centered Goals into the Care of Older Persons will feature our Patient Priority Care Initiative, which previously was called Carealign, as well as our work with the National Committee for Quality Assurance on measurement of goals ascertainment.

On Friday morning, a session with grantee Community Catalyst will highlight our initiative to bring geriatrics health care experts into coalitions with consumer advocates to influence the care delivered to low-income older adults dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. Members of our Change AGEnts Dementia Caregiving Network and PCMH Network will also be presenting in several sessions.

Finally, we want to congratulate all the winners of AGS awards that will be presented tomorrow, especially those who have been directly engaged with us at The John A. Hartford Foundation.

Hazzard, William100pThis includes William R. Hazzard, MD, who will be receiving the Nascher/Manning Award. This award recognizes an individual with distinguished, life-long achievement in clinical geriatrics through activities such as innovative program development or administration of outstanding clinical programs. Bill has been working with the Foundation for more than 20 years and was a pioneering and guiding force for our Integrating Geriatrics into the Specialties of Internal Medicine project and the T. Franklin Williams Scholars program.

Callahan_100pChristopher Callahan, MD, of Indiana University, an early Beeson Scholar and a member of our Change AGEnts Dementia Caregiving Network, received the prestigious Edward Henderson Award. Just this morning, he presented an outstanding Henderson State-of-the-Art Lecture on Alzheimer's disease and how communities can better support families who care for loved ones with dementia.

Schonberg_100pWe also congratulate Mara Schonberg, MD, MPH, who will deliver the Outstanding Scientific Achievement for Clinical Investigation Award Lecture. Mara is another Beeson Scholar and has worked on the important topic of appropriate mammogram screening for older women (an issue raised in our recent Dartmouth Atlas report) and communicating prognosis to patients.

Several Centers of Excellence in Geriatric Medicine Scholars also received awards, including Rebecca Brown, MD, MPH; Jessica Colburn, MD; and Anna Chang, MD.

There are far too many other Foundation colleagues and grantees to mention by name who will be presenting and moving their critical work forward. But we applaud each of them for their incredible efforts to improve the care of older adults, as well as AGS for providing this important forum.

We are truly inspired and stand in awe and appreciation of everything AGS and its conference attendees are doing to help older adults and their families receive the kind of care they need and deserve.

Visit the AGS website for a complete list of award winners.