Program for Friday May 10, 2024

Moderator: Kourosh Parham, MD, PhD, FACS

Sensorineural hearing loss is a common chronic condition affecting the health of older adults with impact extending far beyond sensory function.  We will discuss this impact and provide an overview of the management of hearing loss in older patients. Learning Objectives: (1) describe the wide-reaching impact of hearing loss on the older adults; (2) discuss the rehabilitation of older adults with hearing loss using hearing aids; and (3) review the management of older adults with hearing loss when hearing aids no longer provide any benefit. 

Pharmacy and Social Work credit types are available for live participation only. Attendees may claim a maximum of 26.25 pharmacy contact or social work credit hours. 

Sponsored by the AGS Health in Aging Foundation

View the most current research in geriatrics. Authors will be available to discuss the presented findings and answer questions. 

Co-Moderators: Joseph D. Dixon, MD & Lisa Vargish, MD, MS                                                                                  
Sponsored by the Ethics Committee 
 

This symposium will consist of 1) an introduction in which we discuss clinical outcomes in relation to CPR in older adults; 2) a narrative reflection from the perspective of a geriatrician and son who engaged in Code Status discussions with his father, who initially wanted “everything done” to keep him alive, and the challenges in navigating overlapping identities and roles as provider and family member; and 3) a discussion with two bioethicists from different academic institutions about the controversial unilateral DNAR order. Learning Objectives: (1) review important clinical outcomes regarding CPR in older adults as described in the medical literature, in particular related to morbidity and mortality, and to highlight known disparities in outcomes and care related to CPR; (2) discuss lessons learned from advance care planning discussions between a geriatrician and his elderly father as he approached the end of his life; and (3) describe ethical concerns regarding the unilateral DNAR order and to learn about different institutional approaches to the unilateral DNAR order.

Pharmacy and Social Work credit types are available for live participation only. Attendees may claim a maximum of 26.25 pharmacy contact or social work credit hours. 

Moderator: Sowmya S. Iyer, MD, MPH                                                                                                                      
Sponsored by the Clinical Practice and Models of Care Committee

Telemedicine clinical geriatrics care allows older adults, especially those who reside in rural areas, to gain access to geriatrics trained clinicians. Learning Objectives: (1) review the competencies for video telemedicine with older adults and understand how these competencies have the potential to expand the diversity of patient populations who can be served by telemedicine; (2) review strategies to implement interdisciplinary geriatrics care for patients; (3) review recent qualitative data on the experience of dementia caregivers for older adults in receiving tele-dementia care; and (4) identify helpful resources for providing dementia care to older adults through telemedicine.

Pharmacy and Social Work credit types are available for live participation only. Attendees may claim a maximum of 26.25 pharmacy contact or social work credit hours. 

Moderator: Eric J. Schwinder
Sponsored by the Research Committee

Increased longevity has led to the rapid growth of the older population nationally and among Veterans. Approximately 40% of Veterans are over the age of 65. The growth in our Veteran aging population will have a massive impact on the VA healthcare system over the next few decades, requiring the development of creative approaches to ensure effective treatment and management of chronic diseases to improve the quality of life, to promote selfcare and independent living, and to reduce hospitalizations. The VA is preparing by supporting innovative research and programs and by training VA scientists as leaders in the field of aging.  

Learning Objectives: (1) describe the VA mission, research services and funding opportunities in the field of aging research available to investigators at different career stages; (2) describe VA research priorities, including strategic and cross-cutting priorities, and new research enterprise initiatives; (3) identify resources for research training within the VA, including the Geriatrics Research and Education and Clinical Center system. 

Pharmacy and Social Work credit types are available for live participation only. Attendees may claim a maximum of 26.25 pharmacy contact or social work credit hours. 

Co-Moderators: Todd P. Semla, PharmD, MS, BCGP, FCCP, AGSF & Michael Steinman, MD

Learning Objectives: (1) discuss anticoagulation and patients with dementia including risks versus benefits in light of new treatments for Alzheimer's disease; (2) review the available anticoagulants, their indications, and advantages and disadvantages from the primary care perspective; and (3) address non-major bleeding in older adults, including the quality-of-life implications it has and clinical strategies to address it.     

Pharmacy and Social Work credit types are available for live participation only. Attendees may claim a maximum of 26.25 pharmacy contact or social work credit hours. 

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83177487295

Co-Chairs: Ugochi Ohuabunwa, MD & Jessica Wright, PA-C

The mission of this SIG is to improve outcomes for vulnerable older adults moving across different healthcare settings through the better execution of care transitions. We assemble geriatricians and other geriatrics professionals with a common interest in improving care transitions through education, quality improvement, and research. We strive to serve as a resource to develop educational sessions at AGS Annual Scientific Meetings, and serve as AGS' main forum for discussion, collaboration, and advocacy on care transitions issues.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82022518379?pwd=nacIrZr6j0psazoP7NdJoBWfBWgQfl.1 

Co-Chairs: Jeffrey D. Mariano, MD & Olga Olivares-Herrera, MD

The Ethnogeriatrics SIG is open to anyone with an interest in the relationship between aging, ethnicity, clinical practice, and research. We work to identify challenges and practical solutions to providing appropriate care to different cultures and ethnicities in our diverse country.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89507977515?pwd=r824rnZYNAaDb9tJiYqt31aWbUj8Kx.1 

Co-Chairs: Mary Bonnett, MD; Emily Coskun, MD; Evan Henricks, MD; Kristen Martin, MD

The GACA SIG seeks to promote the career development and longitudinal professional growth of GACA awardees.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83120716650?pwd=lZzEpl9a0TMbJajxg7C2v6AgGIark3.1 

Chair: Irene Hamrick, MD

The mission of the IT Issues SIG is to establish a venue for members with an interest in Information Technology as it applies to geriatrics. We see Electronic Health Records (EHR) as a means for improving medical care by reducing error rates, improving efficiency, augmenting communication, facilitating optimal reimbursement, and decreasing expenses. We seek to provide information, support, and an organized center for coordinating information and resources to optimize the use of EHRs in senior healthcare environments like ambulatory and long-term care healthcare settings.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84572957249?pwd=AncVeZFGEDeMpe8xBrGBp1BPxgFG4e.1 

Chair: Joanne Lynn, MD

The mission of this SIG is to share information on the proposals, models of care, community integration collaboration networks, and politics that center on building geographic reforms across all service providers.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83320927776?pwd=EZbGVZYnhoZT76fRoEuEs6w4jAL1ip.1 

Co-Chairs: Christine Liu, MD, MS & Devika Nair, MD, MSC1

The mission of this SIG is to discuss the ways interdisciplinary collaboration can help older adults and their family members feel supported in the dialysis vs conservative management decision making process; to collaborate on how to create co-management geriatrics and renal subspecialty clinics; and to foster research on outcomes that affect the quality of life of older adults with kidney disease, such as falls, re-hospitalization rates, and end of life care.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88540230454?pwd=ZAqXo55tNQ6nAbzvHzhdVEOSdX7M2j.1

Co-Chairs: Cathleen Colon-Emeric, MD, MHS & Sarah Berry, MD, MPH

The mission of this SIG is to discuss future strategies to promote improved education and care for bone loss in older adults.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89203539248?pwd=WQKAEPA2sBisJdtzrGCQaaOGnixuAE.1 

Co-Chairs: Claire Davenport, MD & Ardeshir Hashimi, MD

Older adults with multiple chronic conditions (MCC) receive care that is fragmented, burdensome, and most importantly is not focused on what matters most to them. There is little evidence to guide disease-specific care for people with MCC, who are generally excluded from randomized controlled trials, leading to uncertainty in decision-making for clinicians. Guideline-driven care is not always applicable to older adults with multiple chronic conditions, as it may not accrue the expected benefits and may lead to treatment burden. Most importantly, this care may not be focused on what matters most to persons with MCCs, the health outcomes they prioritize when faced with tradeoffs and the treatments they are willing and able to adhere to. This Special Interest Group aims to identify alternatives to disease guideline-based care, specifically ways to implement patient priorities aligned decision making. Patient priorities aligned decision making calls upon patients and caregivers to articulate their health priorities; communicate those priorities to all team members; patients, caregivers and clinicians then together choose the healthcare best aligned with these health priorities.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86220821002?pwd=wpet50oZnhad04zYuKO39QlgabAOav.1

Co-Chairs: Verna R. Sellers, MD, MPH, CMD, AGSF & Nicole Orr, MD, FACC

The mission of this SIG is to serve as a resource and voice to the AGS, the public, healthcare practitioners, policy makers, and various educational centers regarding issues on the availability, delivery, quality and regulation of long-term care (LTC) in the U.S.