Journal of American Medical Association to Publish
Series on Caring for the Aging Patient
Goal of this series will be to help improve
clinical practice and inform policy in care of older individuals
Jan. 2, 2010 - The prestigious Journal of the
American Medical Association has announced the launch of a series
"Care of the Aging Patient: From Evidence to Action" - to assist
physicians in caring for a patient demographic that is rapidly growing
in size. The first 12 articles will explore the course of aging, from
the first hints of frailty through events such as difficulty driving a
car to the progressive restriction of activities that results from a
steady decline.
"The aging of the global population will be a
hallmark of the 21st century, when average lifespan may reach 100 years
in some countries, at least for women. Worldwide, the proportion of the
population aged 60 years or older is expected to increase from 10
percent worldwide in 2005 to 22 percent in 2050, with the steepest rise
in the next 25 years. Individuals aged 85 years or older are the most
rapidly increasing segment of many populations," according to an
editorial in the December 23/30 issue of JAMA.
C. Seth Landefeld, M.D., of the University of
California, San Francisco, and colleagues write that aging will shape
the lives of patients and the practice of medicine, and that physicians
will spend more time caring for older individuals.
"Although physicians are knowledgeable about the
pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of organ-specific diseases
such as cataract, coronary artery disease, and pneumonia, many geriatric
syndromes are not straightforward and do not fit the conventional
paradigm of disease. Are physicians ready for these challenges? How can
physicians prepare to meet the needs of patients as they age?"
"The Institute of Medicine's 2008 report Retooling
for an Aging America concluded, 'The health care workforce ...is not
prepared to deliver the best care to older patients.' This new series
takes a step to address this problem."
The overall goal of this series will be to help
improve clinical practice and inform policy in care of older
individuals, especially those who have started to lose their
independence or are at risk of doing so.
"Using the real stories of patients and interviews
with them, the new series will analyze how to put existing evidence into
practice to address pressing questions that arise for older patients,
their families, and their physicians. By focusing on older patients'
specific problems, the articles will explore themes that develop with
aging," the authors write.
"The series aims to provide clinicians with
pragmatic tools and methods for translating published evidence into
daily practice, or if evidence does not exist, recommendations with a
rationale and a potential research agenda."
"Care of older patients often brings joy and
satisfaction to their physicians. With enhancement of their knowledge
and skills, all physicians have the opportunity to share in this
meaningful and important work, which will be the main work for many in
the aging century. With this new series of articles focused on geriatric
issues and their policy implications, JAMA begins to enhance physicians'
ability to do so."
In the first article in the series, David Reuben,
M.D., of the University of California, Los Angeles, discusses the
approach to care of older patients beginning with a consideration of
life expectancy and patient goals.
Such an approach helps tailor the patient's visit
to issues of greatest importance to the patient and interventions to
maximize prevention, independence, and quality of life. An accompanying
commentary by Christine Cassel, M.D., President of the American Board of
Internal Medicine, addresses necessary changes in workforce support for
primary care, training requirements, payment reform, research, and
systems to improve care of older adults.
This new series is made possible by funding from
The SCAN Foundation.
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Jan. 2, 2010 - The prestigious Journal of the
American Medical Association has announced the launch of a series
"Care of the Aging Patient: From Evidence to Action" - to assist
physicians in caring for a patient demographic that is rapidly growing
in size. The first 12 articles will explore the course of aging, from
the first hints of frailty through events such as difficulty driving a
car to the progressive restriction of activities that results from a
steady decline.