Abstract
The 1970s is considered by many as the rise of geriatrics as a specialty – what Solomon refers to as the beginning of the “geriatrics renaissance.” [1] At that time, a few individuals recognized the need for improved care of the elderly and the opportunity for a specialty to encompass its principles. Over time, geriatrics has grown into a recognized branch of medicine that has its own society, multiple journals, thousands of fellows, and hundreds of teaching attendings. Now, the ideals that led to this renaissance are spreading into the surgical and medical subspecialties. However, this growth is meeting with some resistance. Many surgeons have the attitude of “I already know how to take care of older patients – that’s half of my practice.” And, many do take care of the aged patient well. However, improvement in the care of the elderly can be realized through utilization of the available resources discussed in this chapter.
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References
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Willcox, H.L., Passer, D.L., Bell, R.M. (2011). Teaching Geriatrics to Surgeons. In: Rosenthal, R., Zenilman, M., Katlic, M. (eds) Principles and Practice of Geriatric Surgery. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6999-6_15
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6999-6_15
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