Geriatric Medicine Fellowship

Train at America's First Age-Friendly Health System

Our 1-year Geriatric Medicine Fellowship trains geriatricians to provide and promote high quality care for older adults at Baystate Health—recognized by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement as the first age-friendly health system in the U.S. We accept two fellows per year.

Because there are too few geriatricians to provide direct care for all older adults, we must expand our impact to transform care and bridge this gap. All graduating fellows are expected to leverage their skills and expertise through a combination of leadership, advocacy, program design, quality improvement, education, and/or scholarship. 

Team-Based Training Models a Variety of Approaches

One of our greatest assets is the multi-disciplinary and interprofessional nature of our training.

You will experience a broad spectrum of approaches to caring for older adults, and have variety of choices when considering scholarly activities.

Our faculty includes not just geriatricians, but physicians in neurology, psychiatry, physical medicine and rehabilitation, palliative care, gynecology, and hospital medicine. Geriatrics advanced practice nurses, clinical pharmacists, and social workers are also involved in your training.

You'll also benefit from our close affiliation with community organizations including, the Alzheimer's Association, Western Regional Office, Baystate Home Health and Hospice, and Greater Springfield Senior Services, Inc.

Learn to Teach and Lead

Be supported by enthusiastic faculty who are regionally and nationally known for their excellence as educators.

You'll assist in mentoring and educating residents in our chapter of the American Geriatrics Society—Geritrack—the first residency-based chapter in the nation. This novel approach promotes skills and knowledge in geriatric medicine among Internal Medicine residents through didactics, community outreach, scholarship, clinical initiatives, and professional development activities.  

Our faculty are particularly active with the American Geriatrics Society, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, and the National Association for Geriatrics Education. You will have opportunities to participate in national committees and workgroups, and to teach at national meetings. Many of our fellows also present internally at resident conferences and Medical Grand Rounds.

Expanded Educational and Clinical Opportunities 

Geri-Pal TLC Program

Dr. Maura Brennan, Geriatric Medicine Fellowship program director, is also the lead on a Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement award that funds our Geri-Pal TLC program—one of only 48 federally supported geriatrics education centers.

This 5-year multimillion dollar workforce and education grant supports quality improvement, clinical innovation, collaboration with community-based organizations, and coaching/support for primary care partners working with older adults. Fellows can easily get involved in exciting work such as these current initiatives:

• Iinter-professional home care program
• Project ECHO series (video coaching of clinicians at primary care sites)
• Internal Medicine residents performing basic geriatrics evaluations on their own older primary care patients
• Annual Immersion Course in Geriatrics and Palliative Care

Acute Care for Elders (ACE) Initiative

Our ACE Unit is a care environment designed especially for people coping with the challenges of aging. The ACE model of care is in place in leading hospitals nationwide and there is a growing body of research showing its efficacy. Baystate Medical Center’s ACE Unit is one of only a handful operating in Massachusetts.

Program-at-a-glance

We train 2 fellows yearly, tailor the program to individual learners and mentor and support them well beyond graduation. This personalized approach leverages the strengths of our small program.

To minimize the disadvantages of a small program we ensure that our fellows participate in at least one national meeting as well as a variety of webinars, etc. to ensure they are exposed to a wide range of views. In recent years, all our trainees have presented posters and/or taught at national meetings.

One of the greatest assets to training in our program is the interdisciplinary and interprofessional nature of our teaching. We practice and learn in teams with advance practitioners, nurses, social workers and pharmacists; not just geriatricians but physicians from multiple other specialties serve as faculty. As a result, our fellows experience a broad spectrum of approaches to caring for older adults and have a wide range of choices when considering scholarly activities.

We are proud to share in Baystate Medical Center’s national reputation for, and long-standing commitment to medical education. We invite you to consider our Geriatrics Medicine Fellowship Program to determine if it best fits your career goals.