Latest news with #geriatrics
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Jeremy Walston, Johns Hopkins Human Aging Project founder, dies
Dr. Jeremy Walston, who founded the Johns Hopkins Human Aging Project, died of glioblastoma June 10 at Gilchrist Center Baltimore. The Bolton Hill resident was 64. Born in Bowling Green, Ohio, he was the son of Gene Walston, a farmer, and Genevieve Walston, a homemaker who later worked for Verizon. Dr. Walston earned degrees at Capital University and the University of Cincinnati before moving to Baltimore and doing a general internal medicine residency at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and a fellowship in Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, also at Hopkins. Dr. Theodore DeWeese, dean of the Hopkins School of Medicine, said, 'Jeremy represented what it is to be a great Johns Hopkins faculty member. He brought the best care to patients in a kind and humane way.' 'He was a tremendous mentor and team builder. He brought nurses, public health professionals and engineers together,' said Dr. Cynthia M. Boyd, director of the Hopkins Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology division. 'He was also an exceptional scientist, a pioneer in the field of aging, biology and the field of frailty and resilience.' Dr. Walston met his partner and future husband, George Lavdas, at a party in 1982 at the Lawyer's Club at the University of Michigan Law School. 'His passion for the elderly began at a young age — at age 20,' Mr. Lavdas said. 'He was kind and caring. Jeremy also had a love of preserving nature, birds and the environment.' His sister, Wendy Walston Vaughn, said, 'Jeremy loved his family and friends. You could tell by how kind and generous he was. He was always reaching out to people to see how they were doing.' A Sun article, published in 2022, explained that the project he founded brought together a group of experts at at Bayview to better understand what causes age-related problems, with the goal of slowing or even fixing them. 'We're not aiming for people to live forever,' said Dr. Walston. 'But if we can slow the progression of disease and decline, that 10 to 20 years people live with disability, we can give them a better quality of life. We'll probably increase longevity as well.' The Sun's article said Dr. Walston conceived of the idea while treating his senior patients with cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer's disease and other conditions that develop over time. He wanted to improve their daily lives, and investigate the biological underpinnings of aging to improve later therapies or prevention strategies. Grace Ann Kubofcik, Howard County government civic watchdog, dies Eugene 'Gene' Clark, chief of staff for Maryland legislator, dies Thomas Nicholas Marudas, Baltimore harbor urban planner, dies Iris Reeves, former Baltimore City councilmember, dies Donald Warren Richardson, Richardson Farms co-owner, dies When the project launched, Dr. Walston described it as a 'big umbrella' of expertise from areas that include medical care, research, artificial intelligence and technology, engineering and business. Dr. Walston said he wanted equity and diversity to be an 'important element' of the aging project. A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. June 20 at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 14545 New Rochester Road in Pemberville, Ohio. A memorial service in Baltimore is being planned. Survivors include his husband and partner for more than 43 years, George Lavdas; two sons, Oliver Walston-Lavdas, of Baltimore and Alexander 'Alex' Walston-Lavdas, of Cocoa, Florida; a sister, Wendy Walston Vaughn, of Pemberville, Ohio; a step-mother, Ellen Walston, of Pemberville; two step-brothers, Brent Sandberg, of Perrysburg, Ohio and Justin Sandberg, of Pemberville. Have a news tip? Contact Jacques Kelly at and 410-332-6570.
Medscape
06-06-2025
- Health
- Medscape
How to Improve Dermatologic Care of Older Adults
WASHINGTON, DC — Whole-person, age-friendly dermatological care for older adults considers the 5Ms of geriatrics — medications, mobility, what matters, mentation, and multi-complexity — and can be optimized through 'simple steps you can take in your practice this month,' geriatrician Christina Prather, MD, told dermatologists at the ElderDerm 2025 conference on dermatology in the older patient. For medication adherence and safety, for instance, possible steps include changing your practice's pre-visit call center script to prompt patients to bring in 'everything they take — the supplements, the eye drops, the ointments, the pills,' Prather said, and then doing 'a plastic bag biopsy' before the visit ideally, or afterward if necessary. 'The MAs [medical assistants] in my clinic know what to do with these plastic bags of medications, and yours can too,' said Prather, director of the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, and associate professor of medicine at the George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC, which hosted the conference. Other steps include using the real-time 'teach-back' method that asks patients to tell you in their own words what they need to do for their care, and having an MA or nurse call the patient 4-7 days after the visit to check for questions and ensure understanding of the care plan. 'Or maybe you're scheduling a follow-up visit 2 weeks later to make sure patients are implementing the plan,' said Prather, also clinical director of the GW Institute for Brain Health and Dementia, Washington, DC. 'With treatment plans, you always have to pause and ask [yourself] what makes sense for this patient?' she said. If it appears that the patient is not fully understanding the care plan, 'just [appreciate] that it won't happen without significant support and follow-up,' she said. When necessary, she noted, 'you can order home health to have a nurse go out and implement the medication care plan that you've enacted,' she said, noting that his is available through Medicare. Printed copies of care plans — done in large print for readability and with specificity — can be helpful in reducing barriers to medication adherence, as can specific suggestions for compound pharmacies. 'A lot of our older adults may not be as savvy with the internet in finding a pharmacy,' Prather said. 'Another handout you can have on your wall ready to give people is information about bubble packing and online packaging pharmacies that will package your medications based on what you need to take and when,' she said, citing PillPack as an example. Considering Possible Cognitive Impairment These actions apply to the 'mentation' component of geriatric care as well, Prather said, noting that pre-visit call center scripts can also prompt/remind patients to bring a family member or companion — in addition to their medications. By 2030, 20% of the population will be older than 65 years, noted dermatologist Freba Z. Farhat, MD, in another presentation at the meeting. People older than 85 years are the fastest growing segment of the US population and are expected to number 9.6 million by 2030 and 20 million by 2060. Of consequence for dermatologists is the significant number of people who have cognitive impairment, Farhat said. According to a cross-sectional nationally representative study led by researchers at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York City, published in 2022, almost 10% of US adults aged 65 years or older have dementia, and another 22% have mild cognitive impairment. Consideration of cognition and other factors such as functional mobility, social support, and polypharmacy are guiding principles in geriatric medicine and can all 'factor into what treatment plan we recommend,' said Farhat, assistant professor of dermatology at Georgetown University School of Medicine and director of the Inpatient Dermatology Consultation Service at Georgetown University Hospital/Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC. Prather suggests that practices with a large senior population consider training their MAs to administer a Mini-Cog, a fast and simple screening test to detect possible cognitive impairment. 'You don't have to take ownership of it, but it might really help you think about how you communicate your care plans,' she said, noting that patients whose results suggest possible cognitive impairment can be referred back to the primary care physician. Mobility, Multi-Complexity, What Matters Other considerations for older patients include whether chairs in the clinics have arm rests, Prather said, noting that 'some older patients need those armrests to push up.' For older patients who need more time to move from place to place and more support overall, 'consider not double-booking these patients, or maybe schedule them at the end of the clinic block,' or, if possible, schedule them for a longer visit, she advised. Telemedicine visits for medication checks — to check on possible side effects, for instance — may be especially valuable for these patients, she noted. Regarding the multi-complexity often involved in the health of older adults, Prather encouraged dermatologists to 'embrace nutrition' by telling patients, for instance, 'your nutrition is really important to your skin health…and I'm not going to judge but I just want to get a general sense of your dietary intake.' She then asks patients what they ate for breakfast that morning, how many glasses of water they had that day, and what they ate for dinner the prior night. By asking such questions, 'you'll know if nutrition is contributing to your patient's skin health,' she said. (During her presentation, Prather said that she saw cases of scurvy in three patients in 2021 'related to the lack of nutritional access during COVID in individuals who were homebound.') Nutritional/meal support and other services are sometimes available through local offices on aging — and handouts that list these offices and other local community-based services can be valuable in the dermatology practice. 'In DC, we have the Department of Aging and Community Living,' which can facilitate free meal delivery for seniors who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, she said, 'and there are similar programs elsewhere.' To understand what matters most to patients, Prather suggested asking questions like these: 'What concerns you most about your health? What is the most important thing I need to know about how this [condition] impacts your quality of life? What are the things that bring you joy or make you happy most days, and are you able to do those things now? And what is going to make this treatment challenging for you?'
Medscape
04-06-2025
- General
- Medscape
How to Treat Alcohol Use and Mental Health Together
Nathaniel Chin, MD Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology; Associate Program Director, UW Health Memory Clinic; Medical Director, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Study; Medical Director, Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer's Prevention Study; Medical Director, ADRC Consortium for Clarity in ADRD Research Through Imaging (CLARiTI), University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin Disclosure: Nathaniel Chin, MD, has disclosed the following relevant financial relationships:Serve(d) as a consultant or advisor for: New Amsterdam Pharma Inc (1-day advisory panel, July 2023); Eli Lilly Inc (2-day advisory panel, January 2025) Serve(d) as a volunteer board member for: Medical and Scientific Board, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Association; Alzheimer's Foundation of America
Medscape
04-06-2025
- Health
- Medscape
Uncovering Unhealthy Drinking in ‘Normal' Patients
Nathaniel Chin, MD Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology; Associate Program Director, UW Health Memory Clinic; Medical Director, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Study; Medical Director, Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer's Prevention Study; Medical Director, ADRC Consortium for Clarity in ADRD Research Through Imaging (CLARiTI), University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin Disclosure: Nathaniel Chin, MD, has disclosed the following relevant financial relationships:Serve(d) as a consultant or advisor for: New Amsterdam Pharma Inc (1-day advisory panel, July 2023); Eli Lilly Inc (2-day advisory panel, January 2025) Serve(d) as a volunteer board member for: Medical and Scientific Board, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Association; Alzheimer's Foundation of America
Medscape
29-05-2025
- General
- Medscape
Only Watching for Cancer? You're Missing Alcohol's Real Harm
Nathaniel Chin, MD Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology; Associate Program Director, UW Health Memory Clinic; Medical Director, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Study; Medical Director, Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer's Prevention Study; Medical Director, ADRC Consortium for Clarity in ADRD Research Through Imaging (CLARiTI), University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin Disclosure: Nathaniel Chin, MD, has disclosed the following relevant financial relationships:Serve(d) as a consultant or advisor for: New Amsterdam Pharma Inc (1-day advisory panel, July 2023); Eli Lilly Inc (2-day advisory panel, January 2025) Serve(d) as a volunteer board member for: Medical and Scientific Board, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Association; Alzheimer's Foundation of America
