Geriatrics

The Department of Geriatrics was established at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1985 to address the increasing aging population's need for sensitive, competent health care. Since its inception, the Department has grown to provide multidimensional services for the West Philadelphia community of older persons. Geriatrics, by virtue of its interdisciplinary nature and the commitment of faculty, has evolved into a vital and growing clinical service at PCOM.

In 1996, PCOM received approval from the AOA Committee on Postdoctoral Training for a Geriatrics Fellowship. This one-year program is designed to expose physicians to the continuum of care of elderly persons, which includes office and consultative care, inpatient, hospice, long term care and home care services.

Fellows also have scheduled rotations in the subspecialty areas of rheumatology, rehabilitation medicine, psychiatry and neurology; they can elect additional rotations in other areas, e.g., dermatology, which will better prepare them to care for older patients. The program also provides training in teaching/administration and research to prepare for careers as academicians and clinical educators.

Fellows rotate on the PCOM geriatric nursing home call schedule, and provide medical consultative services for inpatient geriatrics. The program enables regular interaction with multidisciplinary team members, such as nurse practitioners, speech, physical therapists and social workers.

Family Medicine Residents

Family medicine residents can elect to enter geriatrics fellowship training upon completion of their PGY-3 year. Candidates are encouraged to sit for their family medicine board exam prior to entering the fellowship. After completion of the fellowship, and successfully passing the family medicine board exam candidates are eligible for certification in geriatrics.

Residents are required to present a paper suitable for publication.

Complete and submit the GME Application for Fellowship [PDF] along with the required supplemental documents.

Notice to Applicants

All applicants for the PCOM Residency programs must be legally authorized to work in the United States.