One in eight South Carolina citizens is age 65 and older, and that number will dramatically increase over the next several decades as citizens grow older and retirees move to the state.  According to the US census bureau, South Carolina ranks 32^nd nationally in percent of elders, but will move to 15^th by 2030, when 22 percent of SC residents will be aged 65 or older.  Among the oldest old, 12.8% of South Carolina citizens 85 years of age and older live in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties, and that percentage will increase to 17.3% by 2025.  With an ever-growing geriatric population in the Lowcountry, the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics continues to expand its focus on Geriatrics teaching, patient care and research to help our seniors age with dignity and in optimal health.

Geriatrics education and clinical experience for medical students and residents takes place at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center as well as at Franke at Seaside Retirement Community.  Dr. Karleen McNeal and Dr. Renee Meyer serve as attending physicians to the Assisted Living and Nursing Home residents of Franke at Seaside, and Internal Medicine residents and medical students on Geriatrics rotations spend 1 to 2 half-days at Franke Home weekly.  The Division continues to seek partnerships with local retirement communities and nursing facilities in the Charleston area to expand the scope of education of medical students and to create interdisciplinary education opportunities for students from other disciplines as well.

Along with caring for geriatric patients at Franke at Seaside, our faculty see a significant number of older patients in our University Internal Medicine clinic and our Medicine Specialty Associates clinic in Mt. Pleasant. The Division is developing a Multidisciplinary Geriatrics Team within University Internal Medicine in order to more fully address the entire spectrum of medical needs of the geriatric patient and improve outcomes and quality of life.  We are also involved in hospice care, with Dr. Jerome Kurent, Professor of Medicine, serving as Medical Director of the local Lutheran Hospice.

Our faculty have conducted geriatrics research in areas such as hip fracture mortality and outcomes (Moran, Chen), hypertension (Egan), pain management and end of life care (Kurent), and health disparities (Egede), in addition to Dr. Lina Obeid’s extensive research in aging biology.  The Division faculty collaborate on aging related work with faculty from the MUSC Colleges of Nursing, Pharmacy, and Health Professions.