Geriatric Medicine

Division of Geriatric Medicine

About Us

Geriatricians look after medical conditions in older people and focus on the unique problems of people in late life, including frailty, dementia, and impaired memory, delirium, falls, inappropriate drug use and incontinence. These conditions complicate surgery and other medical care, add complexity to chronic diseases such as diabetes, osteoarthritis and heart diseases, and reduce the ability of older adults to carry out their everyday activities.

Members of the Division of Geriatric Medicine, although mostly concentrated at the university site, provide diverse clinical services-from acute to community care-to the Edmonton Zone and beyond. They also provide care in specialty clinics in osteoporosis, mild cognitive impairment and bladder and bowel problems.

As the ratio of geriatricians to the large geriatric population is low, division geriatricians provide leadership in organizing Alberta Health Services and the community to meet the needs of the population.

Provision of Continence Care in Alberta

Dr. Peter N. McCracken Legacy Scholarship

Geriatric Grand Rounds

Message from the Division Director

Our website gives you a glimpse of a small but forward looking, innovative Division that is committed to patient care, research and education.

The Division incorporates the Specialized Geriatrics Program at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, acute geriatric care at the University of Alberta Hospital and the Royal Alexandra Hospital within the city. We wish to promote an active research and teaching culture where all of our patients expect to be involved and active in our programs, allowing the development of a highly active component of the academic health centre within the city.

Our research embraces work within the Geriatric giants of incontinence, falls, frailty and delirium, coupled with knowledge translation and clinical effectiveness projects both nationally and internationally.

A Dr. Peter N. McCracken Legacy Scholarship was set up to embrace research activities in geriatrics/gerontology by postgraduate students of programs affiliated with University of Alberta.

Issues regarding our Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada approved residency program in Geriatric Medicine at University of Alberta may be addressed to Dr. Fiona Lawson, Program Director, Residency Program in Geriatric Medicine and Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine.

An undergraduate special interest group in older people is also mentored within the Division.

Adrian Wagg MB, FRCP, FHEA
Chair in Healthy Ageing
Director and Professor
Division of Geriatric Medicine
Email: Adrian.Wagg@ualberta.ca

Research

Research within the Division covers the geriatric syndromes of incontinence, frailty and dementia as well as the application of assistive devices to aid independence of living.

There is a major collaboration with researchers in the Faculty of Nursing in the area of knowledge transfer and mobilization with regard to the quality of care for nursing home residents and the association of urinary incontinence and falls in older people. There are active links with researchers in the UK and elsewhere in Canada in these areas.

Contact Information

Division Director

Dr. Adrian Wagg

Executive Assistant to Division Director

Chelsea Sorensen
1-198 Clinical Sciences Building
Email: geriea@ualberta.ca
Phone: 780-492-5338

Administrative Assistant / Conference Planner

Evelyn Omasta
1-198 Clinical Sciences Building
Email: eomasta@ualberta.ca
Phone: 780-492-0168