Welcome to the Online Curriculum in Geriatrics and Gerontology

The UCSF Academic Geriatric Resource Center came into being in 1985 as part of a statewide initiative to enhance geriatric education in the health professions. California State Assembly Bill 2614, which was enacted into law the previous year, established the Academic Geriatric Resource Program (AGRP) to fund academic geriatric resource programs at the six health science campuses of the University of California. Each of the six campuses developed an Academic Geriatric Resource Center (AGRC) to plan, implement, facilitate, and coordinate activities in support of the following:

UCSF Academic Geriatric Resource Center Goals:

1. To promote geriatric education for students in the health professions at the undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate levels


2. To develop multidisciplinary, community-based clinical education experiences in geriatrics that span the continuum of health care for older adults


3. To provide public education and continuing education programs on the processes of aging and on other topics related to the enhancement of health and health care among older adults


4. To support research on health care practices in long-term care settings

This course recognizes a multidisciplinary team approach as fundamental to the provision of quality care to older adults. Knowledgeable, thorough and careful examination, backed by appropriate consultation with and inclusion of other clinicians and experts, is essential. It is acknowledged, however, that teams will vary in their membership, structure, and function depending on patient need and the site of care. Team members may include physicians, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, physical and occupational therapists, dietitians, social workers, and psychologists. On occasion, teams will also consult speech therapists, recreational therapists, legal experts, housing authorities, and financial managers.

This course will provide participants with:

• A foundation in the demography, pharmacology, biology, and physiology of aging;


• The ability to distinguish age-related changes from pathology;


• A working knowledge of psychosocial, economic, cultural, and health policy issues influencing aging and health care for older adults in the United States;


• The components of a comprehensive and multidisciplinary assessment of older adults and their families;


• A working knowledge of common health problems experienced by older adults and an understanding of the potential for atypical presentations;


• An understanding of the continuum of clinical settings and services offering care to older adults;


• An understanding of how to access these services, including factors that facilitate or constrain utilization of particular types of care;


• The ability to integrate knowledge gained into the development of a comprehensive plan of care for elders across a spectrum of care settings.

Judith C. Barker, PhD, Anthropology, History, and Social Medicine



Susan Hyde, DDS, MPH, PhD, Restorative Dentistry



Kirby Lee, PharmD, MA, Clinical Pharmacy



Margaret Wallhagen, PhD, RN, CS, GNP, Physiological Nursing

Contributing Faculty

Mark Kirkland, DDS, Dentistry
R. Ron Finley, BS Pharm, RPh, Clinical Pharmacy
Bree Johnston, MD, MPH, Geriatrics, Medicine
Charlene Harrington, RN, PhD, Social and Behavioral Sciences
Joan B. Wood, PhD, Social and Behavioral Sciences and Medicine (Geriatrics); Past Campus Planner, Academic Geriatric Resource Center


(Circa 2003- Original AGRC Online Curriculum Faculty, from left to right (front) M. Kirkland (Dentistry), Ron Finley (Pharmacy), (back) B. Johnston (Medicine), J. Barker (Anthropology), M. Wallhagen (Nursing), Joan Wood (Geriatrics))

Joan Abrams, MPA, Academic Coordinator, Academic Geriatric Resource Center, UCSF Geriatrics Division

Cary Speidell, MS, Program Manager, Academic Geriatric Resource Center, UCSF Geriatrics Division