For immediate release:  October 19, 2007
Contact: Emily Wofford Cobb , Communications Manager
Office 775-784-6006
Mobile 775-338-5119
ecobb@medicine.nevada.edu

School of Medicine and Promenade on the River expand partnership to provide on-site senior living community-based geriatric exams

RENO, Nev.— Four years ago, Promenade on the River and the University of Nevada School of Medicine embarked upon a journey of bridging an “active/independent” senior living community with a University Medical Residency Training Program. The program’s aim was to foster a learning and research experience for young doctors to live and interact with seniors on a daily basis.

          Three resident physicians and one doctoral candidate in Gerontology all completed a one-year immersion program living and sharing services and amenities with more than 90 seniors and 30 staff at Promenade. The program gained national recognition and was presented to the recent White House Conference on Aging as one of Nevada’s examples of innovative approaches in senior services.

          This cutting-edge program is now taking one large step forward to provide on-site geriatric examinations and ongoing wellness assessment in an independent senior living community. Diane Chau, M.D., assistant professor of geriatrics at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, will initially provide one half-day of exam appointments per week with the goal of expanding the clinic as its promotion reaches all Promenade residents. “I’m elated to participate in such a purpose driven program to support independent living for seniors,” says Chau.

          Philip and Nancy Shapiro, Promenade on the River’s owners, are excited to announce the grand opening of the Promenade Center for Wellness. “We had the foresight to program a medical exam suite into our interior design with the belief that we could one day offer our senior residents such a marvelous and vital service,” says Phil Shapiro. “Our residents strive to maintain their independence and this program will surely enhance prevention and treatment options for them,” says Nancy Shapiro.

          In recent years Nevada has surpassed Florida in having the greatest growth rate per capita of the 65-plus age population in the nation. The number of geriatricians, internal medicine doctors who specialize in aging issues and treating seniors, is not keeping pace with Nevada’s aging population in which the 65-plus sector is expected to double in the next 20 to 25 years.

          Programs such as the University of Nevada School of Medicine / Promenade on the River experience are testaments to creative thinking that may have national implications in fostering a better understanding of seniors and an aging society, as well as promoting the field of geriatrics to young doctors during their residency training.

As the state’s only public medical school, the University of Nevada School of Medicine has been a leader in healthcare, medical education and research in Nevada since 1969. The School of Medicine includes 16 clinical departments including family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine, surgery, and psychiatry and behavioral sciences, and five nationally recognized departments in basic science including microbiology and biomedical engineering. The more than 185 doctors of University Health System, the school’s clinical practice, offer care in more than 40 medical specialties and subspecialties with eight physician offices in the Reno/Sparks area and seven in Las Vegas. The school is committed to a best practices approach to medicine and is dedicated to exceptional healthcare for Nevada now and in the future. For more information visit www.medicine.nevada.edu.