$2 million for U. geriatrics

Mark Supiano is used to asking for a lot of money. Grant money that is.

A proposal he and 45 other staff and faculty members worked on last year recently netted the University of Utah School of Medicine a $2 million grant from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. Supiano, executive director of the U. Center on Aging, is the principal investigator for the grant, titled "Comprehensive Program to Strengthen Physicians Training in Geriatrics."

"I am absolutely thrilled," he said. "It's a great recognition to the university program on geriatrics."

The U. is one of 10 academic medical centers that received the grant, providing $500,000 annually over four years. It is the only geriatric program in the Mountain West region.

Recently, the Center on Aging was reconfigured and expanded. A new educational program will impact geriatrics training for all students in the school of medicine, as well as primary care physicians in Utah and the surrounding region.

This program will be incorporated into U.-affiliated community clinics, Veterans Affairs-affiliated Community Based Outpatient Clinics, and the Intermountain Health group.

It is estimated Utah's need for geriatric physicians will outpace most of the country's in the coming years. While the state is known for having the nation's youngest population, it also ranks seventh in people 85 and older.

The Donald W. Reynolds Foundation is a national philanthropic organization founded in 1954. It is one of the largest private foundations in the country.

---

E-mail: blee@desnews.com