At #AGS18, Innovation for “Young & Young at Heart” Finds Common Home at Disney & in Geriatrics

Home to the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) 2018 Annual Scientific Meeting (#AGS18), the Walt Disney World Resort^® in Orlando, FL, has long been a place for the “young and young at heart”—but it shares more with geriatrics than you might think.

In the same year that Walt Disney announced plans for his iconic theme park, then-President Lyndon Johnson proposed an equally ambitious program, Medicare, to ensure older Americans like Disney could continue contributing to our communities for as long as possible. Since then, the same creativity and innovation that helped Disney change the landscape of central Florida has also helped geriatrics shape a more supportive landscape for us all as we age—something more than 2500 geriatrics health professionals and advocates will revisit at #AGS18, held May 3-5 (pre-conference day May 2).

The following are a few #AGS18 session highlights, but be sure to visit meeting.AmericanGeriatrics.org for registration, the full program schedule, and all other information for #AGS18.

Hypertension in Older Adults: Controversies and Challenges

(May 3; 10:15 am-11 am)

This session will address the hotly debated 2017 clinical guideline for the prevention, detection, and management of hypertension in adults—the first update to such guidance in 14 years.

The Future Is Now: Dementia Care Management for High-Impact, High-Value Care

(May 3; 11:15 am-12:15 pm)

Symposium leaders will review essential interventions in new dementia care models, discussing how to staff and train team members to deliver better and more effective dementia care at lower costs to patients and health systems.

Cannabis Use in Older Adults: Friend or Foe

(May 3; 2:45 pm-3:45 pm)

This symposium will review survey data from Colorado seniors in the context of clinical studies using medical marijuana for the treatment of chronic pain, anorexia, dementia, and other health concerns. 

Presidential Poster Session

(May 3; 5 pm-6 pm)

The Presidential Poster Session celebrates posters that received top-billing from #AGS18 Abstract Reviewers across a range of categories, including clinical trials, epidemiology, ethics, geriatric bioscience, health services and health policy research, and more. 

Public Policy Lecture

(May 4; 11:15 am-12:15 pm)

A fan-favorite and an important priority for 2018, this session includes the latest information on changes in the policy world as they relate to geriatrics health professionals and older adults. Presenters will offer a whirlwind tour of Washington and AGS public policy priorities, including what to expect from Congress and the Trump Administration in the year ahead.

That Was the Year that Will Be: Bench Research Findings of 2017 that Will Be at the Bedside by 2022 

(May 4; 1:30 pm-2:30 pm)

This symposium addresses basic science and translational studies that will move from the lab bench to the bedside in the next few years, including cutting-edge research on geroscience, resilience and vulnerability, and nutrition. 

Geriatrics Literature Update 2018

(May 5; 8:45 am-10:15 am)

A must-see for AGS Annual Scientific Meeting attendees, the Geriatrics Literature Update will focus on more than 20 of 2017’s most important and
impactful journal articles shaping health and care for older adults, caregivers, and geriatrics health care professionals.

Pharmacotherapy Update: 2018

(May 5; 11:45 am-2 pm)

Now a 2-part symposium, this series of sessions will address updates related to access to medications for older adults, summarizing changes over the past year in prescription drug treatment and coverage.

To read more ALTC expert commentary and news, visit the homepage