Geriatrics

Chairman's message

Bridgeport Hospital is a thriving hospital with two campuses; one in Bridgeport and one in Milford. The hospital has more than 2,600 employees, more than 1,100 active physicians representing more than 60 sub-specialties and 230 medical/surgical residents and fellows in programs affiliated with Yale School of Medicine. 

Our hospital is an active participant in Age Friendly Care and has received recognition from the Institute for Health Care Improvement (IHI) as a hospital Committed to Care for older adult patients. The Milford Campus is the first of its kind full Age Friendly Campus and renovations and patient care services are being completely reengineered to serve the needs of older adults in our community. On the Bridgeport Campus we have an accredited Geriatric Emergency Department, a Geriatric Trauma service, a specialized Geriatric Psychiatry unit and are working toward Geriatric Surgical Verification. 

The Geriatric Medicine Fellowship at Bridgeport Hospital is community-based and designed to prepare physicians for clinical and leadership positions in the field of geriatric medicine. With its strong emphasis on clinical care, the program’s mission is to train physicians to be skilled in providing top-notch, evidence-based care for complicated, frail, elderly patients in multiple sites and to be skilled in translating academic philosophy into quality patient care. We are strengthened by our close partnership with Yale School of Medicine and serve as a co-partner and major teaching site for a combined Geriatric/Palliative Care Fellow, giving us a complement of two fellows each year.  

 

argento
Vivian Argento, MD
Executive Director, Geriatrics and Palliative Care Service Line
Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine

The Geriatric Medicine Fellowship at Bridgeport Hospital is a one-year clinical fellowship with all the components to allow fellows to meet requirements for board certification in geriatric medicine. Fellows participate in the evaluation and management of a wide array of elderly patients in numerous settings including: 

  • Inpatient and outpatient consultation
  • Home care
  • Assisted living facilities
  • Nursing homes  

Additional experiences will be provided in inpatient geriatric psychiatry care, geriatric emergency medicine, geriatric social work and behavioral health, inpatient rehabilitation, palliative care and wound care. Fellows will have contact with a wide array of disciplines during their varied rotations and will be required to have electives with Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Neurology, and Psychiatry. They will participate in interdisciplinary team meetings at least weekly. Fellows will be expected to participate in clinical research and will be encouraged to present their research at a national meeting. Unique to this fellowship are experiences in Geriatric Emergency Medicine Services (GEMS), our embedded ED geriatric consultative service and fully integrated Palliative Care services.

Our dedication to academics and affiliation with Yale Medicine give our community-based program an academic edge. Our physicians are active in research and publications. They are leaders at the state level and travel frequently to national conferences to present case studies and original research.

Rotations are available at Yale for ACE unit and Inpatient Rehab on the Milford Campus of Bridgeport Hospital.

Bridgeport lies between New York City and Boston along the beautiful southwestern coast of Connecticut. Natural beauty abounds and Connecticut has a shoreline for swimming and beautiful nature hikes and parks with waterfalls and mountain views. The cities offer cosmopolitan dinging and there are many seasonal festivals, outdoor and indoor concerts and beautiful museums. There is truly something for everyone.

  • Weekly didactic conference on a variety of topics with fellows required to prepare and present 2 sessions a year
  • Weekly case-based discussion on morbidity and mortality report
  • Monthly research meeting with review of all ongoing research within the section
  • Monthly journal club with fellows presenting 3-4 times a year
  • Monthly Geriatric Grand Rounds at Yale School of Medicine
  • Quarterly faculty development workshops

Fellows also have the option to attend:

  • Weekly Medical Grand Rounds at Bridgeport Hospital
  • Weekly didactic sessions for residents and other fellowship programs
  • Daily Internal Medicine resident morning report
 

Fellows are asked to complete original research and a quality assurance project during their fellowship. They are encouraged to submit abstracts of their work to appropriate national conferences including the annual symposia of GSA, AMDA, AGS or AAHPM. Each fellow is expected to present one poster at a national meeting.

The Bridgeport Hospital Center for Geriatrics and Palliative Care has faculty board-certified in geriatric medicine and hospice as well as palliative medicine. We have a staff of over 30, including social workers, nurse care managers, medical assistants, advance practice providers and administrative staff that practice together in a unique team based model. In 2018 this team was recognized by the Cleveland Clinic with the “International Empathy Award.” We work in a collegial manner, with the patient always at the center of our focus and with the joy that comes from developing young doctors into future leaders.

View current faculty for Geriatrics

  • Inpatient Geriatrics and Mobile ACE team
  • Geriatric Emergency Medicine Service
  • Palliative Care
  • Rehab Medicine (Yale)
  • Home Based Primary Care (Assisted Living and homes)
  • Outpatient Geriatric Assessment
  • Skilled and Extended Care Nursing Facilities
  • ACE unit (Yale)
  • Geriatric Social Work 
  • Behavioral Health 
 

Additionally the Department of Psychiatry has a subsection of Geriatric Psychiatry, and the Department of Emergency Medicine is an accredited Level Two Geriatric ED. The Section of Trauma has an integrated Geriatric Trauma service and the Department of Surgery is moving toward Geriatric Surgical verification.

Review a sample of publications in the section

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