Message from the Program Director

Welcome and thank you for your interest in the Stanford University/VA Palo Alto Health Care System Geriatric Medicine Fellowship! Initially based mainly at the VA Palo Alto, our fellowship has been training geriatricians since the 1980s. In 2015, Geriatric Medicine was formally established as a section within the Stanford Department of Medicine, which through close collaboration with VA, has strengthened our clinical, research, and quality improvement programs. As a former fellow myself and as a current faculty member, I am grateful for the education and mentorship from this program and am thrilled to continue the tradition of excellence in clinical care and innovation that have long been the foundation of this program.

The opportunity to gain expert training in Geriatric Medicine has never been more exciting than it is now given the overall increasing interest amongst health care providers, scientists, policy makers, and the general public on the implications of aging.

Our aims for our trainees are summarized by “The 5 C’s”: to Cultivate a diverse group of leaders in the field of Geriatric Medicine who are Compassionate, Clinically skilled, and effective Communicators with a passion for the care of older adults across the Continuum. In addition to offering superb clinical training at one of the most premier medical institutions in the country, several strengths make our fellowship stand out:

Innovation in Clinical Care: Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, our fellowship brings innovation to geriatric medicine by using virtual reality education to simulate the experience of older adults, using clinical informatics to bridge evidence gaps in caring for our patients, and collaborating with other specialties such as interventional radiology to investigate novel procedures to improve pain and function in patients who are not candidates for joint replacement surgery. Fellows have ample opportunities to engage in innovative research, QI projects, and education projects, preparing those interested in a clinical career in academic medicine for a clinician educator role.

Cultivation of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion across the Continuum: Our fellowship celebrates differences among our trainees, clinicians, staff, and patients. We use a holistic review process in recruiting our fellows and faculty to ensure candidates are evaluated equitably. As a section in the Division of Primary Care and Population Health, we work actively to reduce health disparities and improve social determinants of health in the diverse populations we serve. Our fellows train in a variety of clinical sites including our local PACE programs and Santa Clara Valley County hospital in addition to Stanford University Hospital and the Palo Alto VA Health Care System, and engage with our local communities through a community service project during the clinical year.

Compassion & Communication: We seek to bring compassion to both our fellows’ training and the patient care we provide. Our fellows’ curriculum includes weekly time for “hibuk,” or “hug” in Hebrew, where we meet to discuss non-clinical issues including challenging personal and professional encounters, the intersection of art and medicine, and how individual perspectives, life experiences and biases shape our practice. In addition to this, fellows participate in a longitudinal personal development curriculum to help them build skills they need to thrive as geriatricians. Finally, fellows receive advanced training in communication to ensure they are prepared to articulate compassionate care to their patients.

Through our strong history and ties with the VA Palo Alto GRECC, we are also proud to offer advanced Geriatric Medicine fellowship training for an additional two years for those who are interested in aging research and pursuing an academic career in Geriatric Medicine.

We hope this website gives you a clearer picture of what our program has to offer. We strive for continuous improvement and innovation in our program to ensure fellows have a strong start to careers that will be personally fulfilling and lead to advancement in the care of older adults. Please feel free to contact me with any questions, ideas, or opportunities for collaboration.

Sincerely,

Dr. Vinita Gidvani Shastri, Fellowship Program Director

Healthcare professionals and researchers are invited to attend our weekly seminars that cover a broad range of topics in Geriatric Medicine.

Time & Locaion:

TUESDAYS 3:00-4:00PM
3801 Miranda Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94304
Building 4, Room C-260 (2nd Floor), GRECC

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