The Center of Gerontology and Geriatrics of West China Hospital, Sichuan University, is one of the first established geriatric departments in China. In the center, there are 4 wards with 268 beds and a team of more than 100 doctors and nurses. It is also the Quality Control Center for Geriatric Medicine of Sichuan Province. In 2018, it ranked No. 2 at the Comprehensive Rankings for Geriatrics released by the Institute of Medical Management of Fudan University. In 2016, West China Hospital was awarded the National Center for Geriatrics Clinical Medicine Research.The Center of Gerontology and Geriatrics takes leadership in geriatrics practice and research in China.
The inpatient area of the center is consisted of 4 wards according to the unique needs of aged patients. The 4 wards are:
1) Acute Care for the Elder Unit (ACE);
2) Geriatric Evaluation Management, GEM);
3) Palliative Care Unit;
4) Perioperative Management Unit.
The new models in development are Delirium Room and Nutritional Management Unit. These wards provide geriatric care to the aged patients in a multidisciplinary team model.
The center provides medical services, including the diagnosis & treatment and the functional rehabilitation of various common geriatrics and critically complicated diseases, end-stage multiple organ failure and multi-system comprehensive elderly diseases. As the largest high-level specialized diagnosis & treatment center for geriatrics in Sichuan Province and southwestern China, nearly 20,000 patients are diagnosed and treated here per year. The team is excellent in management of common diseases and geriatric syndromes, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, infectious disease, hypertension, coronary heart disease, heart failure, arrhythmia, diabetes metabolic disease, cerebrovascular disease, dementia, malnutrition and frailty. The Center also has advanced mentalities and technologies of palliative care and hospice for end-stage of tumors and advanced diseases.
The research field of the center involves function maintenance and promotion for elderly people and chronic disease (COPD, CAD, diabetes and osteoporosis). Its outstanding research projects focus on geriatric assessment, frailty, sarcopenia, delirium, acute care for the elderly and long-term care for elderly people. The center undertook over 100 projects, including 973 National Major Projects, the projects supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology and National Natural Science Foundation of China, with a total funds of more than 40 million RMB. The research team won 5 Scientific and Technological Progress Awards by the Ministry of Health, the Sichuan Provincial People's Government, and the Sichuan Provincial Health Commission.
The Center is the only authorized unit for granting the Geriatrics Ph.D. degree in Sichuan Province. With 6 supervisors for Ph.D. and 17 supervisors for master, it can recruit 4 to 6 doctoral students and 10 to16 graduate students every year.
The Center is the only collaborating unit of the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG) in China. Many doctors of the center have experience of overseas studying or visiting. It has established close relations with the geriatrics departments of many university hospitals in the United States, United Kingdom, France, Canada and other countries.
