Author Archives: Jamie Garrett

This past summer, Dr. Claire Larson, assistant professor of medicine in the UNC Division of Geriatrics, joined two UNC School of Medicine students in Nagoya, Japan. MD/PhD student Ray Cheever and and a second-year medical student Grace Lian represented UNC. They were joined by two Duke University students, two UC Davis students,...

Dr. Maureen Dale recently spoke to AARP about considerations for taking on caregiving responsibilities for aging parents. Dr. Dale says one of the main issues to consider is whether you have the bandwidth to be a caregiver. She also says that if you choose to be a caregiver for a...

What were the 2024 milestones and highlights for the UNC Division of Geriatric Medicine and the Center for Aging and Health? Read about grants, awards, international visits, and more!

A CAH co-authored article was selected for the David A. Peterson Award. The honor was officially announced at the AGHE Presidential Symposium and Recognition Event on Friday, November 15 at GSA’s Annual Scientific Meeting in Seattle, Washington.

Older adults may have heard about weight loss drugs like Wegovy and Zepbound. However, even though these meds may be beneficial for them, older adults may not be fully aware of their drawbacks. Recently, Dr. John Batsis spoke to Consumer Reports about older adults using these medications for weight loss....

The UNC Center for Aging and Health is pleased to announce that the Carolina Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program (CGWEP) has been awarded a grant of $5 million by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). This funding will support programming over the next five years, from 2024 to 2029. According...

In a recent interview with CNN, Dr. John Batsis listed a few things everyone should know about healthy aging. Specifically, he listed things that people can do now to help ensure they remain in good health into their later years. Batsis said that proper nutrition along with regular physical activity...

Dr. John Batsis recently presented at the National Institute on Aging’s Research Centers Collaborative Network Workshop on Nutrition and Aging Biology in San Francisco. He spoke on GLP-1 Receptor Agonists’ Effect in Older Adults. Dr. Batsis’ UNC colleague Danae Gross also gave presentation at the conference. Her talk was entitled...

Among older adults, losing weight can be a life-changing choice. In some cases, weight loss can help extend a person’s lifespan by reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. These are two conditions which affect older adults in greater proportion than younger people. Although GLP-1 drugs like...

While working in a primary care setting during his medical residency, Dr. Fernando Diaz observed a striking disparity. He was seeing many older patients with advanced-stage cancer diagnoses. And many of them were Spanish-speaking, foreign-born, and uninsured. As the child of immigrants, Dr. Diaz says, “I saw my family in...

In recent years, the ties between the state of North Carolina and the country of Japan have steadily strengthened. Last year alone, Japanese companies invested over $10 billion in new projects and created over 3,000 new jobs in North Carolina. On April 12, 2024, the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida...

Dr. John Batsis recently spoke with Verywell about his concerns regarding the prescribing of weight loss drugs. Batsis believes that some people want quick fixes from providers who are willing to prescribe weight management medications. However, he said that weight loss medications are only one part of a comprehensive plan....