Senior Health
Providence Portland Medical Center
Caring for Older Adults
Each day in Oregon, 900 older adults are seen by a Providence primary care provider, 300 seek emergency medical care at a Providence facility, and 75 are admitted to a Providence hospital. Most of these 900 patients will receive care from clinicians who have no specialized training in treating patients over the age of 65. In fact, fewer than 2% are likely be seen by a geriatrician.
The team at Providence Senior Health aims to change that. Together, we can improve care for older adults by providing customized, specialized care to meet the need of each patient and their family.
Providence Senior Health provides a variety of programs for older patients and their families:
- Age-friendly health care
- Geriatric mini-fellowships and geriatric education to train providers
- Programs to reduce risk of falls
- Specialized care for patients with dementia
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Our Impact
Providence Senior Health weaves together our integrated health system with our community partners to provide a simple, accessible path to health care for every person. Using creative ways to partner with older adults and their families, we are able to deliver health care tailored for each person’s specific needs.




Better care for elderly patients

Electra Royse loves to crochet. At 94, the great-grandmother still makes hats to donate to various charities. She has made and donated more than 20,000 hats.
When her son noticed that she was starting to physically decline, he took his mother to see Marian Hodges, M.D., MPH, a geriatric doctor at Providence who specializes in treating older adults.
“It’s most important to understand what is important to the patient – what do they value, what gives them quality of life,” explained Dr. Hodges. “Then I can tailor their care to reflect those values.”
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