AGEM Author Spotlight November 2025

Published Work by AGEM Members

 

AGEM Author Spotlight: Ula Hwang, MD, MPH, FACEP, Professor of Emergency Medicine at New York University Grossman School of Medicine

The Geriatric Emergency Care Applied Research Standardization Study (GEARSS): An Observational Study of Older Emergency Department Patients

Dr. Hwang's research centers on GEARSS, a multicenter observational study capturing a snapshot of geriatric syndromes and conditions common in older ED patients. The data and variables collected were prioritized by the GEAR Taskforce (a collaboration of emergency medicine, geriatrics, nurses, pharmacists, researchers, patients and care partners, etc.) through consensus and expert recommendation.  By collecting much of the data in GEARSS using prospective surveys, functional tests while patients were in the ED, and afterwards via telephone follow-up, the quality of electronic health record data can be compared to what patients and their care partners report. This is important because it will not only enhance understanding and characterization of older adults that present for emergency care, but also clarify the types of care they may receive, their outcomes, and how to optimize the capture of all of these things during clinical care, in the medical record, and as part of research.  The GEARSS database is available for researchers to collaborate with GEAR site investigators to use in pilot studies or to generate preliminary data.

Ula Hwang, MD, MPH, FACEP is a Professor of Emergency Medicine and Population Health and Medical Director of Geriatric Emergency Medicine at the New York University Grossman School of Medicine and a core investigator at the GRECC (Geriatrics Research, Education and Clinical Center) at the James J. Peters Bronx VAMC.  She wrote the article first describing “The Geriatric Emergency Department,” and co-lead development of the Geriatric ED Guidelines that are endorsed by national EM and Geriatrics organizations and is the basis for ACEP’s Geriatric ED Accreditation program. She co-leads the National Institute on Aging Geriatric Emergency care Applied Research (GEAR) infrastructure networks that focus on supporting the optimization of emergency care for older adults and persons living with dementia and co-leads the Geriatric ED Collaborative (GEDC), a national implementation program supported by the John A. Hartford Foundation to implement, disseminate, and evaluate geriatric emergency care.