“With the growing elderly population across America and West Virginia, obviously we need healthcare providers,” Goldberg said. That includes geriatricians — physicians who specialize in the treatment of adults age 65 and older — as well as nurses, physical therapists and psychologists who know how to care for this population.
“The current workforce is inadequately trained and inadequately prepared to deal with what’s been called the silver tsunami — a tidal wave of elderly people — increasing in the population in West Virginia, across America and across the world really,” Goldberg said.
The deficit of properly trained physicians is expected to get worse. By 2030, one in five Americans will be eligible for Medicare, the government health insurance for those 65 and older.
HENRY KOTULA 