The American Geriatrics Society - About the AGS

History and Mission

The American Geriatrics Society was founded on June 11, 1942, when a group of physicians interested in advancing medical care for older adults met with the intention of forming a specialty society dedicated to geriatric medicine. Among those physicians were Dr. Ignatz Leo Nascher, who coined the term "geriatrics," Dr. Malford W. Thewlis, who was named the first executive secretary of the Society, and Dr. Lucien Stark who was appointed the first AGS president.

At this inaugural meeting, these founding members decided that any physician with an interest in geriatrics who had graduated from a recognized medical school and was a member in good standing of a state medical society would be eligible to join the Society. A second meeting of the AGS was held in New York City in June of 1944. This began the inception of the AGS annual scientific meeting, which has occurred every year since 1946.

As the Society’s membership has grown, so have its educational and other programs. In addition to its annual meeting, the Society now publishes the Geriatrics Review Syllabus (now in its 6th edition) and a number of derivative products including the GRS Teaching Slides Web site. The Society’s peer-reviewed journal, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society is one of the top aging journals and its other journals (Annals of Long-term Care and Clinical Geriatrics) have a wide readership. The Society has published clinical practice guidelines on persistent pain, diabetes mellitus, and falls and its pocket tool, Geriatrics at Your Fingertips, is one of the most widely used geriatric clinical tools with average annual sales of over 15,000 copies.

In 1997, the Society’s Board, in recognition of the role of interdisciplinary team members in caring for older adults, voted to open the Society’s membership to other professional members of the geriatrics interdisciplinary team. Now the fastest growing segment of our membership, these professionals are fully integrated into the AGS Board and its standing Committees.