John R. Burton, MD, AGSF
George W. Drach, MD, AGSF
The AGS this year honors two of the field’s most seasoned clinician-educators with one of the Society’s highest accolades. John R. Buton, MD, AGSF—Professor of Medicine and Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) in Maryland—and George W. Drach, MD, AGSF—Emeritus Professor of Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the College of Medicine at the University of Arizona—were recognized for decades of commitment to community service and geriatrics education with the 2018 David H. Solomon Public Service Award.
“Dr. Burton and Dr. Drach exemplify two pillars of geriatrics: Our commitment to educate more of the experts we all will need as we age and our promise to ensure that all our doctors, nurses, social workers, pharmacists, and other health professionals understand what makes our care unique as we age,” notes Ellen Flaherty, PhD, APRN, AGSF, AGS Board Chair.
With research interests in models of care, geriatric syndromes, and best practices for engaging more emerging health professionals in geriatrics expertise, Dr. Burton has led geriatrics education at Johns Hopkins for more than three decades. Having worked as Clinical Director and Director of the Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, Dr. Burton later became involved in community education programs like the Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP), which is funded by the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA). Across Dr. Burton’s tenure and under his leadership, Johns Hopkins has launched a host of clinical programs benefitting older adults, including Johns Hopkins Home-Based Medicine, Hospital at Home, the Program for All-inclusive Care of the Elderly (PACE), and the Orthopedic-Geriatric Medicine Hip Fracture Service.
And while Dr. Burton has helped to accelerate the depth and breadth of geriatrics expertise at Johns Hopkins, he is also known for his role co-directing (with Dr. Solomon, the namesake for his 2018 award) for more than a decade the AGS’s Geriatrics-for-Specialists Initiative (GSI), a program funded for nearly 25 years by The John A. Hartford Foundation. The GSI has helped develop educational programs and researcher career development awards, and has worked with specialty organizations to encourage geriatrics expertise for all physicians. Dr. Burton co-edited one of the field’s first textbooks, Geriatrics for Specialists, describing the emerging knowledge base of geriatrics within the surgical and medical specialties. Much of this new knowledge was developed by scholars associated with the GSI.
A passion for ensuring all health professionals are skilled in caring for older adults has also driven the work of Dr. Drach. Inspired by his own parents' struggles with geriatric care while in their 80s, Dr. George Drach worked to spread the greater awareness necessary in geriatric surgery. A passion for ensuring that all branches of surgery are specifically trained in caring for older adults has driven his work since 1995. He specialized in urology after learning about it in the Navy in 1964, and later as Chief of Urology at the University of Arizona focused initially on the treatment of kidney stones. Chosen to lead the U.S. Food and Drug Administration trials on the lithotripter, which would transform kidney stone treatment, he became known as the “Father of American Lithotripsy.” He was later also selected as President of the American Board of Urology. There he saw the impact of specialized courses, residency educational requirements, and Board examinations in preparing doctors, and later transferred this strategy to encourage specialized care for older people in all surgical specialties.
Dr. Drach began working with the American Urological Association as a representative to the AGS and its GSI in 1995. He wished to create prototype residency education and afterward provide continuing medical education in geriatric care. In addition to hundreds of journal articles, book chapters, and books he has authored, Dr. Drach also recently co-edited a Primer of Geriatric Urology, now in its second edition. He has been Visiting Professor to many universities to encourage increased awareness among surgeons regarding needs, protocols, techniques, and optimal outcomes for older adults. He continues to parlay his experience and influence to insure that innovative best practices can be tailored to meet the needs of us all as we age.
Established by the AGS in 2002, the David H. Solomon Memorial Public Service Award celebrates the legacy of David H. Solomon, MD, AGSF, a renowned geriatrician committed to community service and advancing knowledge about the care of older individuals.
Past Recipients of the David H. Solomon Memorial Public Service Award
2017 Barbara Resnick, PhD, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP, AGSF
2016 Thomas T. Yoshikawa, MD, AGSF
2015 Jennie Chin Hansen, RN, MSN, FAAN
2014 Corinne H. Rieder, EdD
2013 Joanne G. Schwartzberg, MD
2011 Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI)
2010 Meghan Gerety, MD
2008 William D. Novelli
2007 Nora Gibson, MSW
2006 Donna I. Regenstreif, PhD
2005 Charlotte Maguire, MD
2004 Donald W. Reynolds Foundation
2003 The John A. Hartford Foundation
2002 Senator Harry Reid (D-Nev)