Primary Care for Older Veterans

Since the early 1980's, VA's patient population has been disproportionally elderly compared with the general population. VA's predominantly inpatient-based approach to care throughout much of the twentieth century transitioned to an ambulatory-based, primary care model at the turn of the millennium. Under this approach, the oldest and most frail veterans still often required services of geriatrics specialists and teams for appropriate primary care. VA is currently poised to transform its primary care approach to a more patient-centric Medical Home model that offers enhanced continuity of care. Existing geriatric-focused outpatient approaches will continue to play important roles whose final forms are not yet clear.