Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Centers (GRECCs)

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) initiated a strategy in the mid 1970's to focus attention on the aging veteran population, to increase the basic knowledge of aging, to transmit that knowledge to health care providers, and to improve the quality of care to the aged.

A cornerstone of this strategy has been the development of Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Centers (GRECCs). The GRECCs are "centers of geriatric excellence" designed for the advancement and integration of research, education, and clinical achievements in geriatrics and gerontology into the total VA healthcare system.

There are currently 20 GRECCs across the VA system: Ann Arbor, Baltimore, Birmingham/Atlanta, Bronx/New York Harbor, Cleveland, Durham, Gainesville, Greater Los Angeles (Sepulveda and West LA Division), Little Rock, Madison, Miami, Minneapolis, New England (Bedford and Boston Divisions), Palo Alto, Pittsburgh, Puget Sound (Seattle and American Lake Division), Salt Lake City, San Antonio, St. Louis, and Tennessee Valley.

All of the GRECCs focus on various aspects in the quality of life and care for the aging veteran and are at the forefront of leading edge research and education.  Research results have influenced therapies for diseases affecting older veterans and have also been exported beyond the veteran community.

GRECCs will continue to serve as resources in aging research, education and clinical care for the host VA facility, other VA facilities in their respective VISNs and the VA system as a whole.  Additional effort will be made to transport throughout the VA system clinical models that have been developed and evaluated by GRECCs, such as Geriatric Evaluation and Management (GEM) programs, and Palliative Care Programs for Late-Stage Dementia patients that have been developed and evaluated by GRECCs, as well as education and training products.  One means of enhancing information dissemination is through the Internet.

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