Present status and perspective of comprehensive geriatric assessment in Japan

Comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) is an important strategy to maintain activities of daily living and quality of life of elderly patients. It assesses physiological, psychosocial, and cognitive aspects of elderly. To carry it out effectively, not only is accurate the assessment but also to do appropriate recommendation and implementation are essential. In Japan, although the concept of CGA has been introduced and evaluated for elderly patients and also employed essentially in long-term care insurance, its application in the acute care setting of the elderly is still limited. This report, examines the present status and perspective of CGA application in Japan, through experiences in our university hospital and analysis of presentations from the Annual Meeting of the Japan Geriatric Society 2003.