Deepthi Martha Reddy, a first year medical student at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, is still deciding what career path to take in medicine.

"As a physician I will probably work with geriatric patients regardless of the field I choose to enter," she says. "Geriatrics is relevant to most specialties as the health conditions and health care issues faced by older adults are vast. Furthermore, the growing population of older adults underscores the need for more health care professionals and students to be adequately trained to address these issues."

The research Reddy presented at AGS' 2006 meeting focused on the need for asthma education for both older adults and children and concluded that older adults can play a effective roles as community health workers teaching children about asthma. Presenting her research was an invaluable experience, she says.

"Presenting at the meeting allowed me to meet and communicate with experts in geriatrics and other fields who offered insightful recommendations on ways to expand my research and helped me broaden my knowledge of the most current studies being conducted," Reddy says.