Care of the Elderly (COE) academic training programs have been officially recognized by the College of Family Physicians of Canada since 1989. They represent elective supplementary training in care of the elderly of 6 or 12 months duration, available after the two-year core Family Medicine Residency.

The Memorial University COE program was established in 2015 and is fully accredited. Upon successful completion of the residency program candidates are conferred with a Certificate of Added Competence (CAC) in COE, and will be permitted to use the CFPC (COE) designation.

Specific objectives for training are as follows:

1. To develop an approach to the comprehensive geriatric assessment to manage the frail older adult.
2. To recognize atypical presentations of illness and understand the management of common geriatric syndromes across the care continuum.
3. To develop administrative and clinical expertise in frail older adult care by working with an inter-professional team in a variety of urban and rural settings including long-term care, acute care, rehabilitation, outpatient clinics and the patient's home
4. To act as a health expert for the older adult within the primary care setting and specialized geriatric care systems.