THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, January 31, 1996 TAG: 9601310001
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 43 lines
Dr. John Franklin's retirement at age 69 lasted two weeks. He was a founding partner of Norfolk Diagnostic Center, one of the largest physician groups in the region. He felt too young and knew too much to stop working.
After a restful pair of weeks away from the office, Dr. Franklin became a full-time professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School, intent on teaching medical students about aging. That was in 1985.
To become board-certified in geriatrics, he took four years of graduate courses from several universities. Finding that he retained information best in the morning, he studied each day from 4 a.m. till time to teach, and in 1989, at age 73, he earned the certification. Two years later he created EVMS's geriatrics program, with mandatory courses for all students.
Now that program has matured into The Glennan Center for Geriatrics, which is on the verge of hiring a nationally known director.
Dr. Franklin, who will turn 81 next month, plans to half-retire. To free money for the new director, he'll stop collecting a paycheck, but he'll continue sharing his experience and knowledge with medical students.
``I grew old with my practice,'' he said, ``and I've come to know and appreciate the worthiness of older people. A lot of younger physicians are handicapped by what we call ageism, which is the concept that you shouldn't waste your time on older people when you could spend your time on the young. There's a lot that can be done for older people, and physicians need to recognize that.''
Thanks to Dr. Franklin's decade of work since his brief retirement, all EVMS students are trained to treat the elderly. For that, anyone who is old or plans to grow old can be grateful.
``He's an extremely dedicated person,'' said his friend, Robert Payne Jr., a retired surgeon. ``He works constantly.''
Everyone, young or old, needs heroes. Especially for the old, whose number grows daily, Dr. Franklin qualifies as a good one. by CNB