North Idaho faces a significant shortage of specialized geriatric care providers, with only two geriatricians serving a five-county region that includes Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls, Hayden, Rathdrum, and surrounding communities in Kootenai County. As the population ages and demand for elder healthcare continues to climb, the scarcity of physicians trained in geriatric medicine has become a pressing challenge for residents seeking comprehensive care for age-related conditions.
Meet North Idaho’s Geriatricians
Dr. Susan Melchiore and Dr. Megan Skibitsky, based in Sandpoint, represent the only two geriatricians currently practicing across the five northern Idaho counties. Melchiore works through Kootenai Health’s Memory Consultation Clinic, where she provides diagnosis, treatment, education, and ongoing support for patients experiencing memory loss and other cognitive changes. A handful of additional geriatricians practice in Lewiston, Twin Falls, and Boise, but they serve much larger geographic areas and patient populations.
The Memory Consultation Clinic has treated more than 1,000 patients in the past year and a half, with clinic visits typically lasting one hour to allow for thorough evaluation and care planning. This level of individualized attention reflects the complexity of geriatric medicine, where multiple chronic conditions often overlap and require careful coordination.
Why Geriatric Medicine Matters in Kootenai County
Adults aged 65 and older utilize healthcare services across all specialties more frequently than younger populations, placing unique demands on the medical system. Older patients typically present with multiple comorbidities—the simultaneous presence of several chronic diseases—requiring physicians who understand how conditions interact and how medications affect elderly patients differently than younger adults.
Despite the critical need, geriatrics remains a less popular medical specialty. Melchiore acknowledged the reality that geriatrics is often perceived as neither the most glamorous nor the most lucrative field in medicine, which contributes to the nationwide shortage of physicians choosing this career path.
Breaking Barriers and Changing Perceptions
Melchiore emphasized that many older adults resign themselves to age-related decline as inevitable. “People think, ‘Oh, I’m just getting old and there’s nothing I can do.’ But there is often a lot we can do to prevent or postpone decline or change,” she told the Coeur d’Alene Press. This perspective challenges a common misconception that aging necessarily means accepting functional loss without intervention.
Beyond medical treatment, Melchiore stressed the importance of social connection and support systems for older residents. “Don’t age alone. As much as we want to be independent, sometimes we need a buddy system,” she noted, highlighting research showing that social isolation and loneliness significantly impact elder health outcomes.
Impact on North Idaho Residents
The shortage of geriatricians in Coeur d’Alene and across the Panhandle means many older adults struggle to access specialized care for memory disorders, cognitive decline, and age-related health complexities. Patients may face long wait times or travel significant distances to reach the nearest available specialist, placing additional burden on families and caregivers already managing complex health situations.
Kootenai Health’s Memory Consultation Clinic serves as a critical resource for the region, but the volume of referrals—more than 1,000 patients in eighteen months—underscores the unmet demand. Residents in surrounding communities like Spirit Lake, Dalton Gardens, and other areas of North Idaho may have even more limited access to specialized geriatric services.
Looking Forward
As Idaho’s population continues to age, the need for geriatric specialists will only intensify. The current two-geriatrician model serving five northern counties is unsustainable as the number of seniors grows. Healthcare systems, medical schools, and policy makers face pressure to attract more physicians to geriatric medicine, whether through incentives, loan forgiveness programs, or cultural shifts that elevate the specialty’s status and appeal.
For North Idaho residents concerned about their own aging or that of family members, the message from Melchiore is clear: seek specialized geriatric care when cognitive changes or multiple health conditions arise, maintain social connections, and recognize that many age-related declines can be managed or delayed with proper medical attention and lifestyle support. Kootenai Health’s Memory Consultation Clinic remains the primary specialized resource for the region.