Dr. Timothy Farrell Named Inaugural Holder of The Presidential Endowed Chair in Geriatrics
Dr. Timothy Farrell Named Inaugural Holder of The Presidential Endowed Chair in Geriatrics
Aug 20, 2025
The Division of Geriatrics at the University of Utah Health is pleased to announce that Timothy Farrell, MD, AGSF, has been named the inaugural holder of The Presidential Endowed Chair in the Division of Geriatrics.
Dr. Timothy Farrell joined the Division of Geriatrics in 2009, marking his first full-time faculty appointment following the completion of his fellowship in Geriatrics at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University/Rhode Island Hospital. Since that time, he has held numerous leadership roles within the division, including service as Interim Chief. He currently serves as Associate Chief for Age-Friendly Care in the Division of Geriatrics and Associate Director of Age-Friendly Care for the University of Utah Center on Aging.
Under Dr. Farrell's leadership, University of Utah Health (UUH) has emerged as a national leader in age-friendly care. UUH was among the first health systems to join the Age-Friendly Health Systems (AFHS) movement, achieving Age-Friendly Level 1 Participant designation from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in 2019 and Level 2 Committed to Care Excellence status in 2021. In 2024, UUH was selected as one of only 30 health systems to participate in the IHI Age-Friendly System-Wide Spread Collaborative, positioning UUH to be among the first to receive IHI recognition for system-wide implementation of the age-friendly 4Ms framework: What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility.
The University of Utah is also recognized as an Age-Friendly University (AFU) by the AFU Global Secretariat. This international initiative fosters education, research, and community engagement to benefit older adults. Remarkably, the University of Utah is one of a select group of universities nationwide to hold all three distinctions: AFHS Level 2, AFU designation, and participation in the System-Wide Spread Collaborative.
This prestigious Presidential Endowed Chair will support Dr. Farrell's continued leadership in advancing age-friendly care and research. His vision includes:
- Sustaining a UUH Age-Friendly Leadership Council to align local, state, and national age-friendly initiatives.
- Building a nationally recognized research program in age-friendly care, leveraging the Chair to secure competitive grant funding.
- Ensuring competency in 4Ms care across all UUH trainees and care providers, in collaboration with the Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, Colleges of Health, Nursing, and Pharmacy, Interprofessional Education Program, Eccles Health Sciences Library, and the UUH Hospital and Clinics.
This appointment comes at a pivotal moment, as Utah develops the Master Plan for Aging (MPA) through the Governor's Commission on Aging. Dr. Farrell is among the state leaders guiding this effort to build an "Age-Friendly Ecosystem" across Utah.