Dr Susan Leonard, with more people growing old and health systems facing tougher senior needs, geriatric medicine plays a key role. Few doctors match the skill, heart, and leadership this field demands like Susan D. Leonard, MD. Named one of America’s Top 50 Doctors, she is a board-certified geriatrician. She serves as Associate Clinical Professor and clinician-educator at UCLA. There, she spends her career improving the quality, respect, and health of older adults.
Contact & Appointment Information
- Geriatric Medicine – UCLA Health
200 Medical Plaza, Suite 365
Los Angeles, CA 90095 - Phone: 310-206-8272
Department: Geriatric Medicine
About Dr Susan Leonard, MD
Dr Susan Leonard blends top patient care, team efforts across fields, teaching, and system upgrades. Her geriatric view goes past illness treatment. It handles all sides of aging: body health, daily skills, mind function, and social-emotional factors. She leads in after-hospital care, nursing homes, doctor training, and quality boosts. Her efforts mold geriatric medicine in California and farther out.
A Doctor Honored as One of America’s Best
America’s Top 50 Doctors award goes to those with standout patient skills, guidance, real patient help, and strong ethics. Dr. Susan D. Leonard earned it through a career of top work, help, and fresh ideas in geriatrics.
Geriatrics calls for patience, sharp eyes, and flexibility. Seniors often face many long-term ills, body limitations, mind shifts, and tough life setups. Dr. Leonard stands out by guiding this maze with clear thinking, kindness, and proven care methods. She wins trust from patients, kin, coworkers, and students.
Focus Area: Geriatric Medicine
Geriatric medicine cares for seniors. It stresses body function, self-reliance, and good living over illness alone. Dr. Leonard’s practice lives up to these high goals.
Her style includes:
Full scope – it covers body, function, mind, and social-emotional needs.
Patient-first – it matches care to what patients want and hold dear.
Team-based – it joins forces with nurses, drug experts, social aides, rehab pros, and family helpers.
Ahead-of-risks – it cuts chances of falls, drug issues, and return hospital trips.
Dr Susan Leonard sees aging as more than body changes. It shapes through bonds, surroundings, and life’s meaning.
School Background: Built on Strong Roots
Dr. Leonard’s learning path shows sharp mind work and a real interest in human health and care setups.
She started at MIT, a top global school. Its focus on logic, new ideas, and fixes built her step-by-step way in medicine and health fixes.
Next, she got her MD from Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine in 2007. In med school, she grew keen on adult medicine and hard-to-treat patients. Those pulls led her to geriatrics.
Training in Residency and Fellowship
Dr Susan Leonard finished her:
- Internship (2008) at UC Davis Health.
- Internal Medicine Residency (2010) at UC Davis Health.
At UC Davis, she got wide patient practice. She built a solid base in grown-up care for lasting ills, sudden sickness, and tough cases.
Drawn to senior care, she went back to LA for a Geriatrics Fellowship at UCLA School of Medicine in 2011. She dove into team-based senior care. She learned to mix body fixes with keeping skills, mind health, and life support.
After that, she joined UCLA’s Geriatrics Division. She stays on as key faculty.
Board Certifications and Work Credentials
Dr Susan Leonard has two ABIM board certifications in:
Internal Medicine – 2011.
Geriatrics – 2012.
These show her drive for steady learning, strict care rules, and top skills. Keeping them means constant study and checks. Patients get the newest care facts.
A Mixed Care Practice Style
Dr. Leonard’s standout trait is her mixed practice across sites:
- Hospital stays.
- Clinic visits.
- After-hospital care.
- Nursing rehab spots.
- Long-stay nursing homes.
This range lets her track patients through shifts. Older folks face risks there. She knows paths from hospitals to rehab, nursing homes, and home. This cuts gaps, errors, and boosts results.
Her skill in shifts keeps care steady, safe, and true to patient aims at each step.
Full View on Aging
Dr. Leonard’s senior care ties in all health parts:
Body health.
Handles lasting ills, sudden issues, and prevention with senior risks in mind.
Skills.
Keeps movement, self-rule, and daily tasks.
Mind.
Checks recall, choice power, and memory loss.
Social-emotional.
Tackles mood health, family strain, loneliness, and help networks.
This full plan helps her raise not just years lived, but years well lived. That’s geriatrics’ main aim.
Clinical Interests and Areas of Expertise
Dr Susan Leonard focuses on key issues in elder care:
- Geriatric consultation
- Post-acute and long-term care
- Care transitions
- Rehabilitation medicine
- Polypharmacy and medication safety
- Fall prevention
- Quality improvement efforts
- Medical education for graduate and undergraduate students
These topics boost patient safety, independence, and well-being. Older adults often face tough health systems.
Leadership in Skilled Nursing and Post-Acute Care
Dr Susan Leonard leads in post-acute care training and oversight.
She holds these positions:
Skilled Nursing Facility Director for UCLA Geriatrics Fellowship
Director of UCLA Post-Acute Rotation
She trains new geriatricians for nursing homes. These sites matter more in elder care, yet get little training time.
Dr Susan Leonard also co-directs medical care at Berkley East Healthcare Center in Santa Monica. She sets clinical standards, drives quality work, and builds team efforts. Residents get safe, kind, proven care.
Commitment to Medical Education
Dr Susan Leonard loves teaching and guiding others. She chairs the Geriatrics Clinical Skills Workshop at UCLA. She shows second-year med students elder care basics and key assessment tools.
In this job, she:
- Shows geriatric syndromes to students
- Teaches checks for function and thinking skills
- Stresses talks with older patients and families
- Builds empathy and respect for elders
She joins geriatrics committees and fellowship groups. She helps build courses, watch programs, and improve them.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration as a Core Value
Dr Susan Leonard sees top elder care as teamwork. She teams up with:
- Nurses
- Pharmacists
- Physical and occupational therapists
- Social workers
- Case managers
- Support staff
- Family caregivers
Open talks and joint choices make care plans fit clinical know-how and patient needs. This team style fits geriatrics best. No one person handles all aging issues.
Languages and Cultural Competence
Dr Susan Leonard speaks fluently:
- English
- Mandarin Chinese
These skills aid in talks with more patients. They support care that fits cultures. This matters in mixed areas like Los Angeles.
Balancing Professional Excellence and Family Life
Dr Susan Leonard has three kids. She juggles hard work with family duties. Her own caregiving builds empathy for patients and families facing age, sickness, and care tasks.
Her full days do not stop her. She sticks to clinic work, teaching, and growth at UCLA.
Why Dr Susan Leonard Is One of America’s Top Doctors
Her honors come from:
- Top skills in geriatric medicine
- Leads in post-acute and nursing home care
- Strong teaching drive
- Teamwork focus
- Patient-first results for better life quality
- Big changes via quality work
She shows geriatrics’ path ahead. Compassion meets science, teaching, and teams.
Education and Training Summary
Undergraduate Education
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Medical Degree
Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, MD – 2007
Internship
UC Davis Health – 2008
Residency
Internal Medicine, UC Davis Health – 2010
Fellowship
Geriatrics, UCLA School of Medicine – 2011
Board Certifications
Internal Medicine – American Board of Internal Medicine, 2011
Geriatric Medicine – American Board of Internal Medicine, 2012
Conclusion: A Leader in Geriatric Care and Education
Dr. Susan D. Leonard, MD, leads in geriatric medicine. She blends top clinic skills, teaching lead, and kind care for elders. Her UCLA work aims to help patients live long and well.
As a top 50 U.S. doctor, Dr. Leonard shapes elder care. She serves patients, students, and systems. Elders get the respect, honor, and full care they need.
FAQs
Q1. What is Dr. Leonard’s medical specialty?
She focuses on Geriatric Medicine. This includes full health care for older adults.
Q2. Where does Dr. Leonard practice?
She practices at UCLA Health in Los Angeles, California.
Q3. Is Dr. Leonard board-certified?
Yes. The American Board of Internal Medicine certifies her in Internal Medicine and Geriatric Medicine.
