Joris Slaets

Joris Slaets received his medical degree in 1979 at the University of Leuven, Belgium. He was trained as a geriatrician in the Netherlands and was Professor of Geriatric Medicine at the University Medical Centre Groningen and Director of the Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing until December 2019. He was vice-president of the Central Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (CCMO) and member of the Dutch society for Internists (NIV) and the National Health Care Institute.

Joris put the concept of ‘harmful care for older people’ on the agenda and his ideas about wellbeing and happiness have become an integral part of policy in the Netherlands. Important themes in his scientific work are strength and frailty, needs and desires, and complexity models to understand the meaning of the narratives of older people. He was also involved in the development of many training programs for internists, medical doctors, geriatricians and nurses.

Although not retired as a medical doctor, Joris continues to be involved in research at the University Medical Center Groningen.