Meeting the complex health care needs of individuals living with chronic illnesses such as heart failure, diabetes and depression in a person-centered, safe, and efficient manner will be a, if not the, dominant healthcare challenge in the next few decades. Our research agenda focuses on the growing population of chronically ill adults with a specialization on frail, elderly adults and their family caregivers. Members’ implementation of various research methods is now creating a body of knowledge that will directly benefit this vulnerable population.
T32 Postdoctoral Fellowship positions are available now
- Immersive research experiences with leading expert mentors
- Research skills development
- Supportive interprofessional scholarly environment
- Career development
Learn more about our program
The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) — the country’s largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to the field of aging — is honoring three Penn Nursing Professors with awards for their outstanding research, distinguished leadership in teaching and service, and for fostering new ideas in gerontological science.
Improved indicators needed for SNF/post-acute care
In a new clinical investigation published in the
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Burke, Xu & Ritter examine skilled nursing facility (SNF) outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries with and without a dementia diagnosis. While overall outcomes were similar between groups, cognitive dysfunction at SNF admission was a stronger predictor of outcomes than a diagnosis of dementia. Improved indicators for who will benefit from post-acute care is greatly needed.
American Nurse Heroes tv special
A televised documentary,
American Nurse Heroes, from the American Nurses Association (ANA), Al Roker Entertainment, and HealthCom Media, publisher of American Nurse Journal, premieres June 24th on Discovery Life (recast June 28th on NBC). Doctoral student, Tarik Khan is one of four nurses featured in the program celebrating the contributions of nurses and the positive impact they have on our nation in the pandemic and beyond.
On-demand viewing of this extraordinary piece is forthcoming. 
We connected with Eileen Brinker, RN, MSN, Clinical Coordinator for the MIRROR-TCM trial based in the Office of Population Health and Accountable Care at UCSF Health, to discuss the complex health and social needs patients experience and the importance of care continuity in meeting those needs through engagement, communication, education, and the strength of a well-built team.
In a new article for Penn LDI’s Health Policy$ense blog, Onome Henry Osokpo, PhD, MSc, MSN, RN, LDI Associate Fellow, Provost Postdoctoral Fellow for Academic Diversity, and Penn Nursing Postdoctoral Research Fellow, writes about the cultural and structural factors that affect self-care in African immigrants with chronic disease.