The Center for Transformative Geriatric Research

The Center for Transformative Geriatric Research envisions a world in which all older adults thrive. Our mission is to perform and advance research that transforms healthcare and the lives of older adults.

To achieve our mission, our faculty employ a wide range of research approaches and techniques.  Our major areas of person-oriented research focus on health service delivery for people with complex care needs, the care of people with multiple chronic conditions, person-oriented research on issues related to late-life memory disorders, and health information technology.

We value collaborative research that is innovative, interdisciplinary, patient, caregiver, and family-centered, and which can be translated into practice or health policy.

We believe firmly that performing and publishing research findings is insufficient for the 21st century academicians; it is critical for us to disseminate research findings into the real world to help people.

Our Faculty

Halima Amjad, M.D., M.P.H.

Assistant Professor of Medicine
Halima Amjad

Alicia Ines Arbaje, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H.

Director of Transitional Care Research
Associate Professor of Medicine
Alicia Ines Arbaje

Cynthia Melinda Boyd, M.D., M.P.H.

Director, Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology
Professor of Medicine
Cynthia Melinda Boyd

Ariel Ruth Green, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H.

Associate Professor of Medicine
Ariel Ruth Green

Bruce Allen Leff, M.D.

Director, The Center for Transformative Geriatric Research
Professor of Medicine
Bruce Allen Leff

Matthew Kendall McNabney, M.D.

Medical Director, Program for All-Inclusive Care of the Elderly (PACE)
Chair, Mosaic Initiative Workgroup to Promote Diversity and Inclusion
Professor of Medicine
Matthew Kendall McNabney

Esther Seunghee Oh, M.D., Ph.D.

Co-Director, Johns Hopkins Memory and Alzheimer's Treatment Center
Associate Professor of Medicine
Assistant Professor of Pathology
Joint Appointment in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Esther Seunghee Oh

Nancy Li Schoenborn, M.D.

Associate Professor of Medicine
Associate Professor of Oncology
Nancy Li Schoenborn

Sevil Yasar, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Medicine
Associate Professor of Neurology
Sevil Yasar

Our Research

Health Service Delivery for People with Complex Care Needs

As the U.S. population ages, the number of Americans who have chronic health conditions will greatly increase. These demographic and epidemiologic dynamics will strain the capacity and the sustainability of the acute care-oriented U.S. health care system, which now provides chronic care ineffectively and inefficiently. New health service delivery systems will need to be developed, evaluated, and disseminated into widespread practice in order to deliver high-quality, cost-effective care for older adults.

Multimorbidity

Forty-eight percent of older adults have three or more chronic conditions, and the number of older adults with multiple chronic conditions will continue to increase dramatically. The presence of multiple chronic conditions independently predicts adverse outcomes, including quality of life, mortality, disability, and complications of treatment beyond the effects of the individual conditions. Currently, there is a significant gap in our understanding of how best to provide care for patients with multiple chronic conditions.

Cognitive Decline and Dementia

For aging populations in the United States and abroad, dementia is a major clinical and public health issue; it is a lengthy and costly condition that creates a large social and financial burden on society. Unless new discoveries are made in the prevention or treatment of dementia, specifically Alzheimer's disease, an estimated 13.2 million Americans will have dementia by 2050.  Identifying new and effective approaches to early detection of dementia is critical.

Health Information Technology

Health information technology can improve the delivery and quality of care for older adults in every care setting and can help older adults (and their caregivers) better manage their own care. However, technology is only one of many important elements in health service delivery and it is critical that health information technology systems are carefully designed and evaluated.