At a time when many academic research programs were shutting down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai kept its infrastructure actively engaged, writing and receiving new grants for studies designed to help better understand and improve treatment around our patient population.

Here are summaries of three studies the Brookdale Department is launching with major funding:

Enhancing Quality of Life for People with Dementia

In collaboration with the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), our researchers are taking the closest look yet at how serious medical illness along with social and economic factors affect people with dementia—from the time of diagnosis to end-of-life. This series of five individual projects is using longitudinal data from the National Health and Aging Trend Study (NHATS) and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to create a picture of the challenges people with dementia and their caregivers face at each step of their journey. The $12.2 million study will span five years.

“This program is novel in incorporating the cognitive, medical, and social experiences of persons with dementia and their families across interrelated research projects that together will lead to improved care for this very vulnerable population” says Melissa Aldridge, PhD, MBA, Professor of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine and Vice Chair for Research, who is co-investigator along with Kenneth Boockvar, MD, Amy Kelley, MD, and Katherine Ornstein, PhD. R. Sean Morrison, MD, the Ellen and Howard C. Katz Chair of the Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, is co-Principal Investigator along with Kenneth Covinsky, MD, MPH, at UCSF.

“We believe this is the first study to employ population-based data to examine the longitudinal interplay of factors known to influence the quality of life and death for persons with dementia," says Dr. Aldridge. "Our goal is to inform clinical and policy interventions and improve health care for persons with dementia and their families.”

Examining Homebound Care and COVID-19

Providing fresh insights into how social resources affect the ability of individuals with dementia to live safely in the community is the focus of this study, which is supported by a $400,000 grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA). Those social resources include caregiving networks (social support, caregiver availability, and well-being), financial factors (income, insurance, economic well-being), and community related (cohesion, walkability, service availability).

Specifically, researchers will analyze how these variables impact people with dementia when they become homebound in the era of COVID-19. The lead investigator for the study is Katherine Ornstein, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, and Medicine, and Director of Research for the Institute of Care Innovations at Home at Mount Sinai.

Building a National Platform for Geriatrics and Palliative Care Research

A $3.6 million, five-year grant from the National Institute on Aging will enable the Department to expand and enhance research infrastructure through the National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC). A key initiative is to establish a network of palliative care research trainees through collaboration among post-doctoral palliative care programs throughout the United States.

The grant will also enable the NPCRC to support junior investigators in dementia and population-based research and training, including workshops and webinars on advanced statistical research methods and training.

For experienced investigators, the Brookdale Department will encourage the development and conduct of multisite geriatrics and palliative medicine research focused on NIA priorities. Lead investigators for this project are Drs. Morrison and Aldridge.