Aging and mental health
Our department has a number of research studies dealing with mental health and aging including Alzheimer’s, dementia and cultural disparities in health care.
Reducing disparities in ADRD research participation among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
Description:
The goal of the CARE project is to reduce disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementias (ADRD) research participation among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) through the creation of a registry of AAPI who are interested in participating in various types of ADRD research.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / National Institute on Aging
Ladson Hinton, M.D., B.A.
Co-Investigator
lwhinton@ucdavis.edu
Advancing Alzheimer’s family caregiving interventions and research capacity in Vietnam
Description:
The goal of this project is to test a culturally adapted dementia caregiver intervention in Vietnam and to strengthen research capacity through the development of a research network and mentored pilot projects.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / National Institute on Aging
Ladson Hinton, M.D., B.A.
Principal Investigator
lwhinton@ucdavis.edu
Innovations bridging clinics and communities to advance late life depression care
Description:
The overall goal of this initiative (CARE-PARNTERS) is to advance care for late life depression through innovative collaboration that bridges primary care clinics, community-based organizations and families.
Funding:
Archstone Foundation
Ladson Hinton, M.D., B.A.
Principal Investigator, UC Davis subcontract
lwhinton@ucdavis.edu
The Partnership in Implementation Science for Geriatric Mental Health
Description:
The overall goal of the proposed Partnership in Implementation Science for Geriatric Mental Health (PRISM) project is to establish a hub to integrate implementation research for scaling up sustainable, evidence-based mental health interventions with research capacity-building activities for East Asia.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / National Institute of Mental Health
Ladson Hinton, M.D., B.A.
Co-Investigator
lwhinton@ucdavis.edu
Vietnamese Insights into Cognitive Aging Program (VIP)
Description:
For this project, we will develop an unprecedented longitudinal study of 540 older Vietnamese Americans in the Sacramento and Santa Clara areas to begin addressing the dearth of cognitive aging research in this population. We will examine cognition at baseline and cognitive decline, as well as rates of mild cognitive impairment and dementia. We will investigate how early life adversity, trauma, sociocontextual, psychosocial factors, cardiovascular health, and cardiovascular disease risk factors, impact cognitive outcomes.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / National Institute on Aging
Ladson Hinton, M.D., B.A.
Co-Investigator
lwhinton@ucdavis.edu
Efficacy of the WeCareAdvisor, an online tool for managing dementia behavioral symptoms
Description:
The focus of this study is to assess the efficacy of WeCareAdvisor, an online tool designed to help caregivers manage behavioral symptoms in dementia patients. The utilization of this novel tool has potential to impact dementia care by providing caregivers with on-demand access to Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) management strategies.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / Drexel University
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Principal Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Laura N. Gitlin, Ph.D.
Co-Principal Investigator, Drexel University
Unintended consequences: the impact of VA antipsychotic reduction efforts in dementia
Description:
The goals of this study are: 1) determine system-level Veterans Affairs (VA) national in psychotropic use among patients with dementia since the first black-box warning (2005) to 2014; 2) examine variables that may be associated with AP prescribing in dementia; and 3) validate additional quality indicators for VA patients with dementia.
Funding:
Veterans Affairs’ Health Services Research and Development Service
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Kara Zivin, Ph.D., M.S., M.A.
Principal Investigator, University of Michigan Medical School
Addressing inappropriate benzodiazepine prescribing among older Veterans
Description:
The aim of this mixed methods project is to identify VA facilities that successfully reduce new and chronic benzodiazepine prescribing and identify “best practices” that can be used in a variety of organizational contexts.
Funding:
Veterans Affairs’ Health Services Research and Development Service
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Donovan Maust, M.D.
Principal Investigator, University of Michigan
Patient, Caregiver, and Regional Drivers of Potentially Inappropriate Medical Care for Dementia: Building the Foundation for State Dementia Policy
Description:
The aims of this project are to: 1) Identify factors associated with potentially inappropriate care delivered to community-dwelling adults with age-related dementia and establish accurate national and state-level estimates of this care; 2) Determine the contribution of additional patient clinical, functional, caregiver, and caregiving characteristics to potentially inappropriate care relative to location; and 3) Develop an evidence-based policy making guide for dementia that for interviewing state aging policy officials.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / National Institute on Aging
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Donovan Maust, M.D.
Principal Investigator, University of Michigan
Leveraging large-scale national data to understand, reduce, and prevent benzodiazepine-related harms among older adults
Description:
The goals of this project are: 1) describe the patient, provider, and community characteristics associated with BZD initiation and continuation; 2) among BZD users, determine specific risk factors associated with misuse and overdose; these data will be used to develop a clinical prediction tool; and 3) conduct semi-structured interviews with providers and patients to package and script the use of the clinical prediction tool for PCPs.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health / National Institute on Drug Abuse
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Donovan Maust, M.D.
Principal Investigator, University of Michigan
The Apple Tree Programme: Active Prevention in People at risk of dementia
Description:
The APPLE Tree programme will provide evidence about the effectiveness of the secondary prevention of dementia in people who are already at increased risk through lifestyle, behavior change and technology interventions. The aim of the proposal is to target “lifestyle” factors that are amenable to intervention, and to use a multidisciplinary approach towards studying the effectiveness and implementation of new interventions to help build resilience.
Funding:
University of London, Economic and Social Research Council
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Claudia Cooper, Professor of Psychiatry of Older Age
Principal Investigator, University College London
Apathy in nursing home residents with dementia: impact of caregiver communication
Description:
This project will assess the magnitude and duration of apathy symptoms in nursing home residents with Alzheimers and related dementias (ADRD). To do so, the investigators will conduct secondary analyses of existing video data from a completed NIH-funded clinical trial in which 465 videos were recorded from 46 residents in 12 NHs during routine care activities at multiple time points over 5-9 months. Apathy symptoms and caregiver communication qualities will be assessed using second-by-second video coding.
Funding:
National Institutes of Health
Helen Kales, M.D.
Co-Investigator
hckales@ucdavis.edu
Ying-Ling Jao, Ph.D., R.N.
Principal Investigator, Penn State College of Nursing