Post-Doctoral Training Program in Behavioral Geriatrics (T32)
This 2-year Postdoctoral Training Program in Behavioral Geriatrics, sponsored by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), develops independent investigators capable of cutting-edge research to improve the quality of life and quality of care delivered to older adults. The Program is Co-led by Cary Reid, MD, PhD, Director of the Translational Research Institute on Pain in Later Life and Sara J. Czaja, PhD, Director for the Center on Aging and Behavioral Research. Catherine Riffin, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology in Medicine, and Walter ‘Wally’ Boot, PhD, Professor of Psychology in Medicine serve as Associate Program Directors . Program faculty are drawn from clinical researchers and social scientists from Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell University (Ithaca) as well as other institutions in our network (e.g., Hospital of Special Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Hunter College). Applications are accepted from both MD and PhD postdoctoral trainees seeking careers at the intersection of biomedical and innovative social/behavioral approaches to improve care and care outcomes in older adults. The T32 Behavioral Geriatrics program is committed to identifying and supporting all individuals dedicated to health equity.
Behavioral Geriatrics Description
Behavioral Geriatrics is a scientific discipline that explicitly integrates social/behavioral approaches with biomedical approaches to study clinically significant and pressing issues of aging (e.g., pain, cognitive impairment, polypharmacy, caregiving, end-of-life medical decision-making, bereavement). Our emphasis on Behavioral Geriatrics allows us to recruit doctoral-level trainees from diverse disciplines and specialties (e.g., psychology, palliative care and geriatrics, public health, oncology, neurology, nursing, social work) and pair these individuals with an equally diverse set of accomplished mentors, to pursue pressing problems confronting older adults. The Behavioral Geriatrics Didactic Core covers topics including clinical and psychosocial epidemiology, grant preparation, scientific rigor and reproducibility, technology-based intervention and assessment, health services research, and trial design as related to the study of older adults. Our training program is distinctive in providing: 1) trainees with co-mentorship from an MD and PhD researcher; 2) extensive training in how to leverage emerging technologies into fellows’ research projects; and 3) regular feedback to ensure fellows meet their training goals. We encourage active involvement in the funded research projects of affiliated faculty to gain additional research experience.
Highlights
· Congratulations to Dr. Irina Mindlis (2023-2025 Fellow) who is starting a tenure-track position as an Instructor at Rutgers University
· Congratulations to Dr. Madeleine Hardt (2023-2025 Fellow) who is starting a tenure-track position at SUNY Stonybrook University
· Congratulations to Dr. Shelbie Turner (2022-2024 Fellow) who will be starting a tenure-track position at Virgina Tech
· Dr. Elizabeth Luth (2017-2020 Fellow) was recently named Division Chief for the Parker Health Group Division of Geriatrics at Rutgers University
· Dr. Elissa Kozlov (2016-2019 Fellow) was awarded an R34 grant by NIH/National Institute of Mental Health titled “Adapting DBT for Persons Living with HIV/AIDS Using an Artificial Intelligence-Powered Conversational Agent”
· Dr. Daniel Shalev (2021-2023 Fellow) was awarded a K76 (Beeson) grant by NIH/National Institute on Aging titled “CoCM-PAL: Adapting Collaborative Care for Older Adults with Serious Illness and Comorbid Depression or Anxiety Receiving Ambulatory Palliative Care”