Overview, Mission, and Goals

The University of Pittsburgh Institute on Aging was established to improve the quality of care and overall health and well-being of older adults in southwestern Pennsylvania by linking and enhancing the research, education, and clinical efforts of the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), and other government and publicly funded organizations.

Through innovative partnerships, the Institute on Aging provides access to:

  • a multidisciplinary network of comprehensive care and quality services
  • one of the largest and most diverse portfolios of aging-related research in the country
  • one of the most extensive geriatric and gerontological education programs in the country, with 16 undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools

The Institute on Aging has positioned itself as a leader in the field of geriatrics and gerontology by developing, coordinating, and enhancing aging-related services and research offered through the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC, which together devote more resources to the field of aging than nearly any other academic medical center in the country.

Goals
The Institute on Aging aims to serve the academic missions of research, education, and clinical care. The Institute strives to bridge the gap between existing knowledge and practice and to utilize research findings to influence policy locally, statewide, and nationally.

Research
In the area of research at the university, the Institute on Aging aims to:

  • help bridge research silos in aging to facilitate identification of areas of potential synergy
  • help investigators in other disciplines apply their expertise to aging (or help it to be informed by aging-related principles)
  • identify new and potentially fruitful areas of investigation that could capitalize on current strengths
  • fund pilot studies and nurture young investigators in aging

Education
In the area of education and training, the Institute on Aging aims to:

  • compile and disseminate a list of all aging-related courses available throughout the university
  • identify gaps in aging-related education and training
  • develop new, high-quality, integrated educational programs in gerontology that are applicable across all disciplines and all of the university’s 16 schools.
  • train people in aging from beyond the university, including primary care physicians and relevant non-physicians (nursing assistants, homemakers, home health aides, etc.)

Clinical
In the clinical arena, the Institute on Aging strives to identify important niches of unmet needs, including:

  • re-engineering of care across the full health care continuum
  • contributing to prevention and early treatment of delirium
  • improving immunization rates in nursing home settings and reducing medication errors and errors in care transition
  • re-examining and better deploying preventive health measures in conjunction with the university’s Centers for Disease Control-funded Center for Healthy Aging
  • providing access to information 24-hours, seven-days-a-week through a telephone referral service and website

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