Pilot Research initiative
Through the Pilot Research Initiative, the Center for Equity in Aging provides funding for up to two junior faculty grants up to $10,000 each and up to two post-doctoral fellow or PhD student grants up to $5,000 each. This pilot research initiative is designed to provide seed funding for the development or advancement of research on aging and/or palliative care research. Interested in applying? View the full Call for Proposals here. Apply here.
2025 PILOT AWARDEES – Coming Soon!
2024 PILOT AWARDEES
PhD Student
Project Title: Identifying and Measuring the Palliative Needs of Children in Foster Care
Purpose: This exploratory mixed methods study using a participatory co-design approach will determine what should be measured and how measures should be described to identify palliative care needs of children with medial complexity in foster care from the perspective of two partner groups: 1) Foster partners, including foster and biological parents, and adults formerly in foster care, and 2) health care team partners (including nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, physician assistants, and social workers) with the long term goal of designing equitable and sustainable approaches to measuring unmet palliative needs and supporting the palliative care needs of children in foster care.
PhD Student
Project Title: Digital Environment and Cognitive Progression in Cognitively Intact Older Adults
Purpose:
This project aims to investigate the longitudinal association between the digital environment and cognitive function in older adults using the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS).
2023 PILOT AWARDEES
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Title: Testing a behavioral intervention to address pain and depressive symptoms among older women with disabilities
Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of the Women in Pain Reduction and Improved Mood through Empowerment (W-PRIME) intervention in a wait list controlled pilot trial
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Title: Human-centered design to inform the development of a “TechConnect” digital and health equity intervention for chronic disease management among older adults
Purpose: To use human-centered design methodology to inform the development of a “TechConnect” intervention to overcome gaps in digital access and literacy to mitigate existing social determinants of health, improve independence and chronic disease management, and reduce avoidable healthcare utilization
PhD Candidate
Title: Sleep and cognitive progression in cognitively intact older adults with subjective memory decline
Purpose: To examine the relationship and experiences/perspectives of sleep disturbance and progression of cognitive decline in older adults over time
PhD Candidate
Title: Wellness and needs of women after cardiac ICU stay (Well NOW)
Purpose: To understand and address the unique challenges and psychosocial needs that women with serious cardiovascular disease may face while recovering from an ICU stay
2021 PILOT AWARDEES
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
End-stage renal disease disproportionally affects marginalized groups and is optimally treated with kidney transplant. Black and Hispanic individuals are more likely to change from active waitlist status to inactive waitlist status and are likely to remain inactive longer. This research proposes the first phase to understand the person-environment fit to adapt CAPABLE, a person-directed evidenced-based intervention, as a prehabilitation program for this population.
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Gamma oscillations have been positively associated with multiple cognitive functions including attention and memory in human. Prior research suggests that 40Hz is the optimal frequency to induced gamma entrainment and improve cognitive function in both human and mice. This study will test feasibility, acceptability, and initial proof of concept that exposure to 40 Hz sound from a smart speaker provides cognitive benefit in older adults.
PhD Student, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
This study will provide important evidence of trends of Electronic Wearable Devices (EWDs) use in U.S. older adults before and during the COVID-19 pandemic; how socioeconomic status, demographics, and other health factors may influence older adults’ use of EWDs; and how EWDs use is related to physical activity in older adults. The findings will inform the implementation of EWDs in future behavioral interventions that engage community-dwelling older adults in long-term physical activities.
Postdoctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
This study will compare the prevalence of housing cost burden and deficient housing (physical deficiencies considered hazardous to health) between low and moderate income older adults living in the community with and without self-care disabilities. The study will also examine associations of housing cost burden and deficient housing with adverse consequences of unmet self-care needs among the subset with disabilities.
PhD Student, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
This study is designed to learn about role of caregivers in the quality of life of people living with Parkinson’s disease. The information will be used to develop interventions to improve quality of life for both people with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers.
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Although participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) reduces food insecurity, more than half of the older adults who are eligible for the program don’t enroll in it. Pilot funding from the Center for Innovative Care in Aging will be used to evaluate whether a recent increased SNAP benefit amount increased participation and reduced food insecurity among older adults in Maryland.
2019 PILOT AWARDEES
Research Associate, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Co-design of an Innovative Approach to End-of-Life Care in Older Adults: The ANANTA Study”
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
PhD Candidate, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Quantifying older African Americans’ exposure to structural discrimination: A mixed methods instrument design study”
2018 PILOT AWARDEES
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“The Context of Caregiving in Advanced Heart Failure: Improving communication between patients and caregivers (Caregiver-Support)”
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Caregivers’ Perceptions of Abrupt Changes in Behavior to Differentiate Behavioral Symptoms in Dementia and Delirium.”
Research Associate, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Center for Innovative Care in Aging
“Testing the Feasibility of New Ways for Better Days: Tailoring Activities for Persons with Dementia and Caregivers (TAP) in the Assisted Living Setting”
Professor & Core Faculty, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
“ACTIVE Memory Works: Refinement and Enhancement of a Novel Web-Based Intervention for Older Adults”
Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Auricular Point Acupressure to Manage Pain in Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders”
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
“The Mobile Mindfulness Attention Study: Piloting the Feasibility of a Wearable EEG Device and Attention Quantifying Software in Older Adults”
PhD Candidate, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Department of Mental Health
“Screening for Dementia in Older Adults with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities”
Geriatric Psychiatry Fellow, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center
“Screening for Dementia in Older Adults with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities”
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Training Student Nurses as Interventionists to Implement a Multifaceted Fall Prevention Program in the Chinese Community Context: A Feasibility Study”
PhD Candidate, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Understanding Functional Disability in Older African Immigrants: The Roles of Acculturation and Racial Discrimination”
PhD Candidate, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
“Long-Term Effects of Cognitive Training on Sleep in Community-Dwelling Older Adults”
2017 PILOT AWARDEES
PhD Candidate, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“Utilization of the Sweat Patch to Collect Physiological Data from Older Adults with Chronic Diseases”
Research Associate, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Department of Community Public Health
“Advancing an Understanding and Measurement of Dementia-Related Restlessness: A Troublesome and Pervasive Problem”
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
“How do low income older adults cope with financial strain and financial shocks?”
Director, Johns Hopkins Home-based Medicine (JHOME).
“Developing a Needs Assessment Tool for Patient and Caregiver Centered Home-based Primary Care Practice”