Meet the Team – Center for Equity in Aging

HISTORY

The SON has been a leader in research focused on aging for two decades. The Center for Innovative Care in Aging was launched at the SON in 2011 by Dr. Laura Gitlin to advance novel behavioral interventions to enhance the health, well-being, and aging of older adults and their families. In an effort to broaden the Center’s focus beyond behavioral interventions, the SON launched the Center for Equity in Aging under the leadership of Dr. Katherine Ornstein in 2022.

MEET THE TEAM

Contact the Center for Equity in Aging: [email protected]

CENTER DIRECTOR

Katherine Ornstein, PhD, MPH
Professor
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Home-based primary and palliative care; dementia caregiving, hospice and palliative care delivery; long-term services and supports, health equity

Associate Director of Innovation & Implementation

Quincy Samus, PhD, MS
Research Associate
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Improve dementia care quality, delivery, and equity through translation of practical evidence-based, and cost-efficient practices to meet the needs of patients, families, providers, and health systems

Associate Director of Health Services Research

Kali Thomas, PhD, MA
Email: [email protected]
Research Areas: Big Data, Dementia, Disaster Preparation, Gerontology, Health Policy, Loneliness, Military/Veteran’s Affairs, Public Health, Qualitative Research, Quantitative Research Methods/Statistics, Social Determinants of Health, Transition of Care

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Sarah Allgood, PhD, RN
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Pain/Symptom management and palliative care

SR. DATA ANALYST

Hanna Charankevich, PhD
Email: [email protected]

STRATEGIST

Erika Hornstein, MBA, MA
Email: [email protected]

STEERING COMMITTEE

Sarah Szanton
Kathryn McDonald
Anna Beeber

PRINCIPAL FACULTY

Martha A. Abshire, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-502-0233
email: [email protected]
Research areas: Heart failure, caregiving, quality of life, shared decision-making, and palliative care

Kamila A. Alexander, PhD, MPH, RN
Assistant Professor
Phone: 443-287-8529
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Intimate partner violence and HIV risk; health inequities; healthy sexuality; emerging adulthood; reproductive coercion; community-based research; social determinants of health

Anna Beeber, PHD, RN, FAAN
Associate Professor
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Aging, dementia, disparities, equity, gerontological / geriatric, gerontology, quality improvement, safety

Valerie Cotter, DrNP, AGPCNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN
Associate Professor
Phone: 410-955-7758
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Dementia; Alzheimer’s disease; aging

Rita D’Aoust, PhD, ACNP, ANP-BC, CNE, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN
Associate Dean of Teaching and Learning
Phone: 443-287-2768
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Interprofessional education; underserved populations

Patricia Davidson, PhD, MEd, RN, FAAN
Dean Emerita and Professor
Phone: 410-955-7544
Email: [email protected]
Research Areas: Cardiovascular care, transitional care; underserved populations

Patrick Doyle, PhD
Regional Vice President, Brightview Senior Living
Phone: 410-962-0595
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Dementia; assisted living care; aging

Jessica Gill, PHD, RN, FAAN
Bloomberg Distinguished Professor
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: biological mechanisms of traumatic brain injuries, biological mechanisms of PTSD and depression

Bryan Hansen, PhD, RN, APRN-CNS, ACNS-BC
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-614-4820
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Dementia, aggressive behaviors, neuropsychiatric symptoms, elder abuse, caregiving, geropsychiatry, person-centered interventions, restraint/seclusion reduction

Hae Ra Han, PhD, MSN, RN
Professor
Phone: 410-614-2669
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Care Coordination, Chronic Care, Community, Disparities, Equity, Health Behavior, Public Health, Social Determinants of Health

Melissa Hladek, PhD, MSN, RN, CRNP, FNP-BC
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-614-2418
Email:[email protected]
Research areas: Aging, Chronic Care, Vulnerable Populations

Binu Koirala, PhD, MGS, RN
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-614-4718
email: b [email protected]
Research areas: Cardiovascular Health, Palliative Care, Care of People with Complex and Chronic Conditions

Junxin Li, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor
Email: [email protected]
Research Areas: Aging, sleep, physical activity, cognition; person-centered dementia care

Katherine Marx, PhD, MPH
Research Associate
Phone: 443-287-8633
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Senior Housing, Aging in Place, Home Safety, Dementia Care, Osteoporosis, Falls and Fractures

Kathryn McDonald
Professor
Phone: 410-502-4015
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Care Coordination, Chronic Care, Disparities, Equity, Health Policy, Integrated Health, Leadership/Organizational Culture, Primary Care, Public Health, Quality Improvement, Safety, Transition of Care

Carrie L. Nieman, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Phone: 301-896-3331
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Hearing health equity, age-related hearing loss, dementia, health disparities, community-based interventions

Katherine Ornstein, PhD, MPH
Professor
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Home-based primary and palliative care; dementia caregiving, hospice and palliative care delivery; long-term services and supports, health equity

Jeanine M. Parisi, PhD
Senior Scientist, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Phone: 410-955-0412
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Cognitive aging, prevention, lifestyle activities, personality, community-based interventions, public health

Lauren J. Parker, PhD, MPH
Assistant Scientist, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Phone: 410 -955-2215
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Psycho-social stress, health disparities, life course and aging

Craig Pollack, MD, MHS
Katey Ayers Endowed Associate Professor
Phone: 410 -955-4201
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Community / Public Health, Disparities, Primary Care, Social Determinants of Health/Poverty, Vulnerable Populations

Nicolas Reed, AuD
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-502-4332
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: hearing; hearing loss; hearing aids; amplification; health care; health services; hearing care utilization; gerontology; presbycusis; delirium

Natalie Regier, PhD
Assistant Professor
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Dementia-related restlessness, myriad problems resulting from the ambiguity of restlessness, including improperly-targeted behavioral interventions

Laura Samuel, PhD, CRNP
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-502-7170
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Socioeconomic status, neighborhoods, aging, chronic disease, health disparities, health promotion

Quincy Samus, PhD, MS
Research Associate
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Improve dementia care quality, delivery, and equity through translation of practical evidence-based, and cost-efficient practices to meet the needs of patients, families, providers, and health systems

Bonnielin Swenor, PhD, MPH
Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Phone: 410-614-2874
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Ophthalmology; Visual impairment; Low Vision; Disability; Aging; Epidemiology

Sarah Szanton, PhD, RN, FAAN
Patricia M. Davidson Professor for Health Equity and Social Justice
Dean, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Aging, Health Disparities, Gerontology, Social Determinants of Health/Poverty

Janiece L. Taylor, PhD, MSN, RN, FAAN
Assistant Professor
Phone: 443-287-4503
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Minority aging; pain; women’s health

Jennifer Wenzel, PhD, RN, CCM, FAAN
Associate Professor
Phone: 410-502-1114
Email: [email protected]
Research areas: Oncology, health disparities, health services research; managed care, case management, treatment decision making; computer-assisted qualitative data analysis

Rebecca J. Wright, PhD, BSC (HONS)
Assistant Professor
Phone: 410-955-7763
Email: [email protected]
Research Areas: Palliative and end-of-life care; wound care; dementia; geriatrics; family caregivers; health care experiences and service design

TRAINEES

Jamie M. Smith
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Health Services and Outcomes Research T32 Fellowship Program

Smith’s research is informed by nearly two-decades as a registered nurse working in clinical care, policy, and education. Her current work will examine how structural and social determinants influence access to home health care for older adults with dementia. Smith earned her PhD at Rutgers University, School of Nursing, where she was a Jonas Nurse Scholar. Smith’s long-term goal is to develop a meaningful research program that informs equitable care delivery for older adults with complex needs to maintain their independence and quality of life.

Mary Louise Pomeroy
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Health Services and Outcomes Research T32 Fellowship Program

Mary Louise received her MPH from Johns Hopkins University in 2017 and her PhD in health services research from George Mason University in 2022. Her research areas include social isolation, long-term services and supports, and suboptimal health care utilization among aging populations. Her current work leverages national longitudinal datasets to examine mechanisms that may enhance social support to reduce nursing home placement.