Fall 2006

The University of Colorado Denver

Volume 9, Number 1

We are pleased to announce that the Hartford/Jahnigen Center of Excellence (COE) program at the University of Colorado Denver has received renewed funding from the John A. Hartford Foundation.

The Hartford/Jahnigen COE is funded for an additional five years at $1,541,100, which includes cost sharing provided by the School of Medicine Dean, Department of Medicine Chairman, UCD Chancellor, and the Center on Aging. The new COE award period will begin on March 1, 2007 under the leadership of Dr. Robert Schwartz, Head of the Division of Geriatric Medicine. Dr, Andrew Kramer, Head of the Division of Health Care Policy and Research and COE Director under previous award periods, will serve as Co-Director.

The Hartford/Jahnigen Center
of Excellence Program has
received renewed funding
from the
John A. Hartford Foundation.

The COE program will continue to focus on the development of young academic research leaders in geriatrics and gerontology. with the goal of improving the health, health care, and independent function of older persons.

The Hartford/Jahnigen Center of Excellence (COE) in Geriatrics recently awarded research grants to Cari Levy, M.D., and Heidi Wald, M.D. Dr. Levy plans to use her COE grand award to expand her community palliative care intervention and create a related information web site, and Dr. Wald will use her award to explore survivorship and functional

life expectancy for older stroke victims. Both awards will provide ongoing research assistance and data collection support for Dr's. Levy and Wald in their respective projects.

The Hartford/Jahnigen COE
recently awarded
research grants to Cari Levy, MD,
and Heidi Wald, MD.

Assistant Professor Faculty Development Award recipient Cari Levy, M.D., has received a VA Career Development Award for research to determine best practices in end of live care in VA nursing home care units. Through this award, Dr. Levy will design and disseminate a program based on identification of best practices in VA nursing home care units with the goal of improving end of live care in those units.

Former Assistant Professor Faculty Development Award recipient Stacy Fischer, M.D., recently received an NIA/Beeson Career Development Award for her work related to improving care at the end of life for Latinos. THis award will enable Dr. Fisher to pursue her longstanding research interests in palliative care and end-of-life research.

A Hartford/Jahnigen COE Geriatrics Research Forum will be held in early 2007. The 2007 Research Forum will once again provide an opportunity for students, faculty, and members of the community to present and discuss their aging-related research. Further details regarding the 2007 Research Forum will be available over the coming months.

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Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is a tragic disorder of cognition that irreversibly erodes human capacities including memory, language, emotion, and personality. Today, as many as 5 million Americans suffer with AD (mostly those over age 65), and in Colorado alone, at lease 63,000 individuals are afflicted. In July 2006, the University of Colorado launched an ambitious program to combat this disease and related disorders of cognition by establishing the Alzheimer's Disease and Cognition Center (ADCC).

The goal of the ADCC is to consolidate resources available within the University to investigate the multiple facets of AD and related disorders, and launch a formal academic program that will address these increasing prevalent and devastating disorders. The ADCC will foster the development of clinical research programs in AD and other disorders of cognition, and will establish an essential foundation for building a comprehensive program that includes basic research, education, and community outreach.

In July 2006, the University
of Colorado established the
Alzheimer's Disease and
Cognition Center (ADCC).

The ADCC is organized within the Department of Neurology of the School of Medicine. Christopher M. Filley, M.D., Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry and Director of the Behavioral Neurology Section, was named Interim Director of the ADCC. Two other departments are also closely involved - The department of Psychiatry under the leadership of Robert Freedman, M.D., and the Department of Medicine/Division

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