The work now housed within ACES has been shaped by longstanding collaborations with researchers, healthcare organizations, funders, practitioners, policymakers, community organizations, advocates, caregivers, and others committed to improving the lives of older adults.
ACES will continue to strengthen these relationships while building new partnerships across UMass Boston and the broader aging field.
Together, we will continue advancing practical, evidence-informed approaches that support older adults, caregivers, healthcare professionals, and organizations.
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Advancing evidence into action for older adults, caregivers, and healthcare systems.
Advancing evidence into action for older adults, caregivers, and healthcare systems.
The National Collaboratory to Address Elder Mistreatment is built through close collaboration among the ACES team, subawardees, consultants, and other partners.
Laura Mosqueda, MD, is a professor of Family Medicine and Geriatrics at the Keck School of Medicine (KSOM) of the University of Southern California. She is a widely respected authority on elder abuse and care of the elderly and underserved.
Since joining KSOM, her roles have included chair of the Department of Family Medicine, associate dean of primary care, and dean.
She is the principal investigator of a National Institute on Aging (NIA)-funded R01 study to understand the causes of the abuse of people with dementia and is the director of the National Center on Elder Abuse.
As a clinician, researcher, educator, and academic administrator, she has a unique perspective that is informed by her extensive experiences in the community, including her role as a volunteer long-term care ombudsman.
Mark Lachs, MD, is an American physician, scientist, and popular author specializing in the field of aging. He is the Irene and Roy Psaty Distinguished Professor of Medicine at Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York City, and the director of Geriatric Medicine for the New York-Presbyterian Healthcare System.
Dr. Lachs is also the immediate past president of the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR). An internationally recognized authority on the field of elder abuse, he has authored over 100 articles on the subject and other areas of gerontology and conducted important research on the topic.
He is also a founder of the New York City Elder Abuse Center and the not-for-profit charity ElderAbuse.org.
Tony Rosen, MD, MPH, is a researcher in elder abuse and geriatric injury prevention at Weill Cornell Medical College and a practicing emergency physician at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. He received his MD from Weill Cornell Medical College and MPH in epidemiology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
He has assisted in the development and evaluation of clinical protocols in ED assessment and management of agitated delirium and appropriate use of indwelling urinary catheters.
Dr. Rosen’s research focuses on improving identification, intervention, and prevention of elder abuse in the ED and other health care settings.
His research has explored forensic injury patterns in physical elder abuse, identifying specific clinically detectable differences between unintentional injuries and those from abuse.
Jason Burnett, PhD, is an associate professor with the McGovern Medical School at UTHealth, Houston, and the director of the Texas Elder Abuse and Mistreatment Institute.
His work includes studying risk factors and designing and evaluating interventions and public health programs to facilitate community-based agencies with identification and long-term positive outcomes of elder mistreatment and self-neglect.
Dr. Burnett serves on several national advisory boards and research committees for elder mistreatment.
Brad Cannell, PhD, is an epidemiologist, gerontologist, and professor at TCU in Fort Worth, TX. His research focuses on aging, late-life quality of life, and elder mistreatment prevention.
He has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles and secured more than $30 million in research funding. As principal investigator of multiple federally funded studies, including the DETECT project, his work has screened over 90,000 older adults for potential mistreatment.
Dr. Cannell is committed to using data-driven approaches to generate new insights, improve clinical and community practices, and support professionals in identifying and addressing issues affecting older adults.
Elizabeth Bloemen, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Geriatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and the medical director of the Vulnerable Elder Services, Protection & Advocacy (VESPA) team.
The VESPA team is an inpatient based elder abuse and neglect. Her research focuses on improving the healthcare system response to elder mistreatment including improving identification of physical and sexual abuse and severe neglect.
Dr. Bloemen completed her undergraduate training in biochemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder, her Master of Public Health from Columbia University with a Certificate in Health of an Aging Society, and her medical degree, internal medicine residency, and geriatric fellowship at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
Kevin Biese, MD, MAT, serves as an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine (EM) and Internal Medicine, Vice-Chair of Academic Affairs, and Co-Director of the Division of Geriatrics Emergency Medicine at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill School of Medicine as well as a consultant with West Health.
With the support of the John A. Hartford and West Health Foundations, and alongside Dr. Ula Hwang, he serves as Co-PI of the national Geriatric Emergency Department Collaborative.
He is grateful to chair the first Board of Governors for the ACEP Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation Program. His passion is for improved education and systems of care for older adults, and he has published multiple materials in both these areas.
Aaron Malsch, RN, MSN, GCNS-BC, is the Program Director of the Geriatric Emergency Department Collaborative (GEDC). The GEDC is dedicated to improving the quality of care for older people in the emergency department through education, implementation, and evaluation at the individual, unit, site, system, and regional levels.
Previously, Aaron focused on nursing and inter-professional practice as it relates to the elder population throughout the Advocate Health system of clinics, hospitals, emergency departments, home care services, and long term setting partners. He has developed expertise in rapid, system level implementation, sustainable improvement in practice, research, and demonstrated outcomes.
He has also created a nationally recognized Geriatric Emergency Department program with 22 Advocate Health sites achieving ACEP Geri ED accreditation.
Aaron contributes nationally to the improvement of care for older adults, as the Chair of the geriatric committee at the Emergency Nurses Association (ENA), GEDC Core Faculty, and reviewer for Geriatric ED Accreditation (GEDA) program at American College of Emergency Physicians.
The National Collaboratory to Address Elder Mistreatment is built through close collaboration among the ACES team, subawardees, consultants, and other partners.
Dr. David Bass is Senior Vice President, Senior Research Scientist and Director of Research, Education and Advocacy at Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging. He has led over 80 funded research projects on topics such as: coping with chronic illness; family caregiving; quality of care and services; dementia and dementia care; and use and impact of formal services and informal support.
Results of these investigations have been widely published in scientific and clinical journals, such as the Journal of the American Geriatric Society and The Gerontologist. Results also have been used to develop innovative programs for older adults and their family members, such as BRI Care Consultation™, which has been delivered by over 60 licensed service organizations across the US.
His current research focuses on development, testing and implementation of evidence-based programs, with a special emphasis on care for persons with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias and their family caregivers, and caregiving among diverse populations. In accord with the mission of Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, a consistent theme of Dr. Bass’ work is the translation of research into practical applications that enhance the wellness of, and quality of care for, older adults and their family members.
Dr. Bass received his doctoral degree in Sociology from the University of Akron and Kent State University in 1985.
Dr. Quincy Samus is a Professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and is Director of the Johns Hopkins University’s Memory and Aging Services Innovation Center and Associate Director of Innovation & Implementation in JH School of Nursing Equity in Aging Center.
Dr. Samus is trained in applied gerontology, epidemiology, and health services research and has 20 years of experience leading projects to better understand and address the everyday needs and challenges faced by diverse groups of older adults living with cognitive impairments, those who may be at risk, and their family care partners.
She has a long track record of interdisciplinary collaboration with diverse partners across multiple settings to address issues of brain health and has successfully pioneered the development, testing and dissemination of evidence-based care innovations and models of care to improve health in different populations facing health disparities.
She has contributed to policy development and strategic planning for dementia care and brain health at the state, national and international level.
Kate Possin, PhD, is a professor in residence in the Department of Neurology at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center and the Global Brain Health within the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. She holds the John Douglas French Alzheimer’s Foundation Endowed Professorship and is the Clinical Core Lead for the UCSF Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.
Dr. Possin’s research program is dedicated to improving the detection, diagnosis, and care of people living with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, frontotemporal dementia, and related disorders.
Dr. Possin directs the Care Ecosystem, a telephone-based collaborative care model for people with dementia and their caregivers. This program provides education and support, helping families navigate challenging medical, financial, and behavioral issues, and improves the quality of life for patients while reducing caregiver stress and emergency-related healthcare costs. Her team collaborates with health systems and policy leaders to advance scalable and sustainable dementia care.
Dr. Possin is also focused on improving the early detection and diagnosis of cognitive disorders. She developed tablet-based cognitive assessments on the TabCAT platform, which are designed for ease of use in everyday clinical and research settings.
These assessments use principles from cognitive neuroscience and neuropsychology to identify early signs of neurodegenerative diseases. TabCAT has been translated into over 20 languages and is used in more than 150 studies across 30 countries, with increasing use to enhance diagnosis in primary care settings.
Dr. Possin earned her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of California, San Diego, where she investigated cognitive changes associated with Parkinson’s disease. She completed her internship and postdoctoral fellowship at UCSF and joined the Fein Memory and Aging Center in 2006.
Dr. Possin’s work bridges science, practice, and policy to address gaps in dementia care, with a focus on improving outcomes for patients and families.
Lee A. Jennings, MD, MSHS, Professor of Medicine and Division Chief of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Campus, is a geriatrician and health services researcher whose work focuses on improving models of care delivery for persons with dementia and their family caregivers.
She has established a statewide older adult health education and community outreach program focused on fall prevention and dementia healthcare workforce development in Oklahoma. She is the Director of the HRSA-funded Oklahoma Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program and was awarded an NIA R01 to study end-of-life outcomes of community-dwelling persons living with dementia.
Clinically, she specializes in comprehensive geriatric assessment and cognitive evaluation and directs the OU Health Memory Care Clinic and Senior Health Clinic. She is a graduate of the Tideswell Emerging Leaders in Aging program and a 2027 Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) fellow.
She sits on the Editorial Board for the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (AGS), co-chairs the Women in Geriatrics Section for AGS, and is Vice Chair of the national Medical and Scientific Advisory Group for the Alzheimer’s Association.
Gary Epstein-Lubow, MD, is a geriatric psychiatrist, Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and Professor of Health Services, Policy and Practice at the Brown University School of Public Health.
Dr. Lubow provides clinical services for Brown University Health and for Butler Hospital. He teaches medical students in Brown’s Primary Care-Population Medicine Program. He contributes to leadership of the CDC BOLD Center of Excellence for Dementia Caregiving and the National Dementia Care Collaborative, a project supported by
The John A. Hartford Foundation to promote comprehensive dementia care. Dr. Lubow is a co-investigator for dementia and caregiving-related research supported by PCORI and NIA. Dr. Lubow was a 2016-17 Health and Aging Policy Fellow, and he served from 2015-19 on the US HHS Advisory Council for Alzheimer’s Research, Care, and Services.
Carolyn Clevenger, DNP, GNP-BC, FAANP, FGSA, FAAN, is the Founding Dean and Professor at the Victoria Kay Ivester School of Nursing at the University of Georgia. A Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, the Gerontological Society of America, and the American Academy of Nursing, her research focuses on the gerontological nurse practitioner workforce, psychoeducation programs for dementia family caregivers, and innovative models of dementia care.
Clevenger is the Founder of Integrated Memory Care (IMC), a nurse-led primary care practice for people living with dementia, operating both a clinic location and a community program serving select senior living communities. She continues as Visiting Professor at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University.
The IMC model has been recognized as a Patient-Centered Medical Home, an Age-Friendly Health System, a Best Practice Exemplar for patient- and family-centered care, a Best Program for Caregiving, and a GUIDE (Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience) practice. Clevenger holds the American Academy of Nursing Edge Runner designation for her work founding IMC.
She has led or collaborated on a range of psychoeducation programs for dementia family caregivers, including Savvy and Tele-Savvy Caregiver, Caregiving During Crisis, Caregiving While Black, Caregiver as Navigator, and Caregiver Boot Camp. Clevenger earned her BSN from West Virginia University, her MSN from Emory University, and her DNP from the Medical College of Georgia, and completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
David B. Reuben, MD, is the Archstone Foundation Chair and Professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Director of the UCLA Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care program.
Dr. Reuben sustains professional interests in clinical care, education, research, and administrative aspects of geriatrics, maintaining a clinical primary care practice of frail older persons and attending on inpatient and geriatric psychiatry units at UCLA.
His bibliography includes more than 220 peer-reviewed publications in medical journals, 39 books and numerous chapters.Dr. Reuben is lead author of the widely distributed book, Geriatrics at Your Fingertips.
Dr. Reuben is a past President of the American Geriatrics Society and the Association of Directors of Geriatric Academic Programs. He served for 11 years on the Geriatrics Test Writing Committee for the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) and for 8 years on the ABIM's Board of Directors, including as Chair from 2010-2011.
He is Co-leader of the Alzheimer’s Association’s Dementia Care Navigation Roundtable.
David Richard Lee, MD, PHD, MBA is a geriatrician and assistant professor in the Department of Medicine. He is the ADC Program Director (Research) and is also a practicing geriatrician in the Division of Geriatrics at UCLA. He received his MD and MBA from the University of California, Irvine in 2016, completed internal medicine residency at Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center, and completed a geriatrics fellowship and his PhD at UCLA.
His work focuses on the role of health systems in improving care for older adults, particularly for persons living with dementia and their caregivers.
His research interests include: (1) understanding policy and health system interventions on outcomes for vulnerable older adults, (2) applying organizational behavior theory to understand implementation of comprehensive dementia care programs, and (3) evaluating interventions for improving the quality and value of care for persons living with dementia and their caregivers.
Dr. Lee has been an integral part of the UCLA ADC Program and has led cutting-edge research focused on ADC program patients, including pioneering work related to the CMS GUIDE Model.
Nicole Fowler, PhD, MHSA is Vice Chair for Research for the Department of Medicine and Klapper Family Chair in Aging and Caregiving Research at Indiana University and Professor at Indiana University (IU) School of Medicine. She is also a scientist at the IU Center for Aging Research at the Regenstrief Institute and in the Center for Health Innovation and Implementation Science at IU.
From 2019-2024 she served as the Associate Director of the Indiana University Center for Aging Research and from 2021-2024 was the inaugural Director of Research for the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics.
Dr. Fowler is an applied health services researcher with particular interest in improving organization and delivery of health services for older adults living with complex health and social care needs, in particular, people living with dementia and their family caregivers. She has designed and conducted multiple trials in the areas of early detection of dementia and nonpharmacologic approaches in dementia care, family caregiving, and medical decision making for older adults with cognitive impairment.
As an educator, Dr. Fowler mentors multiple junior faculty and trainees and is the Director of the MD-PhD training program in social and behavioral research in Alzheimer’s disease at Indiana University School of Medicine.
Help Build What Comes Next
ACES begins with strong projects, established partnerships, and years of learning, but its future will be shaped by the people and organizations that engage with the Network.
Whether you are conducting research, implementing programs, supporting caregivers, developing policy, providing care, advocating for older adults, funding innovation, or bringing lived experience to this work, ACES offers opportunities to learn, connect, collaborate, and help move promising ideas into meaningful action.
