I was born in Norfolk and raised in Virginia Beach, Va. I am a graduate of Old Dominion University and received my masters of science in Gerontology from the Medical College of Virginia-Virginia Commonwealth University. I have been involved with older adult care, management and services for 40+ years. My first position was as the director of a newly formed adult day services program in Virginia Beach, The M. E. Cox Center named after Mrs. Mary Ellen Cox, my first mentor. I am proud to serve on their board of directors. I joined EVMS in October 1995 to support the fairly new geriatric medicine clerkship for students and the newly endowed Glennan Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology. I created the accredited Geriatric Medicine Fellowship in 1999. Dr. Marissa Galicia-Castillo was the first graduate and ultimately became the program director. The Geriatric SIt Down Rounds, an interprofessional education program, attended by EVMS colleagues, students, residents and a host of professionals from the community who all work with and provide services to older adults. I am proud to serve as faculty advisor for the student interest group focused on geriatric medicine, known as SAGE-Students for the Advancement of Geriatric Education along with the community engaged initiative, Beyond Clinic Walls, aimed at connecting EVMS students with socially isolated older adults in the community.
Research
research overview
Coordinate research for EVMS students with Glennan Center faculty in areas of Patient Safety, Quality Improvement, Advance Care Planning,, Dementia and Alzheimer's disease and support for caregivers. I also coordinate students' application for the Medical Student Aging Research scholarship sponsored by the Hartford Foundation.
