Training in Older Adult Mobility Research

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The specific aims of this mid-career patient-oriented research award are: 1) to further establish an independent and collaborative patient-oriented clinical research program in older adult mobility and 2) to provide mentorship to trainees pursuing clinical investigation of mobility in older adults. Specifically, the objective of this award is to provide the candidate the protected time and resources necessary to support this program and to properly mentor these trainees, particularly clinical trainees such as Geriatric Medicine fellows. His research training and record of research presentations, publications and continuous funding since his fellowship provide evidence of his commitment to patient-- oriented research and specifically a research program in older adult mobility. His patient-oriented research program focuses on 1) assessing impaired daily mobility task performance, 2) maintaining and enhancing the performance of these daily mobility tasks, and 3) exploring the mechanisms underlying 1) and 2) in both able and disabled older adults. The protected time afforded by this award will permit the candidate to further explore mechanisms underlying older adult mobility difficulty and to further explore methods to reduce this mobility difficulty. The candidate has served as a mentor for a variety of trainees, including geriatric medicine fellows, pre- and post-doctoral fellows, masters candidates, medical students and undergraduate students throughout his ten year academic career on the University of Michigan (UM) faculty. The candidate's research program will provide the foundation to continue training beginning clinical investigators. The candidate's research program and commitment to mentoring will be complemented by local research and training centers. These centers include the UM Claude Pepper Older Americans Independence Center, the UM Institute of Gerontology, and the Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center at the Ann Arbor VA. In addition, excellent educational opportunities are available through the UM Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Program, the School of Public Health Masters of Science Program in Clinical Research Design and Statistical Analysis, and the newly funded University of Michigan Training Program in Clinical Research. In summary, the candidate's accomplishments in patient-oriented research, his ability and commitment to mentor trainees in this type of research, and the research and training strengths of the UM combine to provide an ideal context to accomplish the specific aims of this proposal.