Research Centers - University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing

“The many scientific advances achieved by NIH-funded researchers —
over many decades — now allow our population to live longer and healthier
lives. But as our population continues to age, a striking change becomes
evident. The burden of our Nation’s health problems has dramatically shifted
from acute to chronic diseases. Chronic diseases now consume over 75
percent of healthcare costs and continue to grow at a rapid pace.”
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., Fiscal Year
2008 Budget Request Statement to the U.S. House Subcommittee on Labor-HHS-
Education Appropriations
older adults has been a focus of Penn
Nursing research for almost 20 years,
culminating in the Center’s opening. Dr.
Naylor and an interdisciplinary group of
Penn researchers developed a model of
care coordination delivered by advanced
practice nurses (APNs) for high-risk older
adults making the transition from hospital
to home. The team found in
its NINR-funded trials that
their model not only improved
care, but it also significantly
lowered healthcare costs. The
team has partnered with two
major insurance organizations
to promote the adoption of
the APN care coordination
model and is studying the
possible use of the model
with hospitalized cognitively
impaired elders and their
caregivers.
Many elders make the
transition to receiving longterm
care services either in their own home
or by moving to a nursing home or assisted
living facility. Led by Dr. Naylor and funded
by the National Institute on Aging and NINR,
work involves collaborations with Center
colleagues and with organizations including
NewCourtland Elder Care Services, Friends
Services for the Aging and the Penn Nursing
LIFE program. Kathryn Bowles, PhD, RN,
FAAN, Associate Professor of Nursing, a
co-investigator says, “What we learn from
this work will help healthcare providers
and caregivers understand the meaning and
components of health related quality of life
for the elderly. Our hope is that we will learn
how to take the best possible care of our
older adults so that life is not just long, but
is of the highest possible quality.”
Bioethicist and Assistant Professor
of Nursing Connie M. Ulrich, PhD, RN, has
also been studying the role of APNs and
nurse practitioners (NPs) in transitional
care, but more specifically the ethical
issues they encounter as they attempt to
provide quality care with cost effective
outcomes. “This has critical implications for
health transitions and the delivery of care
because if we can educate and train NPs
and APNs to better address ethical issues
related to the complex needs of their client
populations, we will improve the quality
and care coordination of patients and the
healthcare organizational system in which
they practice,” says Dr. Ulrich.
To achieve its goals, the Center
partners not only with other School of
Nursing Centers, but also with Penn’s
Schools of Medicine and Social Policy &
Practice and the University of Pennsylvania
Health System, as well as the Philadelphia
Veterans Administration Medical Center
(PVAMC).“The interdisciplinary nature of the
Center, including experts and stakeholders
both internal and external to Penn, is
essential for informing and advancing
health promotion, prevention, treatment and
management of people of all ages and at all
stages of health,” says Janet Prvu Bettger,
ScD, a postdoctoral research fellow in the
Penn School of Medicine’s Department of
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