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Durham GRECC
Durham GRECC
Durham VA Medical Center
508 Fultons Street
Durham, NC 27705
Phone 919-286-6932
Fax 919-286-6823
GRECC Director
Kenneth E. Schmader, MD
Associate Director, Research
Katherine Hall, PhD
Associate Director, Clinical
Barrett Bowling, MD
Associate Director, Education and Evaluation
Connie Bales, PhD
Administrative Officer
Harry Babwah
Harry.BabwahJr@va.gov

- Exercise/Physical Activity/Nutrition
- Osteoporosis/Falls/Fractures
- Immunizations/Infections/Immunology and Drugs
- Care Innovations/Models

- Immunogenicity, safety, efficacy and functional impact of zoster, influenza and COVID-19 vaccines in older adults
- Characterizing physical resilience and developing a prediction tool for shared decision making in adults with advanced renal disease
- Predicting recovery from orthopedic surgeries
- Protein supplementation interventions to restore physical function in obese older Veterans
- Examining implementation, health, and utilization outcomes from a national exercise program.
- Reducing fractures and mortality in Parkinson’s Disease with zoledronic acid
- Exercise interventions to improve function and mental health (e.g., PTSD) in older adults
- Medication use patterns and development of a deprescribing intervention
- Developing improved animal models of sporadic Alzheimer’s disease

- VHA Dementia Education and Training Committee
- Gerofit training in exercise assessments and implementation
- “Focus on Function” Geri Scholars clinical practicum
- Pharmacy benefits management and training on use of the recombinant zoster vaccine
- Geriatric Medicine Fellowship, Advanced Geriatric Fellows, and Associated Health Trainees in Pharmacy, Nursing, Social Work, Physical Therapy, Audiology/Speech Pathology, Chaplaincy and Psychology
- Elder Care in Hospital (ECHo) Geriatric Nursing Quality Scholars Program

- Gerofit is a VHA best practice model of care undergoing national dissemination based on outcomes associated with reduced risk of institutionalization
- Integrating geriatrics principles throughout the health care system in surgery through Preoperative Optimization of Senior Health (POSH)
- The care of hospitalized Veterans through the supervised inpatient walking program (STRIDE) and the nursing-led Elder Care in Hospital (ECHo) program
- Chronic disease care including kidney disease (Renal Silver)
- Addressing geriatric conditions including a home-based dementia caregiver program (COACH)
- Falls and osteoporosis treatment (VISN 6 Bone Health Service) and telehealth fall prevention (FAME)

- Changes in fall rates from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic: Findings from the prospective AMBROSIA study J Gerontol A Bio Sci Med Sci https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35690355/
- Needs of care partners of older Veterans with serious illness J Am Geriat Soc https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35225356/
- Diet quality and exercise in older veterans with PTSD: a pilot study Transl Beha Med https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34487181/
- A template for physical resilience research in older adults: Methods of the PRIME-KNEE study J Am Geriat Soc https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34325481/
- Changes in the associations of race and rurality with SARS-CoV-2 infection, mortality, and case fatality in the United States from February 2020 to March 2021: A population-based cohort study PLoS Med https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34673772/