Investigations to promote justice, equality and equity to improve the services and systems of care available to older adults, vulnerable adults, and their families.
Research Projects
Testing Savvy Caregiver in a Racially and Ethnically Diverse Sample in Southern California
The project goal is to compare the relative efficacy-effectiveness of two dementia caregiver interventions, Savvy Caregiver Express™ and Savvy Caregiver program on primary (affective status, and reactivity to behaviors), and secondary outcomes (competence, meaning, management, other coping resources, social support, etc.) with a diverse racial and ethnic sample of caregivers to persons with dementia (PWD).
You can learn more about this project at roybal.usc.edu/socalcaregiver.
Research Team
Research Period: 04/01/2020 - 06/30/2022
Funding Source: State of California Department of Public Health Alzheimer's Disease Program
Navigating Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) Care and Services in Linguistic Isolation
The project aims to explore the direct and interactive roles of social connectedness and neighborhood characteristics (1) in the relation between limited english proficiency and health and (2) in the relation between limited english proficiency and healthcare.
Research Team
Research Period: 06/15/2019 - 04/30/2021
Funding Source: National Institute on Aging
Interdisciplinary Aging Research to Address Health Disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias
This conference series will (1) address environmental, sociocultural, behavioral, and biological disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias that affect millions of older minorities and their family caregivers; and (2) serve as an incubator of scientific network of interdisciplinary scholars specializing in rigorous team- based approaches to close the ADRD health disparities gap.
Research Team
Research Period: 04/01/2019 - 03/31/2021
Funding Source: National Institute on Aging
A Feasibility Study of an Intergenerational mHealth Program for Affordable Housing Communities
To fill these gaps in knowledge and better address the needs of homeless veterans, we propose a three-arm, multi-level systematic study to examine the effectiveness of outreach and housing services that target Los Angeles’ homeless veteran populations. We build on both RAND and USC’s strengths of implementing mixed method studies that gather in-depth information from Veterans and other key stakeholders, including the VA, community based organizations (e.g., Volunteers of America), and advocacy groups to provide a comprehensive and balanced approach to help solve one of the most complex issues facing Los Angeles today
Research Team
Research Period: 2019 - 2020
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck Schol of Social Work
USC Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Outreach, Recruitment, and Engagement (ORE) Core
The ORE (Outreach, Recruitment and Education) core is responsible for providing important liaison and outreach between the USC Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) and patients, their caregivers and the professional community so that information may be communicated bi-directionally. The ORE Core works closely with the Clinical Core to recruit and retain participants in research studies, and to educate the professional and underserved communities about improving cognitive health and reducing AD and vascular risk factors. The major research initiatives include the Vascular Cohort Study and clinical trials. The ORE Core has a strong presence in the Latino community.
Research Team
Advocates for African American Elders (AAAE)
Advocates for African American Elders (AAAE) is an outreach and engagement partnership of academic, governmental, nonprofit, and community groups whose aim is to help African American seniors in Los Angeles advocate for their health and mental health needs. As well as catalyzing general advocacy efforts to improve the delivery of health services for African American communities in Los Angeles County, AAAE seeks to strengthen collaboration between agencies and community organizations, develop training programs and mental health interventions specifically tailored for African American seniors, and increase health literacy.
Research Team
Research Period: Ongoing
Asian American Resource Database (AARD) in the Los Angeles County: A Pilot Study of Chinese and Korean Communities
The project will develop an AARD that includes health and social services for the Chinese and Korean communities in Los Angeles County. Outcomes from the project will offer a database for practical use by community members, as well as for networks of researchers and practitioners through which to better reach out to and serve these communities.
Research Team
Research Period: 12/1/2018 - 6/30/2019
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work: Department of Adult Mental Health and Wellness
A Care Model for Rare Disorder Families: Application of Mobile Integrated Care
The aim of the study is to improve the quality of care among patients and their family caregivers. Collaborative partners include the Tzu Chi Hualien Hospital (medical providers) and the Taiwan Foundation for rare disorder (the largest NGOs in Taiwan for serving this population) to develop a mobile integrated care model with intergenerational support (providing support for technology and self-care skills for patients and their family caregivers) from college students with medical and social work-related background. The research team consist of medical providers (pediatricians, nurses, social workers, psychiatrists, and dietitians), community-based members, engineers in IT industry, and 3 professors in academia as PI and Co-PIs (from USC, Cal State University-Channel Island, Taipei Medical University). The research study uses mixed methods (focus group discussion and pre-post research design) for needs assessment and evaluation.
Research Team
Research Period: 1/1/2018 - 12/31/2018
Funding Source: Taiwan Health Promotion Administration, Ministry of Health and Welfare
Co-Designing a Mobile App with Chinese Immigrant Caregivers for Self-Management of Their Health
The proposed pilot study aims to employ a user participatory approach to develop a mobile application (app) that is engaging, high quality, and safe to use as a surrogate for the in-person Caregiver Self-Management Program (CSMP), an existing intervention for Chinese caregivers. The CSMP intervention aims to equip Chinese caregivers with self-management knowledge and skills, to increase their self-efficacy for caregiving and self-care, to enhance their physical and mental well-being, and to decrease their caregiving burden.
Research Team
Research Period: 7/1/2018 – 6/30/2019
Funding Source: USC Undergraduate Research Associates Program (URAP)
Fitting Local EMS Response to Multi-Need Older Adults Through a Community-Engaged Process
The pilot study will determine what information is needed for a subsequent translational research project that can assist the Los Angeles Fire Department in transforming its EMS services to optimize quality of care received by one million annual service requesters and reduce misuse of urgent care services. The LAFD seeks to coordinate and integrate their services more effectively into the existing web-work of community health and social services providers within service areas. Today only 1% of LAFD EMS calls are associated with fire suppression. EMS has become a preeminent front-line medical provider by default in communities with disparities in access to medical care in Los Angeles. There is a high priority requirement to optimize triage for patients with a wide range of presenting conditions, especially in higher demand are those over age 50. This study will examine one specific LAFD service region, Battalion 13, in South Los Angeles, an area with one of the highest EMS request rates and lowest availability of health providers to identify targets for innovative linkage to services providers and novel interventions.
Research Team
Research Period: 2/1/2017–12/31/2018
Funding Source: Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI)
Addressing Geriatric Syndromes with Permanent Supportive Housing
Guided by a disablement framework that positions the ability to age in place as a matter of fit between person and environment, the overall objective of this two-year project is to investigate ways to efficiently reduce the gap between the needs of chronically homeless adults and the housing and support service options that are currently available. Specifically, this exploratory study will provide new data on whether and how evidence-based prevention and management strategies that target age-related health conditions (e.g., functional and cognitive impairments, frailty, and hearing and visual impairments) can be integrated in permanent supportive housing.
Research Team
Research Period: 9/1/2016–5/31/2019
Funding Source: National Institute on Aging
Translating Caregiver Self-Management Research for Chinese Immigrant Community Use through Participatory Co-Design App Development
The proposed pilot study will employ a user participatory approach to design, prototype, and pilot-test a CSMP mobile app to meet the needs of Chinese immigrant caregivers. The app is expected to include five core functions to engage caregivers in self -care: building CSMP-based skills, tracking self-management behaviors, summarizing health information, coaching for problem solving, and enabling communication for support and sharing.
Research Team
Research Period: 7/1/2018 – 6/30/2019
Funding Source: Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI); Grant ID: 12-5176-3304
A Catalyst Drug or a Cessation Tool? E-Cigarette use among Korean American Young Adults
The proposed pilot study aims to understand unique aspects of progression to and desistence from problematic e-cig use among Korean American young adults (KAYA) and the role of racial discrimination in e-cig use. Given that the existing measure of discrimination (Everyday Discrimination Scale) has been widely used in diverse populations but not validated with KAYAs, the adequacy of the scale will also be part of assessment. We will conduct four focus groups with KAYA aged 18 to 24 in community settings in Los Angeles, consisting of 6 to 8 members each. We will seek a purposive sample of smokers and nonsmokers and use a snowball approach for recruitment. Results may suggest a shift in the field to a culturally relevant prevention strategy that accounts for subgroup differences in ethnic minority groups with diverse backgrounds, such as Asian Americans.
Research Team
Research Period: 12/1/2018 - 6/30/2019
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work: Department of Children, Youth and Families
Decision-theory Drive Intensive Longitudinal Data Collection and Modeling (ILDCM)
Description is forthcoming.
Research Team
Research Period: 12/1/2018 – 6/30/2019
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work: Department of Adult Mental Health and Wellness
Healthcare Stereotype Threat (HCST), Health Disparities, and Minority Aging
The first of its kind, the research will investigate the research questions of whether and how HCST contributes to disparities in healthcare resource use and health in aging African Americans and Latinos as compared to Whites. The research is to provide a new understanding of later life health disparities by examining a previously overlooked psychosocial barrier to care among aging minorities, namely HCST and how it can be ameliorated.
Research Team
Research Period: 8/15/2017-3/31/2022
Funding Source: National Institute on Aging: K01 - Mentored Research Scientist Development Award
Helping Carers to Care (HC2C)
Developed with Peking University’s Institute of Mental Health, the initiative facilitates the development, implementation and evaluation of training models in Beijing for caregivers of individuals with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Research Team
Research Period: Ongoing
HIV Risk, Drug Use, Social Networks: Homeless Persons Transitioned to Housing
This longitudinal study will explore how the transition to permanent supportive housing affects health risk and prevention behaviors among chronically homeless men and women age 40 and over, with a specific focus on risks related to HIV/AIDS.
Research Team
Research Period: 6/1/2014-5/1/2019
Funding Source: National Institute on Drug Abuse
Limited English Proficiency, Health and Healthcare among Older Immigrants
Limited English proficiency (LEP) is a unique vulnerability of older immigrants that poses a significant risk to health and healthcare. Given that social and environmental contexts play a critical role in the lives of persons with LEP, this project investigates how social connectedness and neighborhood/community characteristics (e.g., ethnic density, health service environments in the neighborhood) influence the link between LEP and health/healthcare. The interactive roles of social connectedness and neighborhood characteristics will be explored by using an innovative and synergistic mix of Social Network Analysis (SNA) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
Research Team
Research Period: 5/15/2015-4/30/2020
Funding Source: National Institute on Aging
Healthy Aging Los Angeles County Initiative
A collaborative effort of researchers from UCLA, the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging, the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, the City of Los Angeles Department on Aging, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, California State University, Los Angeles along with community leaders and interventionists to support sustainable change in communities that will allow middle-aged and older adults to stay healthy and live independently and safely with timely and appropriate access to quality health care, social support, and services.
Partners: Arleen Brown, MD; Jonathan Fielding, MD; Tony Kuo, MD; Martin Shapiro, MD; June Simmons, MSW; Laura Trejo, MSG
Research Period: Ongoing
Immigrant Patient Empowerment Program
The pilot training program aims to (1) empower Chinese immigrants by learning basic knowledge about the elements of communication, different cultural expectations, and the American healthcare system to facilitate successful experience in seeking healthcare in the United States, and (2) introduce proactive skills and tips to help immigrants improve healthcare decision-making and communication with healthcare providers.
Research Team
Research Period: Ongoing
Funding Source: USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging
Establishing Rates of Caregiving to Adults with Physical and Cognitive Disabilities in Home- and Community-Based Services
The primary aim of the pilot is to establish rates of caregiving to adults with physical and cognitive disabilities who rely on home- and community-based services (HCBS) program in the greater Los Angeles area. In collaboration with the largest multi-racial/ethnic HCBS in the greater Los Angeles area, St. Barnabas Senior Services (SBSS), we intend to characterize the proportion of 200 consumers that reports either receiving assistance from a family caregiver, or serving as a caregiver.
Research Team
Research Period: 2/15/2018-6/30/2018
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work: Department of Adult Mental Health and Wellness
Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) Workshop Series
The goal of the workshop series is to identify research priorities for the Aging Cluster through a series of meetings bringing together researchers in the field of aging. The meetings will host experts in the field of Alzheimer’s disease research to present the most-up-to-date research, policies, and funding opportunities. Faculty from the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work and across campus will be invited.
Research Team
Research Period: 2017
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work Research Council
Programa Esperanza (Project Hope)
The primary aim of the study is to test the comparative effectiveness of Programa Esperanza (Project Hope) and enhanced usual care (EUC). Programa Esperanza is a short-term, culturally modified psychosocial intervention for Spanish-speaking Latino patients 55 years of age or older with depression and multiple medical conditions. Our long-term goal is to widely disseminate the results and actionable steps needed to increase the adoption and sustainability of evidence-based behavioral health practices for low-income, Limited-English-speaking geriatric populations.
Research Team
Research Period: 1/1/2015–06/30/2019
Funding Source: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
Unidas Por la Vida: A Healthy Lifestyle Intervention for High-Risk Latina Dyads
Mexican American women have significantly elevated rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes. The proposed study tests a novel intervention that capitalizes on an existing important family dyad (mothers and their adult daughters) to foster clinically significant and long-lasting health behavior change. If found to effective, this intervention strategy has great potential to address health disparities in this, and other, at-risk populations.
Research Team
Research Period: 7/15/2014 - 8/13/2019
Funding Source: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Caregiving to Diverse Families in Los Angeles County
Family caregivers account for about 70-80 percent of all caregiving to older persons with disabilities in the United States. Informal care to older adults is an important scientific area given the dramatic aging trends in the U.S. and the increase in life expectancy of persons living with disabilities through old age.
Los Angeles County is home to upwards of 30,000 informal caregivers of older adults—one of the largest group of caregivers in the nation. Today, almost 30% of Los Angeles County is Latino, and 73% speak English less than “very well.” Several Los Angeles County-based non-profit organizations are funded to provide services to this target population in the form of information and referral, caregiver intervention programs, and/or respite care.
The research team will test a pilot psychosocial intervention aimed at increasing family caregiver physical and psychological well-being. Based on the intervention, the team will pilot the intervention with English- and Spanish-speaking family caregivers in Los Angeles County.
Research Team
Research Period: 4/1/2016–3/31/2018
Funding Source: California Community Foundation
Jewish Family Services' Person-Centered, Trauma-Informed Project Evaluation
The subaward research team will evaluate the implementation of a grant to extend services for child Holocaust survivors and their families, which was awarded to Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles by the Jewish Federation of North America.
Research Team
Research Period: 5/1/2016–2/28/2018
Funding Source: Jewish Family Services
Co-Designing a Mobile App with Chinese Immigrant Caregivers for Self-Management of Their Health
The proposed pilot study aims to employ a user participatory approach to develop a mobile application (app) that is engaging, high quality, and safe to use as a surrogate for the in-person Caregiver Self-Management Program (CSMP), an existing intervention for Chinese caregivers. The CSMP intervention aims to equip Chinese caregivers with self-management knowledge and skills, to increase their self-efficacy for caregiving and self-care, to enhance their physical and mental well-being, and to decrease their caregiving burden.
Research Team
Research Period: 2/1/2018 – 6/30/2018
Funding Source: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work: Department of Adult Mental Health and Wellness
Advocates for African American Elders: Coordinated Care Initiative Events
Using an innovative outreach and education model, the purpose of the events are to educate older adults about California’s Coordinated Care Initiative, an Affordable Care Act program that attempts to coordinate the delivery of Medicare and Medi-Cal health benefits into a single system for those eligible for both with the goal of improving the integration of all forms of care.
Research Team
Research Period: 2/2015 – 8/2015
Funding Source: The SCAN Foundation
2017 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count
In coordination with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, the research team will conduct the 2017 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count, a demographic survey of homeless adults, youth, and families, as required by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Research Team
Research Period: 9/1/2016–9/1/2017
Funding Source: Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority
A Helping Hand to Activate Patient-Centered Depression Care among Low-Income Patients (AHH)
The study aims to improve patient self-care management and patient-provider care management relationships among underserved low-income patients, who must simultaneously cope with major depression and chronic co-morbid physical illness. Some participants will be randomly selected to receive typical clinical services, while others will participate in a program in which community members, who are trained to provide basic health education, offer training and advice. Findings will determine whether community health worker promotora care management training improves patient-centered outcomes, such as self-care need and management, treatment adherence, symptom improvement, and care satisfaction over the usual team care.
Research Team
Research Period: 10/2013 – 12/2017
Funding Source: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
Testing the Feasibility of Telehealth Services within Permanent Supportive Housing
The goal of this project is to evaluate a pilot health care delivery quality improvement project in which USC Telehealth (USCTH) will implement evidence-based psychosocial interventions to tenants living in permanent supportive housing. Although all tenants are provided assistance in accessing traditional mental healthcare services, many high-need tenants often encounter barriers that lead to underutilization. USCTH—which delivers care through online video technologies—offers a potential solution to overcome many of these barriers and improve the delivery of care by allowing tenants to access virtual and evidence-based counseling in the comfort and safety of their own home. Dr. Benjamin Henwood and Dr. Nadia Islam will be conducting a feasibility study to evaluate this pilot.
Research Team
Research Period: 9/1/2016 - 7/1/2017
Funding Source: Gehr Family Center for Implementation Science
Bringing Evidence-Based Programs to Historically Underrepresented Older Minorities
This pilot project will produce an exhaustive inventory of MH/SU EBIs within existing LA County health and human services (HHS) provider systems. We will use a two-pronged approach that addresses the community needs with respect to MH/SU issues on the one hand, and the capacity of HHS provider systems to serve historically underrepresented older minorities—who typically bear excess burden of MH/SU conditions—on the other. Selected data produced by this study will be used in Dr. Vega’s proposed CTSI simulation modeling pilot (“metrics pilot study”) and will serve as the basis for future research applications.
Research Team
Research Period: January 2015–December 2017
Funding Source: Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI); Grant ID: 5UL1TR000130
Uncovering Opportunities for Prevention and Early Intervention among Older Minority Groups in Disadvantaged L.A. Neighborhoods
The USC Roybal Institute conducted a pilot study to develop a population survey instrument with a dual focus on aging populations and their caregivers, which collected information on the health status, health maintenance and optimal functioning of seniors in low-income areas of Los Angeles.
Research Team
Research Period: 11/2010 - 3/2011
Funding Source: Los Angeles Basin Clinical and Translational Science Institute; Larson Endowment for Innovative Research and Teaching, USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work; Grant ID: 1UL1RR031986-01
Toward a Better Understanding of Elder Mistreatment in Community Settings
The purpose of the study was to inform the NIA about the issues involved with conducting a national incidence or prevalence study of elder mistreatment. The study focused on community-residing elders to examine approaches to detecting and measuring mistreatment across five domains: physical assault, psychological aggression, sexual coercion, caregiver neglect and financial exploitation. The ultimate goal was to inform the field on reliable approaches to identifying elder mistreatment.
Research Team
Research Period: 9/2007 - 8/2009
Funding Source: National Institute on Aging (NIA); Grant ID: R21 AG030661
Family Caregiver Training Program
The program, which was developed by the USC Roybal Institute, offered free one-hour sessions on a range of topics for caregivers in the city of Los Angeles. Among the topics discussed were housing options, medication management, and fall and injury prevention. These sessions were made available to working caregivers on-site during their lunch hour or other designated in-services at employer sites. The target audiences for the program were individuals who were caring for someone over the age of 60 and individuals over the age of 60 who were caring for someone age 18 or under.
Information from topic sessions was incorporated into caregiving trainings through the Department of Water and Power (DWP), the Hollywood and Theresea Lindsay Senior Center, the City of Los Angeles Department of Human Resources, Mexican American Opportunity Foundation (MAOF) and a variety of other settings for more than 3,000 caregivers.
Research Team
Research Period: Completed
Funding Source: Los Angeles City Department of Aging
Family Caregiver Training Program: Caregiver Program Translation
The USC Roybal Institute collaborated with Beverly Hospital to develop and implement a caregiver intervention program. The goal was to lessen the negative health and mental health impacts of caregiving by creating multilingual training modules and other education materials to assist caregivers and those who they cared for.
Research Period: Completed
Funding Source: Beverly Hospital
Family Caregiver Training Program: Caregiver Program Translation
The USC Roybal Institute collaborated with the Keck School of Medicine of USC’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center of California to translate findings from its clinical research trials into practice in the community. This was accomplished through a local community-based consortium of organizations providing services to Alzheimer’s patients.
Research Period: Completed
Funding Source: Los Angeles Alzheimer's Research Center of California