Regenstrief Institute research scientist and Indiana University School of Medicine professor Kathleen Unroe, M.D., M.H.A., has been honored the 2024 Bantz-Petronio Translating Research into Practice Faculty Award. Dr. Unroe received the award from IU Chancellor Latha Ramchand, PhD, M.A., at a celebration of faculty and staff excellence on April 8, 2025.
The Bantz-Petronio Award recognizes outstanding faculty research that is interdisciplinary and intentionally directed toward improving lives within Indiana and beyond. It honors faculty who generate new knowledge and then transform that knowledge into innovative practices or solutions that positively impact individuals and communities.
A nationally recognized leader in nursing home care, Dr. Unroe’s research, clinical and policy work is focused on improving quality of care, particularly access to palliative and end-of-life care, for nursing home residents. She is co-principal investigator of UPLIFT-AD (Utilizing Palliative Leaders In Facilities to Transform care for Alzheimer’s Disease), a National Institutes of Health (NIH) R01 clinical trial testing a robust model of palliative care for nursing home residents.
Dr. Unroe led OPTIMISTIC (Optimizing Patient Transfers, Impacting Medical Quality, and Improving Symptoms: Transforming Institutional Care), a groundbreaking eight-year, $30.3 million demonstration project funded by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). OPTIMISTIC successfully improved care quality and reduced avoidable hospitalizations in 40 Indiana nursing homes. It continues to serve as a national model for nursing home innovation.
Demonstrating her commitment to translating research into practice, Dr. Unroe founded Probari, a company designed to disseminate the successful OPTIMISTIC clinical care model and support nursing homes in implementing high-quality care strategies.
Kathleen Unroe, M.D., MHA
In addition to being a research scientist with the Indiana University Center for Aging Research at Regenstrief Institute, Kathleen Unroe, M.D., MHA, is a professor of medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine and a practicing geriatrician.
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