March 11, 2021

Regenstrief geriatrician discusses pragmatic trials in long-term care

Regenstrief Research Scientist Kathleen Unroe, M.D., MHA, was one of several expert presenters to discuss the importance of pragmatic trials in long-term care during a virtual conference.

Pragmatic Trials in Long-Term Care: A Consensus Conference took place March 10, 2021 and was hosted by the American Medical Directors Association – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine, funded by the National Institute on Aging and led by editors of three leading geriatrics journals. The event identified priorities and best practice for trials taking place in the real-world setting of long-term care facilities.

As the population ages, experts agree that more research is needed to determine the best ways to care for older adults and that pragmatic trials are the most promising strategy to identify effective interventions.

Dr. Unroe presented during a panel on medical care and outcomes. She addressed the state of health service use and recommended research priorities in this area.

Dr. Unroe led a successful Centers for Medicare and Medicaid-funded project that reduced unnecessary hospitalizations for nursing home residents by 33 percent, allowing them to be treated in the familiar setting of their facilities, avoiding the potential pitfalls of care transfers and also saving money. She has taken that model and turned it into a startup company called Probari, which seeks to distribute this care model to more facilities and ultimately improve care for residents and reduce medical costs.

The one-day conference featured panels on research, implementation and dissemination.

About Kathleen Unroe, M.D., MHA

In addition to being a research scientist at Regenstrief Institute, Kathleen Unroe, M.D., MHA, is an associate professor at Indiana University School of Medicine and a practicing geriatrician.