Laura Gitlin

Laura N. Gitlin, PhD, is an applied research sociologist, a distinguished professor and dean emerita of the College of Nursing and Health Professions at Drexel University. Gitlin is nationally and internationally recognized for her research on developing, evaluating and implementing novel home and community-based interventions that improve quality of life of persons with dementia and their family caregivers, enhance daily function of older adults with disability and address mental health disparities. She is a well-funded researcher, having received continuous research and training grants from federal agencies and private foundations for over 35 years.

In all of her research, she applies a social ecological perspective and person—family-directed approach to examine, intervene and support individuals. Her efforts involve collaborating with community organizations, health and human service professionals and other stakeholders to maximize the relevance and impact of such interventions. She is also involved in translating, disseminating and implementing proven programs for delivery in diverse practice settings globally and in the United States. For example, the Tailored Activity program is now being used in nine countries including Latin America, Scotland, England, Australia, Hong Kong and parts of the United States. The COPE program and its iterations are being used in various parts of the United States and Australia. Also, several of her measures have been validated in Spanish and are being used in various countries.