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Emily Largent

By Meghan McCarthy 

Penn researcher Emily Largent, JD, PhD, RN, was awarded the 2023 Baruch A. Brody Award for her research on supported decision making as cognition declines.

“It was an honor to receive the Brody Award,” said Dr. Largent.

The Baruch A. Brody Award and Lectureship is given by the Baylor College of Medicine Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy, the Houston Methodist Hospital System, and the Rice University Department of Philosophy in honor of Dr. Baruch Brody.

The recipient is someone who blends legal analysis with empirical research methods to address ethical issues and who exemplifies the values and scholarly excellence of Dr. Brody. 

“Dr. Brody was a giant in the field of bioethics due to his ability to blend rigorous analysis with real-world impact,” said Dr. Largent.

Dr. Largent received her accolade and delivered a lecture on her groundbreaking work last month in Houston, Texas.

“Supported decision making may be the ‘just right’ decision making tool for people with marginal capacity,” said Dr. Largent. “Importantly, this process allows individuals with impaired capacity to make their own decisions while also having tailored support.”  

Dr. Largent said that she will continue to strive to make a difference in the lives of patients and their families through her research.

Click here to watch a recording of Dr. Largent’s lecture.

By Meghan McCarthy

For Amari, it started with forgetting simple things, like whether he paid a monthly bill or getting lost on the way to the post office.  

Then, the forgetting became more frequent. 

Sure, he discussed it in his yearly physicals. But his doctor never pressed him to make a formal diagnosis of dementia, so Amari never looked for one.  

Years prior, when he developed knee pain, Amari sought guidance from his doctor and ultimately had a knee replacement. Why were the changes in his brain any different?  

Stigma.  

By Meghan McCarthy

When Brianna Morgan, PhD, CRNP, began interviewing persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and their care partners, she was met with vulnerability, honesty, and beauty in their reflections.  

At the time, Dr. Morgan was collecting data for her PhD thesis, which explores the experiences of inner strength in persons newly diagnosed with MCI. Inner strength describes an individual’s ability to process and move through challenging circumstances.  

To study this, she conducted interviews with nine pairs of people newly diagnosed with MCI and their care partners both together and individually to better understand their definitions of inner strength and experiences after an MCI diagnosis.  

“I used a realist methodology, which assumes that everybody’s truth is their own. It’s influenced by their own experiences,” said Dr. Morgan. “From the very beginning, I allowed persons to define their own inner strength.”  

While quantitative research methods involve concrete measurements of data collection, Dr. Morgan faced a unique challenge: how to assess these interviews.  

So, she turned their words into poetry.  

Poems of Inner Strength

Spoken by People Living with Mild Cognitive Impairment and their Care Partners

Compiled by Brianna Morgan, MSN, CRNP

By Cait Kearney and Matt Smith

You’ve heard of Alzheimer’s disease, but what about LATE? 

Over 30% of autopsied brains of people older than 80 show the presence of LATE, and 55% of people living with Alzheimer’s disease also have LATE. 

“LATE is a unique and highly prevalent brain disease,” said Michael Tran Duong, PhD, University of Pennsylvania researcher and medical student. 

The Penn Memory Center is offering a variety of free programs for people living with cognitive impairment, caregivers, and their loved ones. Registration for the following programs is open:

Mindfulness and Meditation
Thursdays, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m., starting Jan. 19, virtual

Explore short meditation and mindfulness exercises that help reduce stress and ground you in the present moment.

RSVP for Mindfulness and Meditation

Cognitive Comedy
Tuesdays, 1:30 – 3:00 p.m., starting Jan. 24, virtual 
Cognitive Comedy is an improv comedy workshop for people with cognitive impairment and their loved ones.

RSVP for Cognitive Comedy

By Meghan McCarthy 

A team of University of Pennsylvania researchers found that Black Americans are aging faster than white Americans, and inequities in socioeconomic resources is the main cause. 

Scientists measure age with more data than just a birthdate. Biological age accounts for the various experiences in life that may slow or quicken the way your body ages. 

“There are some people who are 80, super healthy, and live for many years. Then, there are 65-year-olds that already have many health problems,” said Isabel Yannatos, PhD candidate. “Biological age reflects the differences in how people develop health problems as they age.”