Bringing Research Interventions to Protect the Most Vulnerable
July 29 @ 9:00 am - 10:00 am PDT
Date: Tuesday, July 29, 2025
Start time: 9 AM Pacific | 12 PM Eastern
End time: 10 AM Pacific | 1 PM Eastern
This session will explore how research with community populations can inform the diagnosis and treatment of mental health concerns among older adults. We will detail three underserved mental health needs: depression among homebound older adults; suicidality among victims of elder abuse; and trauma among diverse community-dwelling older adults. We will examine how academic-practice partnerships can help identify needs, design, and deliver psychotherapy interventions tailored to clients’ needs and sustainable in community settings. Recent findings on the effectiveness of community-delivered psychotherapy and exploring the impact of academic-practice partnerships in supporting the mental well-being of vulnerable older adults will be discussed.
Presenters:
Clare Culver is a clinical research assistant at Weill Cornell Medicine, where she contributes to research on depression interventions for individuals affected by elder abuse and crime. Her research interests focus on community-based interventions, trauma-informed care, and improving treatment access, engagement, and retention. Culver is committed to advancing intervention efficacy and implementation research for trauma-exposed populations.
Isabel Rollandi, PhD, is committed to advancing the understanding of mental health through rigorous scientific research, with a focus on depression and anxiety in adults. As research manager and team leader at Weill Cornell Medicine, she has built and led a robust team to execute federally funded studies and coordinate multisite clinical trials. Her expertise includes grant writing, which has successfully secured funding for critical research initiatives, and advanced quantitative data analysis using statistical software. This work has contributed to the production of high-impact manuscripts and presentations that are helping to shape the field of mental health research.
Jo Anne Sirey, PhD, is a professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medicine and an Attending Psychologist at New York–Presbyterian Hospital. Her work focuses on developing community-based mental health interventions for older adults, with an emphasis on improving treatment access and reducing stigma. She leads the NIMH-funded Weill Cornell ALACRITY Center and directs the TRIO program, which delivers mental health services to multilingual older adults across New York City. Sirey has developed and led initiatives such as the PROTECT program for elder abuse victims and SMART-MH for post-disaster mental health care. Her work is widely recognized for its impact on underserved and trauma-exposed populations.
Kathleen Zuke, MPH, is director of the Center for Healthy Aging at the National Council on Aging, where she collaborates with community-based partners nationwide to identify, implement, and sustain evidence-based programs that support older adults in managing chronic conditions, preventing falls, and addressing behavioral health needs. Her work focuses on empowering individuals and communities to better manage chronic conditions. Zuke’s passion for aging services was inspired by her upbringing with eight loving grandparents and her experience as a caregiver for her grandfather.