Description of Research Expertise

The goal of Dr. Brown's research is to improve functional status and quality of life for socioeconomically vulnerable older adults. A substantial part of Dr. Brown's research has examined the epidemiology and outcomes of functional impairment and other geriatric conditions among vulnerable older populations. Her most recent work builds upon these epidemiologic findings to develop and test interventions to optimize function for vulnerable older adults in both clinic and community settings. She currently holds a K76 Beeson Advanced Career Development Award from the NIA focused on improving function and independence for older adults living in federally subsidized housing, as well as a VA Quality Enhancement Research Initiative (QUERI) grant focused on improving identification and management of functional impairment among older adults in primary care settings.

Selected Publications

Hayek R, Brown RT, Gutman I, Baranes G, Springer S: Smartphone-based analysis for early detection of aging impact on gait and stair negotiation: a cross-sectional study Sensors (Basel) 25 (7): 2310,2025.

Hadjis AD, Sun H, Du Y, Brown RT, Munshi P, Gill S, Hossain N, Skuli S, Frey N, Hexner EO, Bruno XJ, Lai CE, Martin M, Luger SM, Porter DL, Loren AW, McCurdy SR: Graft-Versus-Host Disease and Senescence-Associated Biomarkers Correlate with Frailty and Survival in Older Adults Undergoing Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Oral presentation at Tandem Meetings of American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy and Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research; Honolulu, Hawaii : 2025.

McCurdy SR, Sung A, Brown RT, Bruno X, Hong S, Babushock D, Munshi P, Johnson E, Frey N, Kessler M, Lai C, Lew M, Martin ME, Hexner E, Alfred Fisher, Luger S, Koll T, Skuli S, Bohannon L, Gill S, Porter D, Hossain N, Chao N, Loren A, Bhatt V, Gimotty PA: Machine Learning Models Demonstrate Gait Speed as Best Predictor of Survival and Relapse-Free survival in Older Adults Undergoing Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplant (HCT). Poster presentation at Tandem Meetings of American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy and Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research; Honolulu, Hawaii : 2025.

Nicosia FM, Zamora K, Ashcraft LE, Krautner G, Groot M, Kinosian B, Schubert CC, Chhatre S, Moriarty H, Intrator O, Schwartz AW, Orkaby AR, Prigge J, Brown RT: Type II hybrid effectiveness-implementation study of routine functional status screening in VA primary care Implement Sci Commun 6 (1): 15,2025.

Warren CM, Ashcraft LE, Peeples A, Piazza KM, Goodman O, Gitlin LN, Long JA, Burke RE, Werner RM, Brown RT: Challenges and opportunities in implementing a multicomponent dementia caregiver program in a complex healthcare system Inquiry 62 : 469580251322364,2025.

Su K, Maitra M, Peeples A, Goodman O, Tsai J, Lee D, Lam K, Lubens P, Zamora K, Shak E, Brown RT.: Developing an intervention to enhance aging in place for older veterans living in permanent supportive housing The Gerontologist : gnaf018,2025.

Andy UU, Newman DK, Wyman JF, Klusaritz H, Walsh W, Shou H, Koepler N, Schmitz KH, Reaves S, Arya L, Brown RT: The Mobility and Voiding Exercises in Older Women with Urinary Incontinence (MoVEonUp) randomized controlled trial: study protocol and rationale BMC Geriatr 24 (1): 994,2024.

Stites SD, Lee BN, Largent EA, Harkins K, Sankar P, Krieger A, Brown RT: Double-edged sword: a positive brain scan result heightens confidence in an Alzheimer’s diagnosis but also leads to higher stigma among older adults in a vignette-based experiment J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 79 (8): gbae109,2024.

Kler S, Diaz-Ramirez LG, Ryskina KL, Jeon S, Patel K, Cudjoe TKM, Ritchie CS, Boscardin WJ, Brown RT: Geriatric conditions and health care utilization among older adults living in subsidized housing J Amer Geriatr Soc 72 (8): 2446-2459,2024.

Jain S, Rosenbaum PR, Reiter JG, Ramadan OI, Hill AS, Hashemi S, Brown RT, Kelz RR, Fleisher LA, Silber JH: Mortality among older medical patients at flagship hospitals and their affiliates J Gen Intern Med 39 (6): 902-911,2024.

Academic Contact Information

Ralston House
3615 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 215-573-2021