The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) -- the nation's largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to the field of aging -- has chosen Lisa Skemp, PhD, RN, FGSA, FAAN, of Loyola University Chicago as the 2016 recipient of the Minority Issues in Gerontology Committee Outstanding Mentorship Award.
This distinguished honor is given annually to an individual who has exemplified outstanding commitment and dedication to mentoring minority researchers in the field of aging.
The award presentation will take place at GSA's 2016 Annual Scientific Meeting, which will be held from November 16 to 20 in New Orleans, Louisiana. This conference is organized to foster interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers, educators, and practitioners who specialize in the study of the aging process. Visit http://www.geron.org/2016 for further details.
Skemp is a professor and chair of the Department of Health Systems, Leadership and Policy at Loyola University Chicago. Her work focuses on promoting health and quality of life for community-dwelling elders through research on building community capacity for healthy aging. This cross-cultural and international research aims to understand how elders acquire the things they need to live in the community and translate evidence-based best practices into culturally informed local care.
She has worked with and mentored gerontological researchers in nursing and social work in the areas of health promotion activities for African American elders with dementia; Taiwanese caregivers of elders post stroke; Amish elders; Arab American elders; Hispanic and Sudanese immigrant elders in the Midwest and New York City; and LGBT elders. She has used the culturally informed community capacity building model to conduct research in the Caribbean and South Indian communities with multiple community projects. This model, derived from community-based research, has resulted in a textbook for culturally informed interdisciplinary community nursing practice with her personal mentor, Melanie Dreher, PhD. The textbook, whose goal is to incorporate and expand culturally informed care, is in its third edition with an additional co-author, Susan Lehmann.
Skemp also is a GSA fellow, which represents the Society's highest class of membership.
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The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) is the nation's oldest and largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to research, education, and practice in the field of aging. The principal mission of the Society -- and its 5,500+ members -- is to advance the study of aging and disseminate information among scientists, decision makers, and the general public. GSA's structure also includes a policy institute, the National Academy on an Aging Society, and an educational branch, the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education.