In early December, Robert W. Amler, M.D., M.B.A., dean of the School of Health Sciences and Practice (SHSP) and vice president for government affairs, named Kenneth Knapp, Ph.D., left, assistant professor, health policy and management and Hasanat Alamgir, M.B.A., Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management, as co-directors of the Center for Long-Term Care, formerly called the Center for Long-Term Care Policy and Research. Dr. Knapp has served as research administrator and research scholar of the Center since its founding in 2011. Dr. Alamgir joined the SHSP in March 2016 and is also director of the Dr.P.H. program.

The Center for Long-Term Care, a center in the Institute of Public Health in the SHSP, retains its mission of improving the quality of long-term care for all Americans through research, education and public policy development. The name change does not reflect a change of mission or priority; it's simply more clear, concise and easier to say. Research and policy development remain at the core of what the Center does.

"The Center's primary purpose is to conduct multidisciplinary research to address the diverse health and social service needs of those in need of long-term care due to chronic illness or disability, both young and old," explains Dr. Knapp. "We are also interested in those providing care, both family caregivers and paid paraprofessionals. Long-term care remains at a critical juncture in the United States, due to demographic trends that leave more people needing care and fewer family caregivers available to provide that care, and also due to the high turnover rate among paid caregivers."

"The work of the Center is as relevant now as it ever has been," adds Dr. Alamgir, "and our hope is that the results of our work will have impact and influence for years to come."

Among other activities, the Center for Long-Term Care is currently planning a spring or summer 2017 colloquium addressing the topic: Weight Status and How it Affects the Need for Long-Term Care.