Understanding health concerns of LGBTQIA+ people living with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease

Join us for the April RCMAR CHIME Methods Seminar on Understanding health concerns and needs of LGBTQIA+ people living with Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, their caregivers, and care providers with Jason D. Flatt, Ph.D., MPH, Director, Center for Health Disparities Research, Associate Professor at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 

Speaker bio:

Jason (Jace) D. Flatt, PhD, MPH (pronouns: he, him, they, them), is an Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Health Disparities Research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Public Health, Department of Social and Behavioral Health. Jace’s research seeks to better understand the health concerns and needs of diverse lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and additional identities (LGBTQIA+) people living with Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and related dementias, as well as their caregivers and care providers. Their work examines the social and behavioral factors that shape caregiving experiences and influence participation in aging and Alzheimer’s research. Jace’s research is funded by several grants from The National Institute on Aging - National Institutes of Health, The Alzheimer’s Association, and The Retirement Research Foundation.

Jace is currently Co-Principal Investigator of two National Institute on Health-funded studies: 1) Rainbows of Alzheimer’s Research Readiness or ROAAR focused on understanding and promoting Alzheimer’s clinical trial readiness with the LGBTQIA+ community; and 2) Rainbows of Caring – a study developing more inclusive measures to ensure representation of LGBTQIA+ caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s disease in research and care. Jace also leads the first-ever Parkinson’s disease research (Parkinson’s Research with Inclusion, Diversity and Equity [PRIDE]) with LGBTQIA+ people living with Parkinson’s disease, their care partners, and their healthcare providers that was funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. Another study funded by the Alzheimer’s Association, The Stonewall Generations Study, is exploring memory and thinking and related health concerns among LGBTQIA+ older adults. Jace is also involved in the Building Healthy Outcomes Using a Supportive Environment (H.O.U.S.E.) Study, examining the influence of affordable and inclusive housing on the health of LGBTQIA+ older adults. Jace is also a former RCMAR scholar with UCSF and Rutgers University. Learn more about Jace’s research at RainbowsofAging.org and publications at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/jason.flatt.2/bibliography/public/ .