Welcome to The Sealy Center on Aging

Simulation of the aging process

Our mission is to improve the health and well being of the elderly, not only within the Houston/Galveston area but also statewide and nationally, through education, research, clinical and social services, community participation and advocacy, and the establishment of cooperative linkages with other geriatric and gerontological centers.

The Sealy Center on Aging facilitates communication and collaborative scholarship among researchers at UTMB related to aging. A specific goal is to build bridges between basic scientists and clinicians who share common interests in aging. The center sponsors a variety of activities directed toward fostering, strengthening and expanding efforts in aging research, education and community service at UTMB.

The Main Components of SCoA

Essential Links

  • Pepper
  • CERCIT
  • WHO PAHO
  • Training
  • ETGEC
  • MSTAR

Claude Pepper Older Americans Independence Center

The Claude Pepper Older Americans Independence Center honors the memory of Claude Denson Pepper, a Florida congressman and career-long advocate for the rights of older adults. A vigorous man throughout his life, he rejected the idea that physical and mental decline were an inevitable part of normal aging.

Comparative Effectiveness Research on Cancer in Texas

In November 2007, Texas voters approved a constitutional amendment to establish the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) to fund grants for cancer research and prevention. In the first competition for multi-investigator proposals, CPRIT funded the $4.8 million (three years) Comparative Effectiveness Research on Cancer in Texas (CERCIT).

World Health Organization/Pan American Health Organization

The mission of the WHO/PAHO Collaborating Center is to foster research to improve the health of older populations in Latin America and the Caribbean. This is possible by establishing collaborations with institutions in Latin America. The work of the Center is also committed to training scholars with a cross-cultural, multidisciplinary perspective.

Pre and Post Doctoral Training Program in Health of Older Minorities

The Sealy Center on Aging at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas has openings for both pre-doctoral and post-doctoral positions. These positions are for research focusing on the health of older minorities, with an emphasis on older Hispanics. Trainees collaborate with Center faculty in research pertaining to minority health and aging.

East Texas Geriatric Education Center

The ETGEC-C, in partnership with the East Texas Area Health Education Centers (ETAHEC), provides geriatric-oriented medical education and clinical training for health professionals and students in health professions within a 72 county area of East Texas.  This area is more than 80% rural and above the national and state average in percent elderly (65+ years of age), particularly older minorities.  Professional disciplines targeted by the ETGEC-C include medicine, nursing, social work and allied health professions (physician assistants, physical therapy, and occupational therapy).

Medical Student Training in Aging Research Program

The MSTAR program offers an 8-12 week intensive experience in aging research for first-year medical students. The goals are to include trainees from diverse backgrounds, offer individualized, structured training that includes a mentor, a research project, didactics and supplementary experiences and promotes a sense of identity and membership within the field of aging research among other things.

  • Upcoming Events

  • May 23, 2013: ETGEC-C
    Monthly Video Series "A Way Back Home"
    12-1pm, Rebecca Sealy Hospital Room 6.100

  • June 27, 2013: ETGEC-C Monthly Video Series "The Open Road: America Looks at Aging" 12-1pm, Rebecca Sealy Hospital Room 6.100

  •  
    News
  • May 15, 2013: UTMB has been awarded a $4.97 million grant from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) for a center on "Patient Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR) in the Elderly" led by Dr. James S. Goodwin, director of UTMB's Sealy Center on Aging.
    Dr. GoodwinExperts offer small, easy steps to aging well




    The Galv Daily News, April 29, 2013
    "The single most important thing, in my opinion, is exercise," said Dr. James S. Goodwin, director of UTMB's Sealy Center on Aging. Read the full article.

  • Visit the CERCIT website for current news on cancer research:
    www.txcercit.org