Funding is 1 of National Institute of Mental Health's largest grants given to study depression later in life
The Weill Cornell Institute of Geriatric Psychiatry at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division announced today it has received the largest grant in its 20-year history. One of a handful awarded nationally, the new $10 million, five-year "Center Grant" from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) will enable NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell investigators to advance their pioneering work in understanding the biological, medical, cognitive and psychosocial problems of depressed seniors. The grant is one of the largest ever given by NIMH to study geriatric depression.
The grant's principal investigator is Dr. George Alexopoulos, founder and director of the Weill Cornell Institute of Geriatric Psychiatry at NewYork-Presbyterian/Westchester, professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College and director of the NIMH-supported Advanced Center for Interventions and Services Research (ACISR) in late-life depression. He is recognized as one of the world's leading geriatric psychiatry researchers in late-life depression and its treatment.
Dr. Alexopoulos, who has spent his career of more than 30 years investigating late-life depression, said, "To receive a Center Grant by NIMH, a team must have a critical mass of competitively-funded research projects and demonstrate that the Center's new projects and structures will result in a scientific product that will be greater than the sum of its individual projects. As such, the Center Grant represents an endorsement by NIMH of the scope and importance of our team's work."
He added: "This is an exciting time in the history of the Weill Cornell Institute of Geriatric Psychiatry. The 'Center Grant' is significant because it will enable our investigators to synthesize their findings in a meaningful way and develop new tools and practices needed to reduce the burden of depression and disability in elderly persons who have limited access to quality care."
As in the past, the Institute will seek individuals over the age of 60 from the community to participate in research studies.
Since its inception in 1994, the Weill Cornell Institute of Geriatric Psychiatry has consistently received support by NIMH. This is the fourth and largest Center Grant awarded to the Institute since its inception.
Dr. Alexopoulos noted that the Institute demonstrated in its grant application that "we have the infrastructure and unique mix of innovative findings and synergies in place to take our research to the next level by developing new treatments and improving the care offered to elderly patients in the community."
The research efforts of Weill Cornell Institute's team of 13 NIMH-funded investigators, five at the full professor's level, have concentrated in three interrelated core areas:
- The Biology of Depression -- Studies in this area examine how medical and neurological illnesses may cause depression in some people and how the abnormalities in specific brain circuits may change the course of depression and influence patients' response to antidepressants.
- Treatment Development -- This work is based on the identification of behavioral limitations and disabilities that increase stress and promote depression in older persons. Developing behavioral treatments that target and mitigate these limitations may improve depression and quality of life.
- Treatment Implementation -- A set of studies focuses on ways to overcome barriers to depression care in the community. An example of the Institute's approach is a project that connects primary care physicians with mental health clinics so that they deliver a comprehensive care program for depression of older adults. Another project trains home care nurses on various sites across the country to recognize signs of depression and initiate treatment intervention.