SOARNET: 2024 In Review

The Supporting Older Adults through Research Network (SOARNet) has made significant strides since it was first established in Fall 2023. We hope you enjoy reading about our shared accomplishments over the last year.

In 2024, the inaugural SOARNet Advisory Board officially appointed five members, each representing diverse experiences and backgrounds. The Advisory Board held quarterly meetings during which they shared their perspectives on SOARNet priorities and strategies for research and member recruitment.

SOARNet has launched its first study under the leadership of Dr. Vidya Sharma (PI), Dr. Sara Masoud (Co-I) and Dr. Angelica Davila (Co-I) titled "Project ECHO Nutrition & Brain Health Training for Primary Care Providers: A Stakeholder-Engaged SOARNet Study". This community-engaged study involves the establishment of a work group who are collaborating with the study team to develop and test an educational intervention to support primary care providers to promote brain health among high-risk patients from a nutrition-centered approach.

Our SOARNet Research Coordinator, Caitlin Sangdahl, showcased the successes of our Network work by presenting a poster at the 2024 Institute for Integration of Medicine & Science (IIMS) Community Engagement Symposium.

We have also expanded our member base, fostering a larger community of support and collaboration. Our goal for the coming year is to continue growing our member base so that we can promote collaboration and research support among the SOARNet community.

Thank you to everyone who has been a part of the creation and growth of SOARNet!

We are currently recruiting providers (NP, MD, DO, PA) to check their eligibility and participate in the 4 upcoming sessions being held in January. Interested in participating? Please read the flyer below and check your eligibility HERE.

This December, our very own Advisory Board member and current PI, Dr. Vidya Sharma, received her PhD in Translational Science. Dr. Sharma is the epitome of hard work and perseverance. Her passion and unyielding pursuit for knowledge were key in her journey to receiving her PhD. We are all so proud of you Vidya, you have worked so hard and are the most deserving.

For more information, KSAT 12 wrote a story HERE, and the University of Texas at San Antonio College for Health, Community and Policy also wrote a story about her endeavors and created a short video HERE.

Dr. Jennifer LaCoss is a Palliative Medicine physician and assistant professor for UT Health San Antonio and the Long School of Medicine in the Department of Geriatrics, Gerontology, and Palliative Medicine. Additionally, she is the Medical Director for the Outpatient Palliative Care Clinic at University Hospital, which supports a busy inpatient and outpatient palliative medicine service. Prior to starting a career in medicine, Dr. LaCoss obtained a Master of Forensic Science degree and worked as a forensic scientist and DNA analyst providing scientific analysis, support, and expert witness testimony in the criminal justice system for a number of years. Additionally, Dr. LaCoss is an active committee member for End Violence Against Women International, presenting at a national level on elder abuse. She has also participated in program development in conjunction with the Bexar County Domestic Violence Task Force on a committee addressing non-lethal strangulation in intimate partner violence.

Dr. Vidya Sharma is an Assistant Professor of Practice at the University of Texas, San Antonio. She is a Registered Dietitian (RD) and a Certified Diabetes Care & Education Specialist (CDCES). Her expertise is in community dietetics, with a research focus on chronic disease prevention, community nutrition, and improving health outcomes for older adults.

Cynthia Sierra, with over 15 years of experience in psychosocial and neurological clinical assessments and evidence-based services, focuses on supporting individuals with psychotic disorders and improving cognitive function and community integration. Her passion for person-centered care and empowerment led her to focus on delivering individualized treatment approaches. Additionally, her personal experience as a care partner for her mother with early-onset Alzheimer’s has shaped her perspective on caregiving, leading her to share her journey at conferences and become a member of research advisory boards, advocating for underrepresented communities in research.

As a scientist practitioner with a background in clinical social work, Dr. Stensland is devoted to understanding and improving the lives of individuals who have physical and emotional pain. She worked as a hospice social worker for five years. The emphasis on pain management at end-of-life led to her interest in researching pain. Her research focuses on older adults living with chronic pain; and she also studies the utility of animal-assisted interventions for pain and depression in dialysis clinics. In her clinical work, she facilitates a psychoeducational chronic pain therapy group.

Dr. Eduardo Zilli is a general neurologist in San Antonio, with fellowship training in dementia and cognitive disorders, previous academic experience with several publications and grants, and whose practice now focuses primarily the senior Latino population in San Antonio.

On Saturday, December 7th, our Research Coordinator, Caitlin Sangdahl, had the opportunity to present a poster and talk to the community at the 2024 IIMS Community Engagement Symposium. The poster, titled "SOARNet: Establishing a Practice-Based Research Network to Support Older Adults through Research", described the founding, infrastructure, leadership, and membership of SOARNet.

Caitlin is currently working on a manuscript for this topic that will be submitted the end of January. This will be the first publication for SOARNet.

Dr. Masoud and her community partners have initiated an exciting new project and study to better understand experiences of dementia among Arabs and Arab American stakeholders. To initiate their efforts, a community convening was hosted on December 3rd at Tripoli’s Middle Eastern and North African Cuisine. Arab caregivers, community leaders, health care providers, and representatives of community organizations who serve the Arab community all gathered to learn from each other and commit to the ongoing study and advocacy efforts led by the project team.

If you want to be involved, please contact Dr. Sara Masoud through email HERE.

We are still actively recruiting new members for SOARNet to grow our membership base and share our exciting findings. Our network mission is to develop and conduct practice-based research to improve the health of older adults, aiming to generate practical and timely evidence that can be used by primary care providers to enhance the quality and efficacy of older adult health care.

Why Join SOARNet?

- Opportunities to participate, propose, and conduct research

- Access to information and resources to support patient care

- Opportunity to collaborate and network with other primary care providers

- Updates on research conducted through SOARNet

Interested?

- Fill out our Enrollment form HERE: https://redcap.link/s58kx5ul

Please spread the word to any and all providers who work with or have a focus on the older adult population.