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Grants to Educate the Care of Alzheimer's Patients in Filipino Communities
A personal mission inspires Mary Dioise Ramos every day, and now she has the chance to bring positive change to people suffering from Alzheimer's and related dementia. The assistant professor of nursing at Kennesaw State University's Wellstar College of Health and Human Services received a $149,974 grant from the Alzheimer's Association and a separate grant from the Asian Resource Center for Minority Aging Research. Both grants will shed light on the care of Alzheimer's patients in Filipino and Filipino-American communities. This is personal for me because my grandmother has Alzheimer's. Despite the large number and importance...
Grants to Educate the Care of Alzheimer's Patients in Filipino Communities
A personal mission inspires Mary Dioise Ramos every day, and now she has the chance to bring positive change to people suffering from Alzheimer's and related dementia.
The assistant professor of nursing at Kennesaw State University's Wellstar College of Health and Human Services received a $149,974 grant from the Alzheimer's Association and a separate grant from the Asian Resource Center for Minority Aging Research. Both grants will shed light on the care of Alzheimer's patients in Filipino and Filipino-American communities.
This is personal for me because my grandmother has Alzheimer's. Despite the large number and importance of Filipino American nurses in healthcare, there is little research on them. As an immigrant who grew up in the Philippines, I am embarking on a journey as a nursing scholar to advocate for health equity in Filipino American communities. That’s why this is particularly meaningful to me.”
Mary Dioise Ramos, Kennesaw State University Wellstar College of Health and Human Services
Research includes conducting surveys in Filipino and Filipino-American communities on the quality of life of people with dementia and their care partners, as well as conducting focus groups to discuss opportunities and challenges in health management and healthcare. From there, Ramos hopes to develop and test effective strategies for caregivers and support them so they can find solutions as they care for their loved ones.
Ramos has been working as a nurse for almost 20 years and specializes in caring for the elderly. Through work on this fellowship, she hopes to bridge the gap between nursing and those caring for older adult family members by giving them the tools to recognize dementia-related illnesses and provide optimal care at home.
“Part of our role as nurses is to educate and empower family members to make decisions regarding care,” she said. “We view the family as our care partner, so we want to best prepare them for this role and reduce both the financial and emotional burdens of caregiving.”
Ramos has taught at KSU since 2018 and collaborated on this project with the First-Year Scholars program through the Office of Research. Last year, she had three students present their nursing research at the Symposium of Student Scholars, projects that helped create the first study of nursing care for older adults in underserved communities.
“Through this study, students will be exposed to important aspects of health equity, something they will address in their nursing careers,” Ramos said. “The great thing about Kennesaw State is that students are encouraged to conduct relevant research.”
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