The Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research

Postdoctoral Program

One of nine top-flight research centers that comprise Brown’s Program in Public Health, the Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research is nationally renowned for health services research focusing on chronic illness and long-term care.

The Center’s primary mission is to advance the fields of gerontology and health services research through methodological and substantive research, informed by basic theories of aging, human development, and the illness experience. The goal of these efforts is to enhance the quality of life of persons with chronic illness, especially older adults. The research focus, both basic and applied, draws upon the social sciences as well as the clinical disciplines.

The Center’s faculty members hold primary appointments in the departments of Community Health, Economics, Family Medicine, Medicine, Surgery, Sociology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and Psychiatry and Human Behavior. Collaborative research relationships between hospital-based clinicians, particularly those located at the affiliated Veterans Administration hospital, and campus-based researchers provide the basis for numerous interdisciplinary health services research projects focusing on the health care of older persons. Brown University and Brown Medical School are located in Providence, New England’s second-largest city, with a population of approximately 170,000. As the state capital, it is the hub of Rhode Island’s business, governmental and cultural activities. The health care and biotech industries, fueled by the $130 million in annual external research funding attracted by Brown and its affiliated hospitals, have transformed the landscape of the city. Former manufacturing facilities have provided prime space for state-of-the-art research laboratories, and the health care industry is the number-one employer in the state, with 52,000 Rhode Islanders holding jobs in that sector. For more information on the Center and the program, visit www.chcr.brown.edu. For more information on Providence and Rhode Island, go to www.providenceri.com and www.visitrhodeisland.com.