SU's DiBartolo Named Gerontological Society of America Fellow
SALISBURY, MD---The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) has recognized the “outstanding and continuing work” of a Salisbury University professor in the field of aging.
Dr. Mary DiBartolo of SU’s Nursing Department is one of the Society’s newest fellows, in the area of Health Sciences. According to GSA, the status of fellow — its highest membership class — acknowledges activities including research, teaching, administration, public service, practice and participation.
The 89 new fellows will be recognized during GSA’s 2018 Annual Scientific Meeting in November in Boston. GSA is the nation’s largest interdisciplinary organization devoted to aging. As a fellow, DiBartolo will continue contributing to the field by submitting scholarship to geriatric-focused journals and serving as a resource for other scholars and the public.
DiBartolo worked in long-term care facility administration before joining SU’s faculty in 1995. Certified in gerontological nursing and as a nurse educator, her interests include Alzheimer’s/dementia and caregiving, Parkinson’s care, alcohol use disorder in older adults and end-of-life issues.
In 2016, she received SU’s first Fulton Endowed Professorship in Geriatric Nursing, a three-year appointment that allows her to continue her research, teaching and outreach related to the care of older adults.
DiBartolo, for example, hosts PAC 14’s health education series, Focus on Health. She continues her work as an Edmond J. Safra Visiting Nursing Scholar at the Parkinson’s Foundation and is an educational consultant to the renowned Integrace Institute at Copper Ridge, where she develops and provides dementia care training programs. She has developed the interdisciplinary SU Honors course “Aging Reexamined, Reimagined” to inform current students about issues related to aging. She also provides educational programs on a variety of aging-related topics to the surrounding community.
“This is excellent news and a testament Dr. DiBartolo’s endeavors as SU’s only endowed professor in gerontology,” said Dr. Jeffrey Willey, chair of SU’s Nursing Department. “This is a growing area of heath care, and her expertise benefits our students and the greater community.”
For more information call 410-543-6030 or visit the SU website at www.salisbury.edu.