Steven M Albert

Contributions to Public Health

• I have completed an extensive array of CDC-funded research, including an evaluation of Pennsylvania’s statewide falls prevention program (Comparative Effectiveness of Community- Based Falls Prevention in Pennsylvania, CDC ARRA U48 DP002657, 2010-14) that established the evidence base for the program. Our efforts led to certification of the program and eligibility for Title-IIID ACL/AoA funding for Pennsylvania.
• I have established the Public Health Records Lab (PHRL) to use hospital system, health plan, and health insurance exchange EHR data to assess community health dynamics. In a current data use agreement with the PA Department of Aging and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), we have merged state aging services program data (subsidized prescriptions) with the UPMC EHR to assess the effect of meeting social needs on health outcomes.
• I have served as PI on three R01 efforts (AG18234, Cognitive and Physical Basis of Disablement, 2001-06; MH62200, Depression and End of Life Care in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, 2000-07; and NR012459, End of Life in the Very Old, 2010-15).
• I currently co-direct the Clinical and Population Outcomes Core (CPOC) of the University of Pittsburgh NIA Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center (P30 AG024827) and am the PI of a project assessing home environmental health hazards funded by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
• I seek to introduce simple computational models for investigating the dynamics of health behavior change and am currently developing a teaching guide and model library in this area.  Students are welcome to join this work!
• I continue community health studies and collaborations in Sri Lanka, Israel, and Japan.