Studies have shown that bright light therapy has improved appetite, sleep and mood in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Now, UNMC’s Brenda Keller, M.D., plans to advance this research by studying the effect of lighting on day-to-day activities.
The UNMC assistant professor of geriatrics and gerontology is the latest recipient of the Vada Kinman Oldfield Alzheimer’s Research Fund Award, which is given annually to an individual with a promising new idea in Alzheimer’s research. The award was presented Monday, marking the 93rd birthday of the late Vada Kinman Oldfield.
Helping others
“Alzheimer’s disease is one that affects all aspects of life — memory, behavior and ability to function in one’s own environment,” said Dr. Keller, who also serves as medical director of the Senior Assist Case Management. “This award will allow me to conduct research aimed at improving function and quality of life for those with Alzheimer’s disease.”
The award carries a $10,000 stipend. Col. Barney Oldfield established the research fund at UNMC in 1999 in honor of his wife, who died that year after an 11-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease. In addition to the $10,000 annual award, the principal of the endowment is increased by $10,000 each year. A Nebraska native, Col. Oldfield has said that once a cure is found, the money will be redirected to battle other disorders of old age.
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Ardyce Bohlke, Brenda Keller, M.D., and John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., stand by the Vada Kinman Oldfield display in University Hospital. |
Finding answers
Dr. Keller said her research will test the effect of increased illumination on the accuracy and time needed to perform day-to-day tasks in community dwelling seniors with illness and mild dementia. She hopes her research will help develop recommendations for the optimal lighting needed to help the older person with Alzheimer’s disease maintain independence and quality of life.
Philanthropic support opens doors
Philanthropic support, as shown by Col. Oldfield, creates opportunities for young investigators to follow their dreams, said John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., chairman of internal medicine.
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“This is really the era of aging research,” he said, during the award ceremony.
Clinical research also sets academic hospitals apart from other hospitals by positively impacting the quality of patient care and teaching, he said.
Previous award recipient says thanks
Last year’s award recipient, Anuja Ghorpade, Ph.D., said funding from the award, helped her develop UNMC’s Rapid Autopsy Program, two manuscripts, an National Institutes of Health grant, three abstracts and will produce an educational video for patient families on the importance of research.
Dr. Keller’s background
A native of Lincoln, Dr. Keller earned her medical degree from UNMC in 1988. She also did her residency and geriatric medicine fellowship at UNMC.
Dr. Keller was joined at Monday’s ceremony by her parents, Dwayne and Marian Keller of Lincoln; her husband, Thomas Magnuson, M.D., UNMC psychiatry; and their 9-year-old son, Paul. A daughter, Ellen, 7, did not attend.
Seeing hope and possibility
Col. Oldfield, 93, is a great optimist, said Ardyce Bohlke, executive director of Nebraska’s Dollars for Scholars, a network of community-based, volunteer-operated scholarship foundations. “Even in Vada’s death he recognized the importance of hope and possibility,” she said.