According to the US Census Bureau, approximately 20% of the US population is expected to be older than 65 years of age by the year 2030. To step up to this challenge, several of OHSU’s schools and institutes have banded together to form the OHSU Healthy Aging Alliance, which has a primary mission of speeding up the development of safe and effective therapies for the elderly and of provide them with more informed healthy lifestyle choices. By utilizing the vast array of expertise and multi-disciplinary approaches of it members, the Alliance is able to translate findings from basic research to clinical studies and to efficiently integrate them into improved health care delivery systems for the elderly. In addition, the Alliance is dedicated to healthy aging awareness and education, and provides training for our next generation of basic and clinical scientist, with a special emphasis on age-related disorders.

The OHSU Healthy Aging Alliance draws its strength from the Schools of Dentistry, Medicine, and Nursing. In addition, the Alliance benefits tremendously from the basic science research performed at the Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), and the unique technological developments of the Oregon Center for Technology and Aging (ORCATECH). The Oregon Geriatrics Education Center (OGEC) plays a key role in improving the care of the elderly through interdisciplinary education and training of health care providers.