Gerontology and Geriatrics Medical Experts

Area of Expertise: Aging - Gerontology

Hal H. Atkinson, MD
Associate Professor, Geriatrics and Gerontology, Program Director, Geriatric Medicine Fellowship, Director, Geriatric Consultation Clinic

Atkinson is a geriatrician with experience in consultative geriatrics for older patients with multiple medical problems, including frailty, functional decline, cognitive or memory problems, and other geriatric syndromes. Dr. Atkinson is involved in clinical education of medical students, residents, and geriatrics fellows. His work focuses on geriatrics education across multiple specialties, translating clinical evidence into education, and improving quality of care for older adults through education. He is listed in Best Doctors in America.

Area of Expertise: Alzheimer’s Disease

Laura D. Baker, PhD
Associate Professor, Geriatrics and Gerontology, Program Director, Geriatric Medicine Fellowship, Director, Geriatric Consultation Clinic

Baker is a cognitive neuroscientist who is a nationally recognized leader in the areas of aerobic exercise and hormone supplementation as treatments for memory decline associated with pre-clinical and early stage Alzheimer’s disease.

Area of Expertise: Alzheimer’s Disease

Suzanne Craft, PhD
Professor of Internal Medicine, Section on Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine; Research Director of the J. Paul Sticht Center on Aging; and Co-director of the Roena B. Kulynych Center for Memory and Cognition Research

Craft is a neuropsychologist with specialization in neuroendocrinology and neuroscience. Her research has focused on the role of neuroendocrine abnormalities in the development and expression of Alzheimer’s disease. This original line of work has garnered international attention, and Craft is recognized as a leading authority on the role of insulin metabolism in Alzheimer’s disease and aging. Her research recently has been expanded to examine the role of insulin in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s.

Craft received a $7.9 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant in 2011 to lead a multi-center study investigating the use of intranasal insulin in individuals with mild cognitive impairment or mild Alzheimer’s dementia. It was one of two projects selected by the NIH as part of the National Alzheimer’s Plan, a federal initiative to find an effective way to prevent or treat Alzheimer’s by 2025.

Craft’s honors and awards include a MERIT Award from the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer’s Association’s 2010 Zenith Award. She also has been Pfizer Visiting Professor at Johns Hopkins University and was a featured scientist in the HBO documentary series “The Alzheimer’s Project.” In addition to her extensive research and numerous publications, Craft serves on a number of editorial boards and national review panels and committees.

Faculty Profile, Research and Publications

Area of Expertise: Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

Stephen B. Kritchevsky, PhD
Director, Sticht Center on Aging
Professor, Internal Medicine and Translational Science
Associate Director, Translational Science Institute

Kritchevsky is an epidemiologist specializing in nutrition, chronic disease and physical function in older adults. He has leadership positions in several multi-center observational studies and clinical trials focused on the functional health of older adults including the Lifestyle Interventions and Independence for Elders Clinical Trial, the Health Aging and Body Composition Study, the Cardiovascular Health Study – All-Stars Study, and the Look AHEAD Memory and Movement Study. Kritchevsky is the principal Investigator of the  Wake Forest Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center, one of 13 such centers supported by the National Institute on Aging. He has authored more than 350 publications and has been recognized by Thompson-Reuters as one of the most highly cited researchers in his field. Kritchevsky is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences which is one of the highest impact journals in the field of aging. He is broadly knowledgeable about issues related to health and aging in older adults, with particular expertise in the areas of obesity, body composition and nutrition.

Area of Expertise: Aging - Gerontology

Kaycee M. Sink, MD, MAS
Associate Professor, Geriatrics and Gerontology

Sink is a geriatrician with expertise in Alzheimer's Disease and other dementias.  In addition to leading the Memory Assessment Clinic, she is a Co-Investigator on multiple NIH funded studies involving aspects of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Alzheimer's and other dementias. Her work on risk factors for cognitive impairment and dementia has been presented nationally and internationally.

Faculty Profile, Research and Publications

Area of Expertise: Aging - Gerontology
Area of Expertise: Memory Loss

Chief and Professor of Geriatrics and Gerontology, Clinical Director of Sticht Center

Williamson is a Co-Principal Investigator of SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial) and directs the SPRINT-MIND component of this trial. He is also PI for the ACCORD-MIND Coordinating Center and the LIFE_Cognition Coordinating Center. He also leads the Clinical Research Core of the Wake Forest Claude Pepper Center where his work focuses on developing clinical trial research methods in older populations. He is listed in Best Doctors in America.