April 18, 1996

UCLA School of Public Health research Steven P. Wallace has been named Borun Scholar of the Anna and Harry Borun Center for Gerontological Research.

Wallace, an associate professor of community health sciences, is the first recipient of the scholarship, which was created by Dr. E. Raymond Borun to complement and expand the Borun Center's research on aging and quality of life.

As Borun Scholar, Wallace's research on the impact of managed care on the quality of life of the minority elderly will be funded for two years and renewable for a third, beginning July 1996.

Wallace will study racial and ethnic differences in knowledge and experience with managed care systems. His research will examine whether managed care membership affects response to illness symptoms and care for different racial and ethnic groups. Additionally, Wallace will assess the marketing, benefit and enrollment practices of the largest Medicare health maintenance organizations in Southern California to determine the extent to which they meet or overlook the needs of minority elderly.

In conjunction with this project, Wallace will collaborate with Dr. Joseph G. Ouslander and other researchers at the Borun Center, on a study that aims to describe models for how extended care facilities can actively participate in managed care systems.

The Borun Center, a joint venture between UCLA and the Jewish Home for the Aging, is known for its landmark studies in areas including nursing home management of incontinence, the importance of exercise for the frail elderly and consumer satisfaction with nursing homes.

Since the establishment of the Borun Center in 1989, the foundation has provided more than $1.7 million in funds to UCLA in support of interdisciplinary programs that focus on social, economic, environmental, psychological and medical health issues affecting the frail elderly. Support from organizations such as the Borun Center is an integral part of UCLA's Multicampus Program in Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology. UCLA has been ranked number one in geriatric care for four consecutive years by a U.S. News & World Report survey.