Maria P. Aranda, PhD, is an Associate Professor at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work and Executive Director of the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging. Her research focuses on psychosocial care for adults and older adults with psychiatric disorders, including depression and Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Aranda’s work explores racial and ethnic disparities in health services and develops interventions to alleviate the burdens faced by individuals with medical and psychiatric conditions, as well as their caregivers. She has led several studies funded by agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, the Alzheimer’s Association, and the National Institute of Mental Health.
Dr. Aranda co-founded “El Portal,” a family support program for low-income, Spanish-speaking families managing neurodegenerative disorders, which has become a national model. She has served on numerous boards and committees focused on enhancing practice, policy, and research for underrepresented populations, including consensus committees of the National Academy of Medicine on family caregiving, functional assessments, and mental health service delivery.
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