Featured Research Faculty: Kathleen Griffith

What research are you working on now?

TRIAD study (NIH-funded): We are comparing indicators of accelerated aging in patients with  HIV only and those with a history of non-AIDS defining cancer.  Clinical and laboratory indicators are evaluated to establish physiological versus chronological age. 

MARVEL Study (VA funded): We are evaluating metabolomics, inflammation, and adipose tissue to assess glucose utilization, and physical function in veterans with Long Covid and obesity.  This 3-arm clinical trial compares obese patients with long-Covid, without long Covid, and lean participants who are Covid naive. 

Advancing Spiritual Care Study (John Templeton Foundation funded)- We are incorporating the principles of spiritual care into health care settings.  In addition to training clinician-chaplain pairs in spiritual care, we fund demonstration projects that allow teams to introduce novel approaches to improve spiritual care in their own institutions.

Why is this work important?

TRIAD: We need better approaches to reduce the combined functional impact of HIV and cancer, which places patients at increased risk for disability and accelerated functional decline compared those with either alone.

MARVEL: We aim to evaluate if weight loss and exercise reduce long Covid symptoms and metabolic sequelae in obese patients.

Advancing Spiritual Care:  We believe that spiritual care is integral to comprehensive care in all health care settings, and our project tests new models of incorporating spiritual care in active patient care environments.

What are the potential policy implications of your work?

TRIAD and MARVEL: Results from these projects highlights public awareness of the need for medical and other supports for patients with debilitating chronic illnesses.

Advancing Spiritual Care:  This work emphasizes the need to develop and implement a billing approach for an historically overlooked aspect of comprehensive patient care.