Alison Rataj

Alison Rataj is a Research Scientist at the University of New Hampshire Institute for Health Policy and Practice (IHPP) and the UNH Center on Aging and Community Living (CACL). Alison began at IHPP and CACL in 2014 with most of her work focused on designing, implementing, and evaluating projects that support person-centered, home and community-based options for older people. Currently, Alison serves as the lead for research and reporting on the New Hampshire National Core Indicator Aging and Disability (NCI-AD) survey, which seeks to assess and improve long-term services and supports among older adults and adults with disabilities. She also provides support to the NH Alliance for Healthy Aging, a statewide coalition of stakeholders that promote healthy aging in communities across the state. 

Alison has a Master's in Social Work from UNH and is currently a PhD Candidate at the University of Massachusetts Boston, Department of Gerontology. Her research agenda has focused on the ramifications of older adult's social environment for their health and well-being in mid- to late-life. This has included an analysis on geographic variation of antidementia medication and antipsychotic use among nursing home residents; and the association between childlessness and loneliness and how friendship plays a role in mid- and later life; as well as describing what matters when providing person-centered dementia care from the perspectives of long-term care leaders, staff, residents and their families in low-resource, long-term care settings.