Research & Discovery UConn Health

August 27, 2026 | Olivia Drake

UConn School of Social Work Welcomes Nationally Recognized Gerontologist

With support from a K01 Career Development Award, Chanee Fabius is currently exploring how communication between family caregivers and home care aides can be strengthened to better support individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias

Chanee Fabius comes to UConn from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she built a nationally recognized program of research in aging, caregiving, and health services. (Contributed photo)

Chanee Fabius comes to UConn from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she built a nationally recognized program of research in aging, caregiving, and health services. (Contributed photo)

This month, Chanee Fabius, a nationally recognized gerontologist and health services researcher, joined the UConn School of Social Work (opens in new tab) as the Judith M. Zachs Family Professor in Aging and associate professor. Additionally, she is affiliated with the UConn Center on Aging (opens in new tab) which supports a robust, nationally recognized research program focused on preventing or minimizing disability and promoting quality of life among older adults.

A principal investigator on multiple National Institute on Aging (opens in new tab) (NIA) awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Fabius brings a research portfolio focused on improving care quality and quality of life for older adults, family caregivers, and the direct care workforce.

Her current project, funded through 2027 by an NIA K01 Career Development Award, is titled “Improving Information Sharing Between Caregivers and Home Care Aides Caring for Persons Living with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD).” The study examines how communication between family caregivers and home care aides can be strengthened to better support individuals living with ADRD. The project aligns with Fabius’s broader research agenda examining how policies, health systems, and community-based services can better support older adults living with disabilities, family caregivers, and the workforce responsible for providing long-term services and supports. Her scholarship focuses on translating research evidence into policies and practices that improve outcomes for aging populations.

“My goals include mentoring the next generation of UConn scholars and social work practitioners, ensuring they are equipped to transform policy and practice in an aging society. — Chanee Fabius

Fabius’s expertise arrives at a critical time, as Connecticut and the nation seek innovative approaches to support a growing aging population, family caregivers, and the workforce that provides essential care.

By 2028, adults age 65 and older are expected to account for more than one in five Connecticut residents. Already, more than 710,000 Connecticut residents provide an estimated $10.7 billion in unpaid care for adult family members each year, underscoring the growing need for research, policies, and professionals equipped to support healthy aging, family caregivers, and long-term care.

Fabius also led and contributed to several other NIH-funded projects including “Person-Reported and Health Care Utilization Outcomes of Home and Community Based Care Recipients with and Without Alzheimer’s Disease and Its Related Dementias” (2020-2024); “Engaging and Integrating Direct Care Workers in Care Delivery for Persons Living with Dementia in the Community” (2021-2022); “Place-Based Effects on Race Differences in the Use of Paid and Unpaid Care, Social Participation, and Caregiver Burden for Older Adults with Disabilities and their Family Caregivers” (2021-2022); “Surveying Direct Care Agencies in Maryland to Examine Quality of Life of Older Medicaid Home and Community-Based Service Recipients with ADRD” (2020-2021), among others.

Her more than 60 peer-reviewed publications have appeared in leading journals, including JAMA Network Open, The Gerontologist, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, and Alzheimer’s & Dementia. Her work has informed state and national policy discussions and has contributed to a growing evidence base on how healthcare and social service systems can better meet the needs of older adults and their caregivers.

Fabius is a longtime member of the Gerontological Society of America and AcademyHealth, and editorial board member for the Journal of Applied Gerontology and Journal of Aging and Social Policy, and a peer reviewer for Health Affairs, The Gerontologist, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, and others.

Fabius earned her BS in health and wellness from Syracuse University; MA in human development and gerontology from the University of St. Joseph, and a Ph.D. in human development and family studies from UConn. Before beginning her academic career, she worked as a care manager with Connecticut Community Care, supporting participants in the Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders.

At UConn, Fabius will teach and mentor students while expanding collaborative research partnerships across the School of Social Work, the Center on Aging, and other University programs. Her work will continue to examine how research evidence can translate into policies and practices that enable older adults, family caregivers, and direct care workers to thrive.

“My goals for this position include mentoring the next generation of UConn scholars and social work practitioners, ensuring they are equipped to transform policy and practice in an aging society,” Fabius says. “I also hope to build a robust research agenda that addresses inequities and unmet care needs in long-term services and supports while cultivating community-partnered spaces that elevate the lived experiences of older adults, family caregivers, and direct care workers.”