Research in the Federman Laboratory addresses self-management of complex chronic illnesses by older adults, with a special focus on the impact of cognition, health literacy, and illness-related beliefs.

Major ongoing efforts in Dr. Federman’s lab include observational studies and interventional trials. In close collaboration with Dr. Juan Wisnivesky (Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai), Dr. Federman and his team have conducted and maintain several longitudinal studies of self-management behaviors among older adults with asthma, COPD, and COPD with multiple comorbidities. Much of this work has led to the development of interventions, including  randomized controlled trials of health-coach directed self-management support for older asthmatics and people with COPD, and a randomized trial of home-based primary care for homebound Medicare beneficiaries. Recently funded observational studies have been designed to apply intermediate findings to the development and pilot testing of interventions to improve self-management by patients with these complex health conditions