KATARINA FRIBERG-FELSTED

Dr. Katarina Friberg-Felsted (she/her) is a Professor (Clinical) in the Gerontology Interdisciplinary Program in the College of Nursing. Dr. Friberg-Felsted holds a PhD in Nursing Research as well as an MS in Gerontology. She is an adjunct professor in the Department of Health & Kinesiology in the College of Health. Dr. Friberg-Felsted is a Fellow in the Gerontological Society of America (international), the Academy of Gerontology in Higher Education (international), the Academy of Health Science Educators (university), and a Distinguished Educator in the National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence (national). Dr. Friberg-Felsted holds the Higher Education Teaching Specialist (HETS) designation. 

Dr. Friberg-Felsted oversees several hundred gerontology students in the Gerontology Interdisciplinary Program and teaches five courses in the Gerontology Interdisciplinary Program: Experiences of Aging, Introduction to Aging, Health and Optimal Aging, Caregiving and Aging Families, and International Dimensions of Lifelong Learning. Each of these courses enrolls students from across campus; students range from freshmen to post-docs. Dr. Friberg-Felsted currently serves on student supervisory committees and scholarly project committees for the GIP MS programs – as well as in the College of Health MS program – in chair, committee member, and content expert roles. Dr. Friberg-Felsted has mapped several Master of Gerontology courses to the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE) Gerontology Competencies for Undergraduate and Graduate Courses. She has also created two Caregiving modules for the NEPQR grant serving primary care nurses in the community. Dr. Friberg-Felsted is also certified by the Wisconsin Institute of Healthy Aging to teach the Mind Over Matter course.

As a gerontological researcher, Dr. Friberg-Felsted's scholarly emphases include Age-friendly University networks, the use of complementary and integrative therapies to treat chronic conditions in older adults, and the impact of gerontology in higher education. Dr. Friberg-Felsted’s research has utilized mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) to treat urge urinary incontinence in community participants and to enhance physical rehabilitation goals of older adults in a skilled nursing facility. Dr. Friberg-Felsted co-founded the Gerontological Society of America’s Fitness Exercise and Wellness interest group.

Dr. Friberg-Felsted and Dr. Jackie Eaton pursued and received the University of Utah’s Age-Friendly University (AFU) designation the AFU Global Secretariat. Dr. Friberg-Felsted and colleagues were recently awarded one of two inaugural College of Nursing Excellence in Education (CON ExEd) grants to gauge age-friendliness in the College, create trainings, and apply for accreditation from the Academy in Gerontology Education Council (AGEC). In 2025, the Gerontology Interdisciplinary Program received AGEC accreditation, as one of six higher education institutions worldwide. Prior to this, Dr. Friberg-Felsted and Dr. Jackie Eaton (Co-PIs) received one of four national seed grants from the Gerontological Society of America’s Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education, funded by AARP, to promote age inclusivity on campus and in the community. Dr. Friberg-Felsted is the current co-convener of the Gerontological Society of America's Age Inclusivity in Higher Education interest group.

Dr. Friberg-Felsted has published a book, several book chapters, and over 20 articles in various scholarly and academic journals. She has given over 50 peer-reviewed presentations at national and international conferences as well as invited lectures and speeches. Dr. Friberg-Felsted guest lectures regarding optimal aging, mindfulness, wellness, and age-friendly ecosystems both locally and nationally. Dr. Friberg-Felsted serves on the editorial board of the international journal, Gerontology and Geriatrics Education, as well as the University of Utah’s health sciences journal, Rubor’s Voices from the Faculty. She also serves as a manuscript reviewer for dozens of inter/national journals.

Dr. Friberg-Felsted’s service spans across the College, university, and internationally. In the College, she chairs the Gerontology Interdisciplinary Program Advisory Committee (GIPAC), is chair of the Career Line – Faculty Reappointment and Advancement committee (CL-FRA), and participates in many other committees and task forces. Dr. Friberg-Felsted serves on the University Interdisciplinary Teaching Program Committee (QUIDTP), is the Osher Center for Integrative Health Ambassador for the College, and serves on the University’s Faculty Club executive board. Dr. Friberg-Felsted is the faculty founder of the University of Utah chapter for the Gerontological Society of America’s Student Chapter pilot program, as a result of serving on the GSA Student Chapter Ad Hoc Committee.

Dr. Friberg-Felsted also volunteers her time at Salt Lake County Aging, the Geraldine E. King Women’s Resource Center, and the Utah Food Bank.