CATHY MAXWELL

Dr. Cathy Maxwell received her BSN and MSN from Troy University, and her PhD in Nursing Science from Vanderbilt University where she also completed a postdoctoral fellowship. She was a faculty member at Vanderbilt School of Nursing from 2014 to 2024 where she co-chaired the Vanderbilt Center for Gerontological Nursing Excellence. She has served on national and international advisory boards to support best practices for clinical care of older adults. She has served as a principal investigator and co-investigator on numerous funded studies and she has over 60 publications in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Maxwell is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and the National Academies of Practice.

Dr. Maxwell’s research focuses on trajectories of aging that lead to frailty. She has a particular interest in the new field of geroscience, which represents the intersection of biological aging, chronic disease and health. Her work is aimed at empowering middle-aged andolder adults to manage their personal aging pathways by helping them better understand changes in their bodies as they age. Dr. Maxwell has developed interventions focused on proactive aging, including a literacy-friendly booklet about aging (Aging: Important Things to Know), a health and wellness program (AFRESH; Aging and Frailty: Resilience and Energy in the Second Half of Life), and a science-based video series, titled, “How to Slow Down Aging Through Mitochondrial Fitness.”