Jarmin Yeh, PhD ’20, MPH, MSSW : Creating a better aging process

Thriving while aging 

Yeh works at the intersection of aging and environment, studying the resources needed to improve the golden years we all hope to reach. “What do we have in our places and spaces to let us live the life we want?” Yeh asks. “It’s activities, it’s transportation, it’s people.” She is not just theorizing in an ivory tower; Yeh partners with community organizations to help people as they grow older in their homes and communities. One project offers training for in-home dementia caregivers and studies the impact on health system resources. Another, co-created with those it serves, is a day program for LGBTQIA older adults that provides a safe place and specialized care. 

Build me up  

Yeh entered gerontology by happenstance. She was completing an MPH/MSSW, studying how cities impact health and quality of life, when she interned at the New York Academy of Medicine. There, she undertook a national initiative to bolster the portion of the social work workforce focused on aging. “It solidified the direction I started to study,” she says. Today, Yeh is co-director of UCSF’s Emancipatory Sciences Lab, which approaches research, practice, and teaching through an anti-oppression lens. She also teaches leadership theory and practice to UCSF students who are pursuing master’s degrees in health care administration.   

Just a number 

“I’m really interested in the ways our social policies do or don’t support people’s abilities to age in place with dignity and autonomy and to make decisions for themselves,” Yeh says. “We’re all aging. My work is to try and make the future a better place to grow old.” 

– Kira Goldenberg for UCSF Magazine