Laura Sands

Laura Sands is a Professor at Virginia Tech, affiliated with the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, the Department of Human Development and Family Science, and the Virginia Tech School of Medicine. Her research focuses on improving care approaches for vulnerable older adults, particularly those with dementia, disabilities, or inadequate healthcare access, and those affected by disasters.

• Director, Center for Gerontology
• Editor-in-Chief, Innovation in Aging

Her recent work examines unmet healthcare needs, postoperative delirium, mobility device safety, and social determinants of health in aging populations. She has contributed to systematic reviews and clinical trials on aging, caregiving, and surgical outcomes.

As a leading scholar, she has published extensively in journals like Forbes and the Oxford University Press Blog, and her research has been cited in discussions on disaster response, HIV care, and racial disparities in health outcomes.