Shelly Gray

Shelly Gray is a Professor and the Elmer and Joy Plein Endowed Director of the Plein Center for Aging at the University of Washington School of of Pharmacy. She maintains core affiliations with the Department of Pharmacy, Center for Pharmacy Practice Transformation, CHOICE Institute, and Plein Center for Aging Faculty.

Her educational background includes:

• PharmD from the University of Michigan
• MS in Epidemiology from the University of Washington

Dr. Gray's research centers on medication safety in older adults, with pioneering work in deprescribing and analyzing medication risks for falls, fractures, and dementia. Her expertise spans pharmacoepidemiology of Alzheimer's disease, claims data analysis, and geriatric pharmacotherapy, with significant contributions to understanding how anticholinergics and other medications impact cognitive decline.

Her publication trends (2015-2018) reveal consistent focus on medication-dementia associations using large-scale observational data, particularly examining anticholinergics, benzodiazepines, and proton pump inhibitors through longitudinal cohort designs.

Scientific recognition includes:

• American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy New Investigator Award
• Career Development Award from the National Institute on Aging

As an active investigator on federally funded grants, Dr. Gray serves on editorial boards for Annals of Pharmacotherapy, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, and Research in Gerontological Nursing. Her professional service extends to pharmacy and geriatric organization committees, complementing her clinical consultancy for Providence Elderplace.

Leading the Plein Center for Aging, she directs interdisciplinary initiatives focused on aging research while contributing to the CHOICE Institute's health economics and outcomes work, driving evidence-based improvements in geriatric medication management.