Bei Wu

Faculty

Bei Wu headshot

Bei Wu

FAAN FGSA PhD

Dean's Professor in Global Health
Vice Dean, Research
Affiliated Professor, Ashman Department of Periodontology & Implant Dentistry
Co-director, NYU Aging Incubator

1 212 992 5951

433 First Ave
New York, NY 10010
United States

Accepting PhD students

Dr. Wu is Dean’s Professor in Global Health and Vice Dean for Research at the NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. She is an inaugural Co-Director of the NYU Aging Incubator. Prior to joining NYU, she was the Pauline Gratz Professor of Nursing at Duke University School of Nursing. Prof. Wu is an internationally-known leader in gerontology.

As a principal investigator, Prof. Wu has led numerous projects supported by federal agencies and private foundations, including the NIH and CDC. She is currently leading several NIH-funded projects including a clinical trial to improve oral health for persons

with cognitive impairment, and a large secondary data analysis to examine how the co-occurrence of diabetes and poor oral health may lead to the development of dementia and cognitive decline. She co-leads the newly funded Rutgers-NYU Center for Asian Health Promotion and Equity. Through this center, she also leads a 5-year intervention study that focuses on supporting Chinese and Korean dementia caregivers who are at increased risk for high blood pressure and diabetes due to the physical and emotional demands of caregiving. She is a director of the Research and Education Core for the NIA-funded Asian Resource Center for Minority Aging Research (RCMAR).

As a scholar, Prof. Wu is an internationally known leader in gerontology. Her scholarship has been distinguished by interdisciplinary collaborations with researchers in various disciplines, including nursing and dentistry, in the US and abroad. Her research areas cover a wide range of topics related to aging and global health, including oral health, long-term care, dementia, and caregiving. She is one of the first in the nation to study the linkages between oral health and cognitive decline in older adults. Her research has also addressed knowledge gaps in the linkages between oral health and diabetes.

Prof. Wu has devoted much of her time to training the next generation of aging and nursing scientists from dozens of academic institutions in the U.S. and abroad. She has mentored hundreds of faculty members, visiting scholars, and students from various disciplines, including nursing, gerontology, dentistry, medicine, social work, demography, public health, sociology, public policy, geography, and economics. She is successful in mentoring several dozens of early-stage faculty members in receiving competitive funding from NIH, Robert Wood Johnson Scholars, the Alzheimer’s Society (UK), National Science Foundation of China, China Medical Board, National Medical Research Council (Singapore), and many others. 

Prof. Wu is a productive researcher. She has published more than 600 peer-reviewed papers, books, reports, and conference abstracts. Her extensive publications cover a wide range of topics related to aging and global health. She has delivered presentations at hundreds of conferences as an invited speaker. Her work has been widely recognized in the field. Research findings from her team have been featured by the National Institute on Aging, and in numerous media outlets, including the New York Times, CNN, BBC, U.S. News and World Report, MarketWatch, CBS News, Reuters, AARP Bulletin, China Daily, Daily Mail, South China Morning Post, and Financial Review.

Her achievement has been recognized by many international and national organizations and she is a fellow of the Gerontological Society of America, the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, and the New York Academy of Medicine. She is an honorary member of the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International, and is the former president of the Geriatric Oral Research Group of the International Association for Dental Research. She has served on a number of NIH review panels and is a frequent reviewer for multiple international funding agencies. She was honored as the 2017 IADR Distinguished Scientist in Geriatric Oral Research. She is the recipient of the 2022 Wei Hu Inspiration Award from the China Health Policy and Management Society. 

PhD - Gerontology Center, University of Massachusetts, Boston
MS - Gerontology Center, University of Massachusetts, Boston
BS - Shanghai University

Gerontology
Global

Honorary Member, Sigma Theta Tau International - Honor Society of Nursing

Distinguished Scientist Award for Geriatric Oral Research, International Association for Dental Research (2017)
Pauline Gratz Professorship, Duke University School of Nursing (2014)
J. Morita Junior Investigator Award in Geriatric Oral Health, International Association for Dental Research (2007)
Fellow, Gerontological Society of America
Fellow, New York Academy of Medicine
Fellow, Association for Gerontology in Higher Education

U.S. Nursing Role in Outpatient Clinics

Li, J., Xiao, R., & Wu, B. (2019). Chinese Nursing Management, 11-13. 10.3969/j.issn.1672-1756.2019.01.001

Understanding Contextual Differences in Residential Long Term Care Provision for Cross-National Research: Identifying Internationally Relevant Common Data Elements

Siegel, E. O., Backman, A., Cai, Y., Goodman, C., Ocho, O. N., Wei, S., Wu, B., & Xu, H. (2019). Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, 5. 10.1177/2333721419840591
Abstract
Abstract
Long-term care (LTC) reflects a growing emphasis on person-centered care (PCC), with services oriented around individuals’ needs and preferences. Addressing contextual and cultural differences across countries offers important insight into factors that facilitate or hinder application of PCC practices within and across countries. This article takes an international lens to consider country-specific contexts of LTC, describing preliminary steps to develop common data elements that capture contextual differences across LTC settings globally. Through an iterative series of online, telephone, and in-person sessions, we engaged in in-depth discussions with 11 colleague experts in residential LTC and coauthors from six countries (China and Hong Kong, England, Sweden, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United States). Our discussions yielded rich narrative describing a vast range in types of LTC settings, leading to our development of a working definition of residential LTC. Scope of services, funding, ownership, and regulations varied greatly across countries and across different residential LTC settings within countries. Moving forward, we recommend expanding our activities to countries that reflect different stages of residential LTC development. Our goal is to contribute to a larger initiative underway by the WE-THRIVE consortium to establish a global research measurement infrastructure that advances PCC internationally.

Working Together to Learn New Oral Hygiene Techniques: Pilot of a Carepartner-assisted Intervention for Persons with Cognitive Impairment

Anderson, R. A., Wang, J., Plassman, B. L., Nye, K., Bunn, M., Poole, P., Drake, C., Xu, H., Ni, Z., & Wu, B. (2019). Geriatric Nursing, 40(3), 269-276. 10.1016/j.gerinurse.2018.11.002
Abstract
Abstract
We pilot tested a carepartner-assisted intervention to improve oral hygiene in persons with cognitive impairment (participants) and help carepartners become leaders who can adapt approaches that foster participants’ ability to develop new skills for oral hygiene care. Following the intervention, we conducted interviews with participants and carepartners to understand their challenges in working together to learn new oral hygiene skills. Participants reported challenges such as frustration using the electric toothbrush correctly, lack of desire to change, uncertainty about correctness of technique, and difficulty sustaining two minutes of toothbrushing. Carepartners reported challenges such as learning a new way of toothbrushing, learning new communication techniques, switching from instructing to working together, learning to balance leading with being too bossy, and being mindful of word choices. Findings suggested that despite challenges, participants were able to learn adaptive strategies to support new oral hygiene behaviors with support of the carepartner as the adaptive leader.

Acculturation, depression and oral health of immigrants in the USA

Luo, H., Hybels, C. F., & Wu, B. (2018). International Dental Journal, 68(4), 245-252. 10.1111/idj.12364
Abstract
Abstract
Objectives: The objectives were to describe the oral health status of immigrants in the USA, describe the association between acculturation and oral health by accounting for the effects of depression and to explore the effects of interaction between acculturation and depression on the oral health of immigrants. Methods: Data were from the 2011–2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Oral health status was assessed by both self-rated oral health and clinically diagnosed periodontitis, each coded as a binary outcome. Acculturation was operationalised as length of stay in the USA and speaking English at home. Depression was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Multiple logistic regression models were used to examine the association of acculturation and depression status with oral health. Results: In 2011–2012, 36.6% immigrants reported poor oral health and 53.0% were diagnosed with periodontitis. A length of stay in the USA of 30+ years (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.43, 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 0.21–0.89) reduced the odds of having periodontitis in comparison with a length of stay in the USA of fewer than 5 years. Speaking English at home (AOR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.43–0.96) reduced the odds of having periodontitis compared with speaking other languages. Depression was negatively associated with self-reported good oral health (AOR = 0.43, 95% CI: 0.20–0.92) and positively associated with clinically diagnosed periodontitis (AOR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.18–3.04). The effects of acculturation did not differ according to depression status. Conclusion: A longer stay in the USA and speaking English at home were associated with less periodontitis among the immigrants.

Aging and Global Health

Wu, B., & Feng, Y. (2018). (1–). People’s Medical Publishing House.

Aging and Long-term Care

Wu, B., & Peng, R. (2018). In Aging and Global Health (1–, pp. 149-165). People’s Medical Publishing House.

Associations Between Acculturation and Oral Health Among Older Chinese Immigrants in the United States

Ge, S., Wu, B., & Dong, X. (2018). Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, 4(1). 10.1177/2333721418778197
Abstract
Abstract
Background: The aim of this study was to understand the associations between acculturation and oral health among older Chinese immigrants in the United States. Method: We used data from the PINE study, which included the foreign-born older Chinese immigrants (N = 3,128). We measured acculturation by measuring participants’ length of stay and behavioral acculturation. Participants’ tooth and gum symptoms were the outcome variables. Results: Longer stay in the United States was significantly associated with fewer gum symptoms but not with tooth symptoms. Behavioral acculturation was not significantly associated with either tooth or gum symptoms. The middle tertile of behavioral acculturation, compared with its upper and lower tertiles, deemed to be a more significant risk factor of tooth/gum symptoms. In addition, older immigrants with more social interactions with the Americans were more likely to have tooth symptoms. Discussion: In the future, we will conduct a study using longitudinal data to help us better understand the relationship between acculturation and oral health in Chinese American population.

A comparison of perceived uselessness between centenarians and non-centenarians in China

Zhao, Y., Fu, H., Guo, A., Qiu, L., Cheung, K. S., Wu, B., Jopp, D., & Gu, D. (2018). BMC Geriatrics, 18(1). 10.1186/s12877-018-0944-7
Abstract
Abstract
Background: Self-perceived uselessness is associated with poorer health in older adults. However, it is unclear whether there is a difference in self-perceived uselessness between centenarians and non-centenarians, and if so, which factors contributed to the difference. Methods: We used four waves of a nationwide longitudinal dataset from 2005 to 2014 in China to investigate these research goals. We first performed multinomial logit regression models to examine the risk of the high or moderate frequency of self-perceived uselessness relative to the low frequency among centenarians (5778 persons) in comparison with non-centenarians aged 65-99 (20,846 persons). We then conducted a cohort analysis for those born in 1906-1913, examining differences in self-perceived uselessness between those centenarians and those died between ages 91 and 99 during 2005-2014. Results: Compared to persons aged 65-79, centenarians had 84% (relative risk ratio (RRR) = 1.84, 95% CI:1.69-2.01) and 35% (RRR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.25-1.46) higher risk to have the high frequency and the moderate frequency of feeling useless versus low frequency, respectively, when only demographic factors were controlled for. However, centenarians had 31% (RRR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.54-0.88), 43% (RRR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.49-0.68), and 25% (RRR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.67-0.83) lower risk, respectively, to have the high frequency of self-perceived uselessness relative to the low frequency when a wide set of study covariates were controlled for. In the case of the moderate versus the low frequency of self-perceived uselessness, the corresponding figures were 18% (RRR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.66-1.02), 22% (RRR = 0.78, 95%CI: 0.67-0.90), and 13% (RRR = 0.87, 95% CI: 0.79-0.96), respectively. The cohort analysis further indicates that those who became centenarians were 36-39% less likely than those died at ages 91-94 to report the high and the moderate frequencies of self-perceived uselessness versus the low frequency; no difference was found between centenarians and those died at ages 95-99. In both period and cohort analyses, behavioral and health-related factors affected the perception substantially. Conclusions: Overall, centenarians were less likely to perceive themselves as useless compared to non-centenarians of younger birth cohorts when a wide set of covariates were considered and non-centenarians of the same birth cohort. How centenarians manage to do so remains an open question. Our findings may help improve our understanding about the longevity secrets of centenarians.

Defining Successful Aging: Perceptions From Elderly Chinese in Hawai‘i

Zhang, W., Liu, S., & Wu, B. (2018). Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, 4(1). 10.1177/2333721418778182
Abstract
Abstract
Background: This study aims to examine the lay perceptions of successful aging among elderly Chinese in Hawai‘i, the state has the highest life expectancy in the United States. Method: Principal components factor analysis and logistic regression models were used to analyze survey data collected among 136 respondents who were asked to evaluate the importance of 12 successful aging items developed in Asian societies involving the Chinese population. Results: Results from factor analysis reveal three distinct factors out of the 12 items of successful aging—(a) psychosocial and economic well-being, (b) physical well-being, and (c) social support from adult children. The former two factors were perceived as important dimensions of successful aging by most survey participants, and approximately 35%-41% respondents viewed items composing Factor 3 as important. Discussion: Results suggest that elderly Chinese in Hawai‘i have unique perceptions of successful aging that go beyond the Rowe and Kahn’s biomedical model to include more psychosocial components. In addition, their perceptions are similar to but slightly different from perceptions of elderly Chinese in China and Singapore in levels of familism. Our findings indicate cultural variation of successful aging.

Does Oral Health Predict Functional Status in Late Life? Findings From a National Sample

Zhang, W., Wu, Y. Y., & Wu, B. (2018). Journal of Aging and Health, 30(6), 924-944. 10.1177/0898264317698552
Abstract
Abstract
Objective: This study aims to examine the association between oral health and the decline in functional status among middle-aged and older adults in the United States. Method: Generalized estimation equation (GEE) Poisson regression models with robust standard errors were used to analyze the longitudinal panel data (2008-2014) from the Health and Retirement Study (N = 1,243). Oral health was evaluated using self-rated oral health, poor mouth condition, and tooth loss. Decline in functional status was assessed by disabilities in activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs). Results: Respondents with poor oral health were more likely to experience decline in ADLs/IADLs. Adjusting for sociodemographics and comorbidities attenuated the effects of oral health. Discussion: Findings suggest that oral health might be one of the important predictors of functioning decline in late life, after adjusting sociodemographics and comorbidities.