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

Bei Wu's additional information

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

Faculty Honors Awards

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

Publications

Dental service utilization among urban and rural older adults in China - A brief communication

Wu, B. (2007). Journal of Public Health Dentistry, 67(3), 185-188. 10.1111/j.1752-7325.2007.00038.x
Abstract
Abstract
Objectives: China's health care system is bifurcated in nature between rural and urban areas. In addition, there is a huge gap in socioeconomic status between rural and urban residents. The purpose of the study was to examine the factors related to dental visits among elders in rural and urban areas of Shanghai, China. Methods: Using a stratified random sampling method, a cross-sectional, face-to-face survey was conducted among elders aged 60 years and above in Shanghai during 2003-04. A total of 1,044 older respondents were included in the sample. Results: There was a significant urban and rural difference in dental visit rates over the 12-month period of the study. Results from the logistic regression analysis suggested that residing in urban areas was a significant positive factor related to dental visits. In addition, being younger, being able to pay out-of-pocket medical expenses, having had regular medical checkups, having a higher number of limitations because of chronic conditions, and being more concerned about eating a healthy diet were associated with increased odds of dental visits. Conclusions: Results suggest that urban-rural differences, as reflected in the socioeconomic status gap, disparity in medical insurance coverage, and access to dental care, have a significant impact on the use of dental services by Chinese elders. Individual sociodemographic characteristics, health status, and health attitude are important explanatory variables.

Model dementia care programs for Asian Americans

Emerson-Lombardo, N., Wu, B., Chang, K., & Hohnstein, J. K. (2007). In C. Cox (Ed.), Dementia and Social Work Practice: Research and Interventions (1–, pp. 205-229). Springer Publishing.

Survey of primary health clinics in Hubei

Hu, J., Zhang, J., Wang, L., Mao, Z., Wu, B., & Al., . (Eds.). (2007). (1–). Hubei Science and Technology Publisher.

Urban-rural, age and gender differences in health behaviours in the Chinese population: findings from a survey in Hubei, China

Mao, Z. F., & Wu, B. (2007). Public Health, 121(10), 761-764. 10.1016/j.puhe.2007.02.015

Gender differences in contributory behaviors among the oldest old in the U.S. and China.

Wu, B., Yue, Y., & Silverstein, N. (2006). Chinese Journal of Population Science, 2006(5), 33-41.

Memory Preservation DietTM to reduce risk and slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease

Emerson-Lombardo, N., Volicer, L., Martin, A., Wu, B., & Zhang, X. (2006). In B. Vellas & . Et Al (Eds.), Research and Practice in Alzheimer’s Disease and Cognitive Decline (Vols. 11, pp. 138-159). Serdi Publishing Company.

Rural health care reform in China

Wu, B., Mao, Z., & Liu, Y. (2006). In L. Guang & . Et Al. (Eds.), The State of Rural China: Chinese Peasants, Agriculture and Rural Society in the Reform Era (1–, pp. 310-341). The Tide Time Publishing Co., Ltd.

Service issues among rural racial and ethnic minority elders

Goins, R., Mitchell, J., & Wu, B. (2006). In R. Goins & J. Crout (Eds.), Service Delivery to the Rural Elderly (1–, pp. 55-76). Springer Publishing.

Are contributory behaviors related to culture? Comparison of the oldest old in the U.S. and in China

Wu, B., Yue, Y., Silverstein, N., Axelrod, D., Shou, L., & Song, P. (2005). Ageing International, 30(3), 296-323.

Are contributory behaviors related to culture? Comparison of the oldest old in the United States and in China

Wu, B., Yue, Y., Silverstein, N. M., Axelrod, D. T., Shou, L. L., & Song, P. P. (2005). Ageing International, 30(3), 296-323. 10.1007/s12126-005-1017-8
Abstract
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of culture on contributory behaviors within the context of family, friends, and neighbors among the oldest old in the United States and in China. The study was conducted in suburban areas of Boston in 1996 (n = 465), and later in 1999 a replication of the study was conducted by Chinese researchers in urban areas of Shanghai, China (n = 539). This study found some common factors such as objective measure of health status, assistance received from others, and group affiliation. However, many differences emerged in the study. The range of contributory behaviors toward friends is quite different between the two samples. Some of the correlates' impact is also culturally specific, such as sibling support. These differences reflect variation in respondents' social support as well as social structural differences. Findings from this study suggest that providing more opportunities for elders to participate in groups would facilitate their participation in volunteer activities and improve their overall well-being.