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1 Veterans Drive, Minneapolis MN 55417
Dr. Gustavson is a physical therapist and a researcher at the intersection of health services and rehabilitation with a focus on implementation science and learning health systems. Dr. Gustavson is both a UMN faculty member and core investigator at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System.
Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry (University of Minnesota)
"Dr. Gustavson's clinical and research interests are in prolonging community living (Aging in Place), thereby reducing time in costly institutionalized settings (e.g., hospital, nursing home). She aims to empower older adults and create healthcare systems that adapt to their changing needs, and drive social, environmental, and healthcare changes to support autonomy and independence across the lifespan. To achieve these goals, Dr. Gustavson's research focuses on translating research relevant to functional recovery, maintaining independent living, and healthy aging into standard clinical practice through the integration of rehabilitation and implementation sciences. Her research determines how uptake of evidence into clinical practice occurs and aims to identify the best strategies to
optimize translation of evidence related to functional independence for individuals with or at risk of disability. Thus, Dr. Gustavson's work crosscuts conditions, disciplines, and practice settings with an interdisciplinary approach aimed at enhancing people’s meaningful engagement in life activities as needs, values, and preferences change with advancing age and/or disability."
American Physical Therapy Association
Dr. Gustavson has extensive interdisciplinary, clinical experience providing physical therapy services to medically complex adults in hospital, post-acute, and community-based settings.
Dr. Gustavson is an instructor in the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs' Health Care System Geriatrics Physical Therapy Residency Program and leads teaching and mentorship on knowledge translation and exercise intensity modules. Dr. Gustavson is a standing guest lecturer for the UMN’s Orientation to Physical Therapy undergraduate course, where she provides an overview of physical therapy research and the implications for clinical practice. She also regularly serves as a guest lecturer for the UMN’s School of Public Health Implementation Science and Rehabilitation Sciences graduate courses, where she teaches on implementation frameworks, adaptation, and applied implementation science case studies.
Dr. Gustavson is an active member of the UMN Center for Healthy Aging and Innovation (CHAI) Research Core, where she leads the Dissemination Special Interest Group with a goal to accelerate the impact of aging research on diverse end-users. She leads the VA Rehabilitation & Engineering Center for Optimizing Veteran Engagement & Reintegration (RECOVER) Center Designing for Implementation Core and is also an active member of the VA Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research (CCDOR) center Implementation & Dissemination Core. Both provide consultation, mentorship, and education on study designs, implementation and dissemination plans, and methods. Dr. Gustavson spends additional time providing physical therapy services at a skilled nursing facility.