Dr. Elsa Orellano – Advancing Functional Health for Older Adults
Mentor-Mentee Teams Program Awardee (2023–2025)
Mentor: Dr. Nelson Varas-Díaz, Florida International University
Affiliation: UPR-MSC, Department of Occupational Therapy
Dr. Elsa Orellano continues to make an outstanding impact through her research and mentorship. As Principal Investigator, she successfully secured a $1.22M NIH R01 grant from the National Institute of Nursing Research for her project “Tech-enabled Functional Health: Bridging Primary Care Gaps for Older Latinos with Functional Impairment in Underserved Communities.” The project received a competitive score of 25 (8.0 percentile) and was awarded in September 2025.
Her multidisciplinary research team includes collaborators from UPR campuses, the University of Ottawa, and Florida International University. Their work focuses on promoting quality of life among older adults with disabilities through assistive technology and culturally tailored interventions.
Dr. Orellano also co-leads an NIH AIM-AHEAD Pilot Project developing a culturally tailored conversational agent for assistive technologies serving older adults with physical function disabilities. In 2024 alone, she published six manuscripts, delivered eight oral presentations (including in Latin America), and received the María del Pilar Christian Mariani Excellence Award from the College of Professionals of Occupational Therapy of Puerto Rico.
A Mentor Who Inspires
An Alliance Certified Mentor since 2021, Dr. Orellano completed her training through the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER). She has mentored over 10 students and professionals, earning among the highest mentor evaluation scores in 2024.
Her mentees describe her as:
“Knowledgeable, supportive, and empowering—a mentor who celebrates progress and pushes for excellence.”
“She inspires confidence, promotes scientific growth, and ensures her mentees succeed not only as researchers but as professionals.”
Alliance Involvement
A long-time Alliance and PRCTRC participant (since 2011), Dr. Orellano has benefited from multiple cores, including:
- Professional Development: Grant writing and mock study section training
- BERD & BiBEC: Study design, statistical services, and data management
- Administrative & COE Cores: Budgeting and implementation support
She has also presented at several Alliance Scientific Days, continuing to inspire peers through her research and mentorship.
