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Sandhya Seshadri, PhD, MS, MA
Sandhya Seshadri, PhD, MS, MA

Bio

Sandhya Seshadri is a researcher, educator, and clinician. Her research focuses on improving the quality of life and well-being of adults with serious illnesses and of their care partners. As a clinician, Seshadri has used socioecological models of care to situate illness experiences within broader psychological, social, and cultural frameworks. It was this philosophy of care that led her to pursue a doctoral dissertation on understanding the perceptions and experiences of community-dwelling older adults who had been diagnosed with dysphagia and been recommended texture-modified diets.

Since then, as a researcher with interest and expertise in qualitative research methods she has worked on several interprofessional research studies and programs. As a co-investigator on university, national, and Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)-funded studies, she has worked with multidisciplinary teams on areas related to the quality of life and well-being of adults with serious and chronic illness, and of their families. Currently she is a member of a multidisciplinary team and a co-investigator working on a PCORI-funded national design and implementation project to implement team-based outpatient palliative care for Parkinson’s Disease across 33 Parkinson’s Foundation US Centers of Excellence. She is also a co-investigator on three other research projects that pertain to palliative care and interventions to provide meaningful support to care partners of patients with neurological disorders. She has presented her work at local, national, and international conferences.

As an educator she has taught courses on qualitative research methods, scholarly writing, and the clinical management of swallowing disorders, aphasia, and motor-speech disorders. She practices at Strong Memorial Hospital and is a licensed speech-language pathologist with 20 years of clinical experience specializing in diagnosing and treating adults with neurogenic communication and swallowing disorders. 



Professional Experience
Research Assistant Professor, University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry, Rochester, NY, US. 2021 - Current

Assistant Professor of Clinical Nursing, University of Rochester School of Nursing (Research), Rochester, NY, US. 2017 - Current

Speech Language Pathologist-Per Diem, University of Rochester Medical Center (Clinical), Rochester, NY, US. 2011 - Current

Speech Language Pathologist, University of Rochester Medical Center (Clinical), Rochester, NY, US. 2010 - 2011

Awards
Mentoring Academic Research Careers Program
American Speech Language and Hearing Association, 2012

Phi Kappa Phi
Purdue University, 1997

American Speech-Language and Hearing Foundation Graduate Student Scholarship for academic achievement and promise
Purdue University, 1996

Presentations
Sustainability of Antibiotic Stewardship Programs: Perceptions and Experiences of Nursing Home Staff.
Seshadri, S., Felsen, C., Sellers, C.R., & Dumyati, G
IDWeek: Chasing the Sun virtual conference. Annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America & the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, Infectious Diseases Society of America, 2020
Virtual, New York

Evaluating the Engaging Older Adult Learners as Health Researchers Project I
Kondolf, K., Duckles,J., Seshadri, S., Jackson, P., Sellers, C.R., Young., D., Moses, G., & Sorensen, S
Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting, 2019
Austin, Texas

Evaluating the Engaging Older Adult Learners as Health Researchers Project II
Otieno, D., Kondolf, K., Jackson, P., Duckles, J., & Seshadri, S.
Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting, 2019
Austin, Texas

Engaging Older Adult Learners as Health Researchers- Program Overview.
Sorensen, S , Seshadri, S., & Duckles, J
Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting, 2019
Austin, Texas

“Journeys through Community-based Participatory Research: Working the Boundaries.:" A Workshop
Duckles, J., Jackson, P., Moses, G., Sellers, C. R., & Seshadri, S., 20th Annual International Qualitative Health Research Conference, 2018
Halifax, Nova Scotia

How Can Older Adults Inform Health Care Research? The Qualitative Analysis of an Engagement Project?
Seshadri, S., Sellers, C. R., & Sörensen, S.
20th Annual International Qualitative Health Research Conference, 2018
Halifax, Nova Scotia

It’s a Balancing Act: A Model of Community-Dwelling Older Adults Navigating Health and Aging in Everyday Life
Duckles, J. M., Sellers, C. R., & Seshadri, S.
44th Annual Conference of the State Society on Aging of New York, 2017
Ithaca, New York

Older Adults' Perspectives on Accessing Acute Illness Care
Finta, M.K, Borkenhagen,A., Werner, N., Duckles, J., Sellers, C.R., Seshadri, S., Lampo, D., & Shah, M.N.
Society of Academic Emergency Medicine Annual Meeting, 2017
Orlando, Florida

Patient Perspectives on Accessing Acute Illness Care
Finta, M.K, Borkenhagen,A., Werner, N., Duckles, J., Sellers, C.R., Seshadri, S., Lampo, D., & Shah, M.N.
Medical College of Wisconsin's Emergency Medicine Research Forum., 2017
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Exploring Interactions Across Sociotechnical System Boundaries: Barriers, Facilitators, and Consequences to Patient Care
Werner, N. E., Borkenhagen, A., Finta, M.K., Duckles, J., Sellers, C.R., Seshadri, S., Campo, D., & Shah, M.N.
Symposium on Human Factors and Ergonomics in Healthcare, 2017
New Orleans, Louisiana

“Whom do you abide by?” How Community-dwelling Older Adults Balance Fragmented Care with a Texture-Modified Diet
Seshadri, S. & Sellers, C.R.
Innovations in Inter-professional Collaborations: Individual, Community, and Global Engagement Conference at Nazareth College, 2016
Rochester, New York

The Greenhouse Effect: Collaborations between Aphasia Therapy and Horticultural Therapy
Brown, B, Coles, H., & Seshadri, S.
Innovations in Inter-professional Collaborations: Individual, Community, and Global Engagement Conference at Nazareth College, 2016
Rochester, New York

“What am I going to eat?” Understanding How Community-dwelling Older Adults Live With Dysphagia
Seshadri, S. & Sellers, C.R.
44th Annual Conference of the State Society on Aging of New York,, 2016
Ithaca, New York

It’s a Balancing Act: A Model of Community-Dwelling Older Adults Navigating Health and Aging in Everyday Life
Duckles, J. M., Sellers, C. R., & Seshadri, S.
44th Annual Conference of the State Society on Aging of New York, 2016
Ithaca, New York

Testing the Limits: Community-dwelling Older Adults’ Experiences with a Texture-modified Diet
Seshadri, S. & Sellers, C.R.
Annual Convention of the American Speech, Language, & Hearing Association (ASHA), 2015
Denver, Colorado

“It’s Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back”: A Case-Comparison of Community-dwelling Older Adults Balancing Tensions of Health and Aging in Everyday Life
Duckles, J., Seshadri, S., Sellers, C.R., Lampo, D., & Shah, M.N.
21st International Qualitative Health Research Conference, 2015
Toronto, Canada

“My Choice was Breathe or Eat”: Understanding the Choices made by Community-dwelling Older Adults with Dysphagia.
Seshadri, S., Sellers, C.R., Kearney, M. H., & Szekeres, S.
21st International Qualitative Health Research Conference, 2015
Toronto, Canada

It’s Balancing Act: Understanding Relational Strategies of Community-Dwelling Older Adults In Navigating Post-Emergency Care & Health in the Context of Everyday Life
Sellers, C. R., Duckles, J. M., Shah, M. N., Seshadri, S., & Lampo, D.
20th International Qualitative Health Research Conference, 2014
Victoria, Canada

Designing a Fidelity Measurement for a Pilot RCT
Seshadri, S., Eichinger, K, & Flannery, M.
2014 ENRS conference, 2014
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

"What Makes for “Successful” Transitions from the Emergency Department to Home among Community-dwelling Older Adults?
Sellers, C. R., Duckles, J. M., Shah, M. N., Seshadri, S., Salerno, S., Elliot, A., Christensen, T., & Lampo, D.
19th International Qualitative Health Research Conference: Navigating the Diversity of Qualitative Research, 2013
Nova Scotia, Canada

Aphasia Therapy in the Greenhouse: A Life Participation Approach
Brown, B., Callari, S., Durant-Jones, L, Hyland, M., Seshadri, S. & Zumbo, J.
New York State Speech, Language, & Hearing Association Conference, 2010
Saratoga, New York

Aphasia Therapy in the Greenhouse: A Life Participation Approach
Brown, B., Callari, S., Durant-Jones, L, Hyland, M., Seshadri, S. & Zumbo, J.
New York State Speech, Language, & Hearing Association Conference, 2010
Saratoga, New York

“It’s Never Too Late”: An Application of the Life Participation Approach to Aphasia Therapy
Chirico, J., Durant-Jones, L., Orcutt, K., & Seshadri, S.
New York State Speech, Language, & Hearing Association Conference, 2008
New York

Publications
Seshadri, S.A., Norton, S., Stahl, T., Shah, M., Dini, M., Yarab, N., Summers Holtrop, J., & Kluger, B.M. (2022). Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The Challenges of Caregiving During a Pandemic for Parkinson’s Family Care Partners. American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine®. PMID: 35943434 DOI: 10.1177/10499091221119462

Seshadri, S., Felsen, C., Sellers, C.R., & Dumyati, G (2020). “There is no one to pick up the pieces”: Sustainability of antibiotic stewardship programs in nursing homes.. Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. DOI: 10.1017/ice.2020.1217

Seshadri, S., Concannon, C., Woods, J.A., McCullough, K.M., & Dumyati, G. K. (2020). “It’s like fighting a war with rocks”: Nursing home healthcare workers’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. PMID: 32753072 PMCID: PMC7443555 DOI: 10.1017/ice.2020.393

Werner, N.E., Rutkowski, R.A., Graske, A., Finta, M.K., Seshadri, S., Sellers, C.R., Shah, M.N. (2020). Exploring SEIPS 2.0 as a Model for Analyzing Care Transitions Across Work Systems. Applied Ergonomics, 88. PMID: 32421635 PMCID: PMC7400988 DOI: 10.1016/j.apergo.2020.103141

Seshadri, S., Sellers, C.R., & Kearney, M. H. (2018). Balancing Eating with Breathing: Community- Dwelling Older Adults’ Experiences of Dysphagia and Texture-Modified Diets. The Gerontologist, 58 (4), 749-758. PMID: 28082276 DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnw203

Seshadri, S. (2017). Assessment, Management, and Rehabilitation of Dysphagia in Older Adults. Geriatric Rehabilitation: Bedside to Curbside (1st Edition, Ch. 15). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.

Finta MK, Borkenhagen A, Werner NE, Duckles J, Sellers CR, Seshadri S, Lampo D, Shah MN (2017). Patient Perspectives on Accessing Acute Illness Care. Western Journal of Emergency Medicine, 18 (4), 569-576. PMID: 28611875 PMCID: PMC5468060 DOI: 10.5811/westjem.2017.3.33289

Seshadri, S., Sellers, C. R., & Kearney, M. H. (2016). “My choice was breathe or eat”: Understanding the choices made by community-dwelling older adults with dysphagia [Abstract]. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 51. DOI: 10.1177/1609406915625569

Seshadri, S., Duckles, J. M., & Sellers, C. R. (2016). “It’s three steps forward, two steps back”: A case-comparison of community-dwelling older adults balancing tensions of health and ageing in everyday life [Abstract]. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 51-52. DOI: 10.1177/1609406915625569

Duckles, J., Seshadri, S., Lampo, D., Sellers, C. R., & Shah, M. N. (2014). “It’s a balancing act”: Understanding relational strategies of community-dwelling older adults navigating post-emergency care and health in the context of everyday life. [Abstract - Oral]. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 13, 506-507.

Sellers, C. R., Duckles, J. M., Shah, M. N., Seshadri, S., Salerno, S., Eliot, A., & Christianson, T. (2013). What makes for 'successful' transitions from the Emergency Department to home and community among older adults? [Abstract - Oral]. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 12, 815-816.