Profiles

Dr. Pauline DeLange Martinez is a public health researcher and gerontologist who integrates community engagement, research, and policy to transform systems supporting older adults and caregivers. Her work focuses on program and policy evaluation, cross-sector partnerships, and capacity building to enhance aging-related services and the age-friendly ecosystem.

At the Family Caregiving Institute in the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis, she leads statewide evaluations and advances rural aging equity. She is passionate about translating data and community insight into actionable strategies that strengthen age- and disability-friendly communities. Her expertise is grounded in extensive on-the-ground collaboration. Over the past 15 years, she has consulted with 26 counties and 35 cities across California and Oregon, in partnership with the California Department of Aging, the Center for Age Friendly Excellence, and The SCAN Foundation.

Pauline is passionate about addressing inequities in aging, which has led her to a dedicated focus on rural disparities. Over the past five years, she led the development of local Multisector Plans for Aging (MPAs) across seven rural California counties and developed a nationally utilized toolkit to help rural leaders create and implement their own local action plans. Most recently, she authored a policy brief series, Aging in Rural California, targeting state legislators with evidence-based recommendations on housing, LTSS, and health care in the context of federal funding pressures.

Her research is informed by both frontline experience and scientific inquiry. Her foundational work includes a master’s thesis with UC San Francisco on the physiological impacts of stress on dementia caregivers, and her career is built across the aging services ecosystem, including roles in Area Agencies on Aging, a public health foundation, a health care innovation center, and the Alzheimer’s Association. She has led programs addressing dementia caregiving, social isolation, fall prevention, chronic disease management, and elder abuse. She has also taught gerontology at San Jose State and Oregon State Universities.

Dr. DeLange Martinez holds a PhD in Public Health Sciences from UC Davis and a master’s in Gerontology from San Francisco State University.