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Tufts Medicine co-leads $44 million NIH grant to transform advance care planning with social work-driven, video-assisted model. September 15, 2026 Grant is the largest single-project NIH grant in Tufts Medical Center history Tufts Medicine Tufts Medical Center has been awarded a $44 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to test a fundamentally new model of advance care planning (ACP) that begins conversations about end-of-life care earlier to give patients and caregivers more time to communicate their preferences for future medical care. These conversations will be led by social workers and nurses using video decision-support tools available in 25 languages. This grant is the largest single-project NIH grant in Tufts Medical Center history. The multi-site study - ACP Educator Video Program to Promote Goal-Concordant Care in Older Patients and those with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias: Advancing Ethical Goals In Society (AEGIS) - is co-led by Michael Paasche-Orlow, MD, MPH, Vice Chair of Research and Professor of Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine and Director of the Center for Health Literacy Research + Practice at Tufts Medicine. The clinical trial will be conducted across two partner health systems - Northwell Health (28 hospitals) and Dartmouth Health (nine hospitals), the nation's most rural health system - enabling researchers to test the model at scale and to evaluate a specific hypothesis about its effectiveness with rural participants. A study of this scale is needed to meaningfully advance research in this area. While previous studies have largely focused on documenting patient preferences, the AEGIS Trial is distinguished by its primary outcome: whether patients actually receive care at the end of their life that is concordant with their goals. The trial is also designed to extend the benefits of advance care planning to communities that have historically experienced lower rates of such planning, including patients in rural areas and those with language barriers. By focusing on both the receipt of goal-concordant care and the inclusion of communities often underrepresented in prior research, the AEGIS Trial aims to improve care for the patients who stand to benefit most. "Advance care planning has traditionally been treated as an end-of-life crisis conversation, happening too late and too rushed for patients to truly reflect on what matters most to them," said Dr. Paasche-Orlow. "This model starts that conversation much earlier and puts social workers - who are trained to have meaningful, sustained conversations about goals and values - at the center of the process. The video tools, available in 25 languages, are designed to overcome health-literacy and language barriers so that every patient, regardless of background, can make an informed, meaningful choice alongside their family." How the model works. The intervention reimagines ACP as a longitudinal intervention rather than a one-time event: * Timing: ACP conversations begin approximately two years before death, transforming a last-minute decision into an ongoing dialogue. * Social work-driven: Specially trained social workers lead the conversations, reflecting evidence that patient-centered discussions of goals and values are a core social-work competency. * Video decision support: Patients and their families watch a suite of short video decision-support tools together with the social worker, then discuss the topics. The videos, produced in collaboration with ACP Decisions, cover a range of scenarios - including goals of care, palliative care, hospice and limitation of life-sustaining interventions - and are designed to make complex medical decisions visually clear and accessible. * Multiple languages: The video library is available in 25 languages, addressing the health-literacy and limited-English-proficiency barriers that have historically left many patients behind in end-of-life planning. The model builds on two decades of research by Dr. Paasche-Orlow and collaborators on video-assisted ACP, including randomized trials in nursing homes, oncology, heart failure and a variety of hospital and community settings. "Nearly all the data that has been collected on advanced care planning has been focused on urban areas, when one in five patients live in rural areas across the country," said principal investigator Angelo E. Volandes, MD, MPH, Chief Research Officer at Dartmouth Health and Senior Associate Dean of Clinical and Translational Research at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. "By studying the impact of innovative, end-of-life planning across such a wide patient population - in both rural and urban areas - this study has the potential to impact how we deliver care to all communities across the country. By empowering patients, families and care teams, this study aims to help close the wide gap between the way patients want to live their lives in their final years and how care has actually been delivered." "Being able to follow people longitudinally is very exciting," said co-investigator Edith Burns, MD, Professor of Medicine, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell Health and Director of Research for the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine. "In the past, advance care planning has often been a one-time conversation, but things change over time. This study has potential to improve communication across the entire healthcare system, educate primary care clinicians and teams and address the fragmentation that creates communication challenges along the way." The study - ACP Educator Video Program to Promote Goal-Concordant Care in Older Patients and those with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias: Advancing Ethical Goals In Society (AEGIS) - is supported by the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health under Award (Project) Number 1U19AG090271-01A1. About advance care planning. Advance care planning is the process by which patients reflect on and communicate their preferences for future medical care in the event they become unable to speak for themselves. Despite its importance, studies show that the majority of older adults and patients with serious illness have never communicated their preferences to clinicians or completed ACP documents. Disparities in ACP are especially pronounced among patients in rural areas and those with limited health literacy and limited English proficiency.

Tufts Medicine CEO, CFO step down amid financial struggles. Phil Okala, Tufts' chief operating officer, will replace Mike Dandorph as chief executive; Greg Kruse, a strategic VP, will take over budget planning. Published Aug. 6, 2026 Jill Hughes Dive brief: * Two of Tufts Medicine's top executives are stepping down as the beleaguered health system embarks on a financial turnaround. * CEO Mike Dandorph is leaving after more than six years at Tufts, effective at the end of September. He'll be replaced by Phil Okala, Tufts' current chief operating officer, according to a memo from Tufts' board chair shared with Healthcare Dive. * Andrew Devoe, Tufts' chief financial officer, is also stepping down after two years in the role. Greg Kruse, the current vice president of strategic operations and analytics intelligence, will take over budget planning and oversee some financial services operations while Tufts begins a national search for Devoe's replacement. Dive insight: Dandorph was named Tufts' CEO in January 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic was first ramping up. His leadership was central to advancing access to care and furthering Tufts' research, despite "unprecedented financial challenges and policy changes shaping the industry," Phil Lembo, the chair of Tufts' board of trustees, wrote in his Tuesday memo. Dandorph will remain in the position through the 2026 fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. At that time, Okala, who has held several leadership posts at Tufts and other healthcare organizations over his career, will assume the role. "Our focus remains unchanged: serving our patients and communities, supporting our people, strengthening our financial position and continuing to advance Tufts Medicine's mission to empower people to live their best lives," Okala said. Dandorph described the change as in the best interest and at the right time for Tufts. The system, which operates four hospitals in eastern Massachusetts, has faced financial struggles amid worker shortages and post-pandemic revenue dips. In 2024, Tufts Medicine laid off 174 employees, or about 1% of its workforce, citing high labor costs and capacity challenges. It also laid off 70 administrative workers in 2023 and sold its laboratory outreach testing business to Labcorp, dissolving 600 more roles. Tufts' actions appear to be bearing fruit. The system reported a $51.6 million net loss in its 2025 fiscal year, improving on its loss of $214 million the year prior, according to financial documents. "While important work remains ahead, we have generated significant momentum and are entering the next phase of our financial turnaround with greater focus, discipline and purpose," Lembo said.

Header utility. May 7, 2026 Distinguished cardiac surgeon brings national leadership in complex valve and structural heart surgery to advance growth, innovation and multidisciplinary cardiovascular care across Tufts Medicine Tufts Medicine announced today that Dr. Panayotis (Panos) Vardas, has been named Division Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Tufts Medical Center (Tufts MC), with an academic appointment at Tufts University School of Medicine. Dr. Vardas, an internationally recognized cardiac surgeon, will advance the clinical, academic and research mission of the Division of Cardiac Surgery and contribute to the growth of cardiovascular services across Tufts Medicine. Dr. Vardas will also promote patient-centered, multidisciplinary, collaborative, high-quality cardiac surgical care and ensure equitable access to advanced cardiothoracic surgical services across Tufts Medicine. "Dr. Vardas joins us at an exciting time for cardiovascular services at Tufts Medical Center and across Tufts Medicine," said Erika Werner, MD, Chief Physician Executive of Tufts Medicine, President of the Tufts Medical Center Physicians Organization, and a Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine. "His proven track record in advancing surgical excellence and building high-performing programs, combined with his dedication to education and research, will be instrumental in strengthening our cardiac surgery program and expanding access to innovative cardiac care for the communities we serve." Dr. Vardas practices the full spectrum of adult cardiac surgery with a specialized clinical focus on complex valve disease and structural heart interventions. His clinical expertise emphasizes durable valve repair, percutaneous and transcatheter valve interventions, arrhythmia surgery, surgical coronary revascularization and complex reoperative cardiac surgery. In addition to his clinical leadership, Dr. Vardas brings a strong academic profile and a commitment to innovation. He has been actively involved in clinical trials, outcomes research and guideline development, with a focus on valve disease, arrhythmia surgery and advanced surgical and transcatheter technologies. His scholarly work has been published in leading peer-reviewed journals, and he has served in leadership roles within several professional societies, including the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, American Association for Thoracic Surgery, Eastern Cardiothoracic Surgical Society and the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association. Dr. Vardas joins Tufts MC from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), where he served as a Tenured Associate Professor in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Medical Director of the Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Units and Associate Program Director of the Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency and Fellowship. He has received multiple national honors, including the Society of Thoracic Surgeons President's Award, and was recently inducted into the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, one of the most prestigious professional societies in the field, in recognition of his contributions to cardiothoracic surgical education and research. "Tufts Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine are nationally renowned for excellence in cardiovascular care and a unique opportunity for growth," said Dr. Vardas. "I'm honored to join this outstanding team and look forward to working collaboratively to build a leading cardiac surgery program focused on innovation, multidisciplinary care and exceptional patient outcomes. Dr. Vardas earned his Medical Degree from the University of Rome "La Sapienza" School of Medicine. He completed general surgery training at the University of Washington, followed by an integrated thoracic surgery residency at Indiana University School of Medicine, and an advanced fellowship in complex valve reconstructive and arrhythmia surgery at Northwestern University. He is certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.