Dr. James Harrison is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine at the University of California San Francisco. James is a researcher and implementation scientist who uses patient engagement to improve the hospital care transitions of older adults. His vision is to transform health systems so that older adults are at the center of innovation discovery. He seeks to develop and implement care transition interventions that bring the patient voice to the forefront which are then sustained in real-world clinical settings. James also has a leadership role within UCSF Health’s Age Friendly Health System where he is Research Director. In this role he seeks to build capacity and research infrastructure that catalyzes the dissemination of research evidence that improves the engagement, outcomes, experiences, and dignity of older adults within health systems.

James is currently a recipient of a NIA K01 Career Development Award where he is undertaking a program of work seeking to improve the hospital to skilled nursing facility care transition of older adults. Prior to this, he was an inaugural scholar of a Learning Health System K12 Career Development Program funded by the AHRQ and PCORI. His work in this program focused on creating age-friendly care transitions using telehealth technologies.

In addition to his aging research portfolio, James' growing area of research interest and expertise relates to engagement science. He currently leads and has completed several PCORI-funded studies seeking to explore and describe the methods and best practices of engaging patients and community members as partners in research. He has applied this research to practice and manages a Patient & Family Advisory Council (PFACs) for a national Hospital Medicine research collaborative (www.hospitalinnovate.org) and is involved in several efforts to partner with patients and community members in UCSF’s healthcare, research, education, and public missions. James was a previous member of the PCORI's Patient Engagement Advisory Panel.

James joined the UCSF Division of Hospital Medicine as a Research Specialist in 2012 before moving to a faculty position in 2016. Prior to joining UCSF, James was based at the Surgical Outcomes Research Centre at the University of Sydney and Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. It was in Sydney, Australia that James completed his Masters of Public Health and PhD.