As the spotlight returns to legendary coach Pat Summitt through the new documentary Breaking Glass: The Pat Summitt Story, her impact continues to reach far beyond the basketball court, shaping the future of Alzheimer’s research right here at the University of Tennessee.
At the College of Nursing, Chunhong Xiao, assistant professor and a recent addition to the Precision Health and Environment Cluster, is building on Summitt’s legacy through innovative, community-focused dementia research. Working in close partnership with the Pat Summitt Alzheimer’s Clinic, Xiao is leading efforts to improve care and outcomes for individuals living with dementia and their families across East Tennessee.
In collaboration with Roberto Fernandez-Romero, director of the Pat Summitt Clinic, Xiao is advancing several major research initiatives. Their work includes a Department of Defense-funded proposal through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), focused on translational dementia care and behavioral symptom management. The team has also shared findings on how home environment dynamics influence agitation in individuals with dementia at leading conferences, including the Gerontological Society of America and the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference.
Xiao’s research stands out for its interdisciplinary approach, bringing together expertise from nursing, engineering, computer science, medicine, and interior design. Her work explores healing-centered home environments, community-engaged behavioral interventions, and ongoing scholarly publications aimed at transforming how dementia care is delivered.
Through this partnership, Xiao and Fernandez Romero are working to bridge a critical gap in care: translating evidence-based practices from clinical settings directly into patients’ homes. By leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning, their team is developing precision health strategies that tailor interventions to everyone, ultimately improving quality of life for both patients and their caregivers.
The roots of this work are deeply connected to Coach Summitt’s legacy. Following her diagnosis with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, the Pat Summitt Clinic at UT Medical opened in 2017 with a mission to provide compassionate, innovative care. Designed with patients and families in mind, the clinic integrates thoughtful elements from calming lighting and sound design to collaborative care spaces to support individuals navigating cognitive disorders.
Today, the clinic serves more than 5,600 patients annually and offers specialized care for conditions including Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal dementia, vascular dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies, and primary progressive aphasia. Its multidisciplinary team provides comprehensive services ranging from diagnosis and clinical trials to caregiver support and community education.
As Breaking Glass: The Pat Summitt Story brings renewed attention to Summitt’s extraordinary life and leadership, it also highlights the lasting influence of her advocacy. Through the work of researchers like Xiao and the continued innovation at the Pat Summitt Alzheimer’s Clinic, her legacy lives on not only in sport but in science, care, and the pursuit of better outcomes for families facing Alzheimer’s disease.