About

Laura J. Morrison, MD, FAAHPM, FACP is a Professor of Medicine at Yale School of Medicine and an attending physician on the Yale-New Haven Hospital Palliative Care Consultation Service. She serves as Associate Chief of Palliative Care, Director of Palliative Medicine Education, and Program Director for the Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship at Yale. Dr. Morrison directs the Yale Serious Illness Communication Program, which aims to strengthen serious illness communication skills among Yale New Haven Hospital clinicians in training and Yale New Haven Hospital System clinical faculty. Her educational background includes a medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, with internship, residency, and chief residency in internal medicine at MetroHealth Medical Center. She completed fellowship training in geriatrics and palliative care at Baylor College of Medicine and spent nine years on faculty at Houston Methodist Hospital, serving as Education Director for the Supportive and Palliative Care Consultation Service. She is board-certified in geriatrics and hospice and palliative medicine. Dr. Morrison has witnessed significant gaps in palliative care training for clinicians and has become a passionate educational leader at both local and national levels, contributing to the development of competencies, milestones, and accreditation standards for hospice and palliative medicine fellowship training, as well as advances in learner assessment.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Psychology
• Medical education
• Computer Science
• Nursing
• Pedagogy
• Family medicine
• Medical physics

Selected publications

• Real-World Comparison of Overall Survival Among Patients With and Without Inherited Retinal Diseases

  Vision · 2026-03-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  This study compared real-world overall survival and the risk of physical comorbidities and mental health conditions among patients aged <65 years with versus without inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) in the United States (US). Optum® Electronic Health Record data (January 2014–January 2023) were evaluated for IRD (patients with ≥2 medical visits with an IRD diagnosis; index date: second such medical visit) and non-IRD (patients without an IRD diagnosis; index date: random medical visit) cohorts. Baseline demographics were balanced between cohorts using propensity score matching (2:1). Outcome measures were overall survival (date of death due to any cause) and presence of physical comorbidities and mental health conditions (medical visit with a corresponding diagnosis code). In total, 4594 patients with IRD were matched to 9188 patients without IRD (mean age: 38.7 vs. 38.2 years, 53.9% vs. 55.1% female, mean follow-up: 53.1 vs. 52.8 months). Over 84 months, patients with versus without IRD had a 24% higher risk of death (overall survival: 95.8% vs. 96.7%; hazard ratio: 1.24; 95% confidence interval: 1.00–1.53; p = 0.046) and were at significantly higher risk for each evaluated physical comorbidity and mental health condition (all p < 0.05). The development of novel therapies is thus needed to address the clinical burden of IRD.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Provincial agreements for pregnant and parenting orthopedic surgery residents: a call for a national residency guideline

  Canadian Journal of Surgery · 2026-02-18

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  SummaryIn Canada, orthopedic surgery residents who identify as women face unique challenges regarding family planning during training. We investigated provincial policies on pregnancy, parental leave, and return to work in 8 provinces across Canada. We also explored the British Orthopaedic Association (BOA) guideline as a potential model for improving support for Canadian orthopedic surgical residents during pregnancy, parental leave, and professional development. Our analysis reveals disparities in duty hours, parental leave benefits, and pregnancy-related restrictions. For instance, Quebec allows relief from call duties at 20 weeks' getation, while Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan mandate waiting until 28 weeks. Duty-hour restrictions vary across provinces, with British Columbia setting a limit of 12-hour shifts and Quebec setting it at 8 hours. Pay during parental leave also varies, with top-ups ranging from 84% to 100%, inconsistently available to nonbirthing or adoptive parents. Current agreements fail to support informed family planning decisions and lack robust strategies for risk mitigation. We propose implementing a standardized national guideline based on the BOA model. This guideline would offer clear policies for trainees during pregnancy, parental leave, and return to work, along with strategies to minimize occupational hazards. Adoption of such a guideline would empower trainees, promote inclusivity, and encourage more women to consider careers in orthopedic surgery.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Plasma brain-derived p-tau217 for the identification of amyloid status in a memory clinic cohort

  Journal of Neurology · 2026-03-25

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Systemic inflammation, delirium and clinical progression in mild-moderate Alzheimer disease

  EBioMedicine · 2026-02-17

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Both low-grade systemic inflammation and acute inflammatory events may contribute to Alzheimer Disease (AD) progression. However, studies examining the prognostic utility of systemic inflammatory biomarkers in AD, and how systemic inflammatory events may contribute to clinical trajectories in AD, have yielded conflicting results. METHODS: We quantified plasma cytokines/chemokines in 333 individuals with mild-moderate AD at baseline, 12 and 18 months alongside baseline neurodegenerative biomarkers. AD severity was assessed using the Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS-Cog), Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR-Sb) and Disability Assessment for Dementia (DAD). FINDINGS: Systemic inflammatory biomarkers were primarily associated with age/socio-demographic characteristics, remained strikingly stable over time, and were not associated with AD progression. Rather, higher baseline plasma p-tau217 was associated with greater yearly progression on both the ADAS-Cog (β: 2.82; 95% CI: 1.12, 4.52; nominal p = 0.001) and DAD (β: -2.34; 95% CI: -3.86, -0.82; nominal p = 0.003). Higher baseline GFAP was also associated with subsequent decline on both the CDR-Sb (β: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.38, 1.67; nominal p = 0.002) and DAD (β: 1.91; 95% CI: -3.45, -0.37; nominal p = 0.02). Experiencing one or more episodes of delirium was associated with accelerated decline on the CDR-Sb at 18-months (β: 2.63; 95% CI: 1.55, 3.71; adjusted p < 0.001). INTERPRETATION: Biomarkers of neuroinflammation (GFAP), neurodegeneration (p-tau217) and incident delirium, rather than systemic inflammatory biomarkers, were associated with clinically-significant decline in mild-moderate AD. FUNDING: European Commission (FP7 grant; 279093); Meath Foundation (MFRG 121/2021); Wellcome Trust (227946/Z/23/Z & 203930/B/16/Z); Health Research Board (203930/B/16/Z; ECSA-2024-003).

  PublisherDOI

• 26-A-8863-ACC TOWARD GOAL-CONCORDANT CARE: TRAINEE ROLES IN ADVANCING GOALS OF CARE COMMUNICATION ON AN INPATIENT CARDIOLOGY SERVICE

  Journal of the American College of Cardiology · 2026-03-27

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Optimizing Specialist Palliative Care Referral to Improve Dementia Care

  JAMA Network Open · 2025-05-14 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Clinical performance of the fully automated Lumipulse plasma p‐tau217 assay in mild cognitive impairment and mild dementia

  Alzheimer s & Dementia Diagnosis Assessment & Disease Monitoring · 2025-01-01 · 7 citations

  articleOpen access

  Introduction: Plasma phosphorylated tau (p-tau)217 is a leading blood-biomarker for the detection of amyloid beta (Aβ) pathology. We assessed the performance of a fully automated plasma p-tau217 immunoassay to detect Aβ pathology in mild cognitive impairment (MCI)/mild dementia. Methods: Paired plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples were obtained at time of diagnostic lumbar puncture (LP) in a specialist memory service. Plasma p-tau217 was measured using the Lumipulse immunoassay platform and ability to detect CSF-defined Aβ positivity assessed. Results: Of 148 participants (69.4 ± 6.5 years; 54.1% female), 101 had MCI and 47 mild dementia. Median plasma p-tau217 was > 4-fold higher in Aβ+ vs Aβ- individuals with an area under the curve of 0.92 (0.87-0.97). Application of 90%, 95%, and 97.5% sensitivity/specificity thresholds for plasma p-tau217 may have obviated the need for more than half of LPs. Discussion: Our real-world data support the clinical use of fully automated plasma p-tau217 immunoassays, although further studies in more diverse cohorts are required. HIGHLIGHTS: Plasma phosphorylated tau (p-tau)217 was measured using a fully automated immunoassay (Lumipulse).P-tau217 was > 4-fold higher in amyloid beta (Aβ)+ versus Aβ- individuals.Plasma p-tau217 had an area under the curve of 0.92 for detection of Aβ status.Using a previously proposed two-threshold approach may avoid more than half of lumbar punctures.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Using Art and the Museum Setting to Build Connection and Find Meaning

  Journal of Pain and Symptom Management · 2025-04-10

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Herpesvirus Exposure, Cognitive Decline and Alzheimer Disease in Older Adults: Insights from a Multi-Cohort Study Using a Novel Multiplex Sero-assay

  Age and Ageing · 2025-12-01

  article

  Abstract Background Evidence increasingly supports the “infectious hypothesis” of Alzheimer Disease (AD) in older adults, proposing that common pathogens—particularly human herpesviruses—increase one's risk of AD. However, most studies have used medical records and clinically-diagnosed infections to test this association. To obtain a direct measure of viral exposure history, we developed a novel multiplex sero-assay enabling simultaneous measurement of antibodies to a broad variety of common infections and applied it to several unique clinical cohorts to interrogate the infectious hypothesis of AD. Methods Using nearly 6,000 samples from three studies (TUDA, TIMC-BRAiN, NILVAD), plasma IgG to 50 pathogens was measured via a multiplex bead-based assay. Associations were examined in the community-based TUDA cohort and further explored in clinical cohorts (TIMC-BRAiN, NILVAD) using paired plasma/cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples and high-sensitivity biomarkers of inflammation and neurodegeneration. Linear regression results are presented as Beta Coefficients (B), 95% Confidence Intervals, and p-values with adjustment for important clinical covariates. Results In TUDA (n=4,796, age: 73.7±8.17 years, 67.2% female), Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV1) seropositivity was significantly associated with poorer total RBANS scores (B: -3.78, 95%CI: -5.50 to -2.07, p&amp;lt;0.001) and poorer performance on all RBANS domains. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositivity was significantly associated with poorer total RBANS performance (B: -1.38, 95%CI: -2.23 to -0.52, p=0.002). In NILVAD, CMV seropositivity was associated with greater baseline dementia severity (B: 1.47, 95%CI: 0.58 to 2.36, p=0.001 on CDR-Sb). In clinical cohorts (TIMC-BRAiN, NILVAD), pathogen seropositivity was not associated with AD biomarkers or AD clinical progression over 18-months. Across all three cohorts, herpesvirus seropositivity was consistently associated with elevated systemic inflammatory markers (IL-6, TNF-α). Conclusion Herpesvirus exposure (HSV1, CMV) was robustly associated with poorer cognitive performance, potentially mediated by non-specific systemic inflammatory effects. However, direct involvement of HSV1 or CMV in AD pathogenesis or progression was not supported by the current analysis.

  PublisherDOI

• SEEKING CONTINUITY: CARDIOLOGY AND PALLIATIVE CARE CLINICIANS’ PERSPECTIVES ON PALLIATIVE CARE INVOLVEMENT IN LVAD CARE

  Journal of the American College of Cardiology · 2025-03-29

  articleOpen access
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Seán Kennelly

  Tallaght University Hospital

  29 shared

• Adam H. Dyer

  Trinity College Dublin

  28 shared

• Jane deLima Thomas

  26 shared

• Helena Dolphin

  Tallaght University Hospital

  24 shared

• Linda A. Headrick

  University of Missouri

  22 shared

• Greg Ogrinc

  19 shared

• Greg Petroski

  University of New Mexico

  17 shared

• Beth Harwood

  University of Southampton

  17 shared