Emerging Career Series: Dr. Lillian Hung on Innovation, Human Connection, and the Heart of Geriatric Care

Dr. Lillian Hung is a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Senior Care. She is a Registered Nurse and Clinical Nurse Specialist at Vancouver Coastal Health, as well as an associate professor in the School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia. Dr. Hung is also the founder of the UBC IDEA lab and leads research on examining how the environment, including technology, physical design and social aspects, may impact the care experiences of persons with dementia. To innovate and improve dementia care, she uses a range of methods to find innovative solutions to address clinical problems in care facilities and acute hospitals.

When Dr. Lillian Hung began her nursing career, her motivations were simple “I wanted a job that would be useful,…useful for my family, and (provides) care for the people I love.” Yet, what began as a practical choice continues to grow into a career of ongoing innovation, compassion, and an unwavering commitment to the human side of healthcare.

As the Canada Research Chair in Seniors Care at the University of British Columbia and founder of the IDEA Lab (Innovation in Dementia and Aging), Dr. Hung has built a vibrant hub of interdisciplinary research that blends technology, empathy, and patient partnership. Her work spans robotics, virtual reality, and assistive technologies,all co-designed with older adults and the clinicians who care for them. But despite the futuristic tools, her approach remains deeply human: “We are always grounded by the people we serve,” she said. “We never want to make something that people won’t use or don’t like. We want to create with them, not for them.”

Dr. Hung shares that her work tends to focus on senior care in the Vancouver BC area, where there are more than 70 long-term care homes. Her team at the IDEA Lab works with operational leaders to develop and deliver projects and programs that relieve stress and reduce antipsychotic use and behaviours, as part of an interdisciplinary team. 

“The Relational Aspect of Care is Unique to Nursing”

For Dr. Hung, nursing has always been about relationships. “The most rewarding experiences in my early career were the relationships I had with the people I worked with,” she shared. She notes that as a new nurse, she learned how to work with a team to support people, including how to bring joy! Dr. Hung reflects that her early mentors were so much fun, bringing laughter to a very fearful or difficult time for many. “I have those vivid images about the patients and the nurses that I worked with that still give me goosebumps…it’s tremendously rewarding”.

She vividly recalls an instance from her early-career where one patient with dementia who could no longer communicate verbally expressed distress in ways others might have misinterpreted as aggression. “He came to me one day and put his hand on my neck. I could have called him aggressive, but something told me this wasn’t him.” Acting on instinct and understanding despite being essentially trapped in a space by the patient, she advocated for further assessment once she was safe. “We found out he had pancreatic cancer and was in tremendous pain. He died peacefully three weeks later because we recognized what was really happening.” Had someone not noticed his need, he would likely have been ordered antipsychotics and passed away in significant distress with unmet pain needs. She notes that this kind of responsive care is challenging in facility settings, reflecting that this nursing action had to fit amongst the preparation and delivery of medication for up to 50 people in a unit. 

Dr. Hung additionally continues her work as an advocate for the rights of aged persons through the teaching of dementia care and Gentle Persuasive Approach (GPA) as course curriculum in BC. For Dr. Hung, her bedside experiences encapsulate the power and privilege of nursing, noting that the nurse has the opportunity and responsibility to be someone patients can rely on, as they are forced to do while dependent on care.

Dr. Hung began her research career while working on the acute psychiatry unit at Mount Saint Joseph Hospital. She and her team recognized that the unit’s environment was not adequately meeting the needs of their older patients, many of whom were living with severe depression or dementia, and they wanted to take meaningful action to improve the space.

Motivated by these concerns, Dr. Hung led her first research project, which involved collecting data through patient observations and interviews to better understand what environmental changes could enhance patients’ experiences and well-being. 

Learning from Mentors and Building Resilience- “I learned from some of the very best nurses.”

Reflecting on her early years in mental health and geriatric psychiatry, Dr. Hung credits much of her growth to senior nurses who guided her with both skill and humor. “Kim was one of my great mentors. She taught me not just about medications and procedures, but about how to relate to patients with laughter, with popcorn, with joy.”

Those experiences shaped her belief that relational learning and team connection are essential to surviving the first challenging years in nursing. Dr. Hung advises that “When you’re new, find a couple of buddies. They don’t have to be formal mentors, but people you can talk to, people who will support you through mistakes, because we all make them. That sense of belonging to a team gives you resilience.”

From Geriatric Nursing to Research Innovation “There are so many possibilities!”

Dr. Hung’s trajectory from geriatric psychiatry to cutting-edge research might seem unconventional, but she insists it was not intentional. “I didn’t plan it out,” she said. “Sometimes you just have to be open to opportunities.” Her early work in long-term and mental health care revealed the richness, dignity, and complexity of older adults’ lives. That led to graduate studies exploring dementia and environmental design, exploring how surroundings affect people living with cognitive impairment. From there, she moved into education, management, and eventually research, where she discovered the potential of technology to enhance and not replace human care.

During the pandemic, Dr. Hung’s lab pivoted to develop an affordable ventilator prototype and explore telepresence robots for family visits in long-term care. “One of our older adult partners inspired that. His wife was in care, and he couldn’t reach her. The iPads weren’t working, with too few staff to help. So we said, let's try telepresence robots.”

For Dr. Hung, these projects underscore a fundamental principle: technology must always serve human connection. “It’s never about replacing nurses,” she emphasized. “It’s about finding ways to reduce suffering, to bring people together when systems fall short.”

Co-Design, Compassion, and the Future of Care

At the heart of the IDEA Lab’s success is collaboration, not just across disciplines, but across generations. “We started with one student and now have over 150,” said Dr. Hung. “Older adults love working with young students, and the students love learning from them. It’s mutual learning, mutual respect.”

Her lab’s approach, known as patient-oriented research, invites those most affected by innovations to participate from the start. “If we don’t work with the end users, we end up wasting time and money on things people won’t use,” she said. “When older adults and clinicians sit at the table, we stay grounded. They remind us why we’re doing what we do.”

Dr. Hung emphasized that AI is inevitably becoming part of everyday life, making it essential for people,and especially those most affected or vulnerable,to be involved in shaping its development. Without meaningful participation, she noted, the values that matter most to individuals risk being overlooked. She argued that people should maintain autonomy and have the ability to decide what is acceptable within their AI-enabled devices. AI systems, she stressed, must be accessible, affordable, inclusive, understandable, and genuinely useful. Above all, individuals should have a voice in how their data is used, rather than having it sent to unknown entities with the power to influence their lives.

Advice for New Graduate Nurses- “Be open and don’t plan too much!”

When asked what advice she would offer to new nurses, especially those considering geriatric care, Dr. Hung reflects not too cling to a single plan as nursing gives so many opportunities!

She encourages early-career nurses to embrace both the scientific and the humanistic sides of the profession, noting that technology's evolving nature shouldn’t change the strength of nurses ability to care and connect.

Her final message to those beginning their nursing journey is to remember that procedures or policies can be learned over time, but “You will never forget how someone made you feel, and your patients will never forget how you made them feel. That is the art of nursing.”

In every phase of her career, Dr. Lillian Hung has modeled the integration of science, dignity and respect- a reminder that the future of nursing lies not in choosing between technology and connection, but in weaving them together.

Visit the IDEA Lab website to learn more, and explore current and past co-design projects!