Gordon Jensen MD, PhD

Gordon Jensen, professor and head of the Department of Nutritional Sciences and professor of medicine at Penn State, has been named the 2014 Jonathan E. Rhoads Lecturer by the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (A.S.P.E.N.).

The Jonathan E. Rhoads Lecture is A.S.P.E.N.’s most prestigious award. It recognizes scholars for their major contributions to the field of nutrition support therapy and their career-long commitments to improving the nutritional statuses of patients. The lecturer is recommended by the A.S.P.E.N.'s board of directors and is invited by the society's president to deliver a lecture at the society's Clinical Nutrition Week conference. This year's conference will be held in Savannah, Ga., on Jan. 18 to 21.

Jensen’s research focuses largely on nutrition concerns in older populations. He and his colleagues develop and test nutrition screening and assessment tools that focus on specific functional and health care resource outcomes for older people. In particular, they study the impact of obesity on these outcomes. Jensen also promotes understanding of the central roles of inflammatory responses in malnutrition and obesity.

Board-certified in nutrition and internal medicine, Jensen provides consultation for adult nutrition support interventions at the Mt. Nittany Medical Center. These interventions entail the provision of specialized intravenous or tube feedings for malnourished patients who are unable to eat. Jensen also conducts outpatient clinics for malnourished patients with the Mt. Nittany Physician Group. For his clinical work, he has been nationally recognized by America’s Top Doctors, a national guide that identifies the most outstanding doctors in the country.