Michi Yukawa, MD, MPH

Professor of Medicine, Medical Director, Short stay rehabilitation unit of San Francisco Center for Jewish Living (SFCJL) Geriatrician, SFCJL, Coach, UCSF School of Medicine coaching program, Director, MS4 Geriatric Medicine Elective UCSF School of Med

Dr. Michi Yukawa is a Clinical Professor in the Division of Geriatrics and the Post Acute Care Medical Director at the Jewish Home & Rehabilitation Center (JHRC).

Dr. Yukawa is a graduate of Brown University School of Medicine, and she completed Internal Medicine residency at Miriam Hospital, one of the teaching hospital for Brown University. In addition, Dr. Yukawa holds a Masters in Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health. She practiced primary care medicine in Boston before she participated in a Geriatric Medicine Fellowship at University of Washington. Dr.Yukawa was a member of the faculty in the Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine at the University of Washington from 2000-2010. Dr. Yukawa joined the Division of Geriatrics of UCSF in October 2010 as an Associate Professor. She is interested in teaching and improving the care of older adults particularly around nutrition and prevention of malnutrition and weight loss.

Clinical
As Post Acute Medical Director at JHRC, Dr. Yukawa will provide physician leadership for implementing a new patient care partnership in which UCSF geriatricians provide the clinical care for patients discharged from UCSF Health to JHRC’s short-stay rehabilitation unit. She also will provide medical directorship for the entire 120-bed short-stay rehabilitation unit, known as the Friedman Pavilion. She will work with UCSF hospitalists and primary care to enhance the quality of the transition process for UCSF patients from hospital to JHRC and back to UCSF primary care and provide education for JHRC staff in geriatrics and quality indicators. She also will facilitate implementation science research into JHRC’s clinical environment, including integrating Geriatrics and Geriatric-Palliative Care fellows into research and quality improvement projects.

Research
Dr. Yukawa’s research interests include improving nutrition, preventing weight loss and improving perioperative care of older adults. She conducted several clinical trials while she was at University of Washington and she hopes to collaborate with others to pursue her research interests at UCSF. Her educational interests revolve around chronic illness management of geriatric patients in various settings: outpatient, inpatient and skilled nursing facility. She leads the geriatric section of Life Cycle course to educate second year medical students about geriatric syndromes and management of older adults. In addition, she directs the fourth year medical student elective in geriatric medicine. She hopes to collaborate with educators within the Division of Geriatrics and other department to develop innovative methods to teach medical students, residents and geriatric fellows about management of geriatric patients.
Education
2017 - Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion Training, University of California
6/2000 - Geriatric Medicine Fellowship, University of Washington
MPH, 06/1993 - Occupational and Environmental Health, Harvard University
06/1992 - Internal Medicine Residency, Brown University
MD, 06/1989 - Medicine, Brown University
BA, 06/1985 - Biochemistry, Cornell University
Honors and Awards
  • Federal Employee of the Year, San Francisco VA Medical Center, 2019
  • Teacher of the Year, Division of Geriatrics, UCSF, 2018
  • Kaiser Awards for Excellence in Teaching nominee, UCSF, 2015
  • Excellence in Teaching Award, The Halie Debas Academy of Medical Educators, UCSF, 2013
  • Kaiser Awards for Excellence in Teaching nominee, UCSF, 2013
  • Teacher of the Year, Division of Geriatrics, UCSF, 2013
  • MS1 Essential Core Teaching Awards nominee, UCSF, 2012
  • CNRU Pilot and Feasibility Award, University of Washington, 2000-2002
  • Hartford/AFAR Academic Geriatrics Fellowship, University of Washington, 2000-2001
Publications
  1. Andrasik MP, Maunakea AK, Oseso L, Rodriguez-Diaz CE, Wallace S, Walters K, Yukawa M. Awakening: The Unveiling of Historically Unaddressed Social Inequities During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States. 2022. PMID: 35636901


  2. Yukawa M, Gansky SA, O'Sullivan P, Teherani A, Feldman MD. A new Mentor Evaluation Tool: Evidence of validity. 2020. PMID: 32544185


  3. Lo D, Zhang N, Eubank K, Harper GM, Yukawa M, O'Brien B. Changing Spaces and Learning Environments to Improve Inpatient Interprofessional Education for Internal Medicine Residents. Volume 9 of Issue 3. 2017. PMID: 28638524


  4. Carlson C, Merel SE, Yukawa M. Geriatric syndromes and geriatric assessment for the generalist. Volume 99 of Issue 2. 2015. PMID: 25700583


  5. Rose Ann DiMaria-Ghalili, Michi Yukawa. Nutrition Assessment. 2015. PMID:


  6. Michi Yukawa, Christine Seel Ritchie. Nutrition at the End of Life. 2015. PMID:


  7. Rivera V, Yukawa M, Aronson L, Widera E. Teaching geriatric fellows how to teach: a needs assessment targeting geriatrics fellowship program directors. Volume 62 of Issue 12. 2014. PMID: 25516033


  8. Josette Rivera, Michi Yukawa, Susan Hyde, Amber Fitzsimmons, Janelle Christman, Alice Gahbauer, Alison Scheid, Maria Wamsley. Interprofessional Standardized Patient Exercise (ISPE): The Case of “Elsie Smith”. 2013. PMID:


  9. Kwon S, Symons R, Yukawa M, Dasher N, Legner V, Flum DR. Evaluating the association of preoperative functional status and postoperative functional decline in older patients undergoing major surgery. Volume 78 of Issue 12. 2012. PMID: 23265122


  10. Pogosova-Agadjanyan EL, Fan W, Georges GE, Schwartz JL, Kepler CM, Lee H, Suchanek AL, Cronk MR, Brumbaugh A, Engel JH, Yukawa M, Zhao LP, Heimfeld S, Stirewalt DL. Identification of radiation-induced expression changes in nonimmortalized human T cells. Volume 175 of Issue 2. 2010. PMID: 21268710


  11. Yukawa M, Brown-Chang J, Callahan HS, Spiekerman CF, Weigle DS. Circulating TNF alpha receptor levels identify older adults who fail to regain weight after acute weight loss. 2010. PMID: 20922351


  12. Luks AM, Yukawa M, Emery H. Disseminating best practices for the educator's portfolio. Volume 43 of Issue 5. 2009. PMID: 19422519


  13. D L Stirewalt, Y E Choi, N E Sharpless, E L Pogosova-Agadjanyan, M R Cronk, M Yukawa, E B Larson, B L Wood, F R Appelbaum, J P Radich, S Heimfeld. Erratum: Decreased IRF8 expression found in aging hematopoietic progenitor/stem cells. 2009. PMID:


  14. Yukawa M, Phelan EA, Callahan HS, Spiekerman CF, Abrass IB, Weigle DS. Leptin levels recover normally in healthy older adults after acute diet-induced weight loss. 2008. PMID: 18953464


  15. Stirewalt DL, Choi YE, Sharpless NE, Pogosova-Agadjanyan EL, Cronk MR, Yukawa M, Larson EB, Wood BL, Appelbaum FR, Radich JP, Heimfeld S. Decreased IRF8 expression found in aging hematopoietic progenitor/stem cells. 2008. PMID: 18596738


  16. Yukawa M, Weigle DS, Davis CD, Marck BT, Wolden-Hanson T. Peripheral ghrelin treatment stabilizes body weights of senescent male Brown Norway rats at baseline and after surgery. Volume 294 of Issue 5. 2008. PMID: 18337314


  17. Borson S, Scanlan J, Friedman S, Zuhr E, Fields J, Aylward E, Mahurin R, Richards T, Anzai Y, Yukawa M, Yeh S. Modeling the impact of COPD on the brain. Volume 3 of Issue 3. 2008. PMID: 18990971


  18. Fitts SS, Won CW, Williams B, Snyder SJ, Yukawa M, Legner VJ, Logerfo JP, Phelan EA. What is the Optimal Duration of Participation in a Community-Based Health Promotion Program for Older Adults? Volume 27 of Issue 2. 2008. PMID: 20502613


  19. Kratz M, Purnell JQ, Breen PA, Thomas KK, Utzschneider KM, Carr DB, Kahn SE, Hughes JP, Rutledge EA, Van Yserloo B, Yukawa M, Weigle DS. Reduced adipogenic gene expression in thigh adipose tissue precedes human immunodeficiency virus-associated lipoatrophy. Volume 93 of Issue 3. 2007. PMID: 18089690


  20. Won CW, Lee SW, Choi HR, Kim BS, Park HS, Yukawa M. Body mass index and C-reactive protein in the healthy Korean aged men. Volume 21 of Issue 5. 2006. PMID: 17043411


  21. Yukawa M, Cummings DE, Matthys CC, Callahan HS, Frayo RS, Spiekerman CF, Weigle DS. Effect of aging on the response of ghrelin to acute weight loss. Volume 54 of Issue 4. 2006. PMID: 16686877


  22. Melinda L. Irwin, Yutaka Yasui, Cornelia M. Ulrich, Deborah Bowen, Rebecca E. Rudolph, Robert S. Schwartz, Michi Yukawa, Erin Aiello, John D. Potter, Anne McTiernan. Effect of Exercise on Total and Intraabdominal Body Fat in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized, Controlled Trial. 2003. PMID:


  23. Irwin ML, Yasui Y, Ulrich CM, Bowen D, Rudolph RE, Schwartz RS, Yukawa M, Aiello E, Potter JD, McTiernan A. Effect of exercise on total and intra-abdominal body fat in postmenopausal women: a randomized controlled trial. Volume 289 of Issue 3. 2003. PMID: 12525233


  24. Yukawa M, McCormick WC. Culture specific implications for decline in ADL and IADL. 2000. PMID: 11083338