Mar 12, 2024 2 min read

A Donora native has been named director of the University of Pittsburgh’s Healthy Home Lab (HHL).

Pamela Toto, an occupational therapist with expertise in gerontology, will head up the HHL, a living laboratory in the university’s Oakland neighborhood where researchers are designing and testing real-world, evidence-based solutions to support community living among aging adults, people with disabilities and other vulnerable populations.

“I have wanted to work with older adults and help them remain independent since I was 8 years old and started working at a Friday night church bingo selling soda pop,” Toto said. “My original plan was to go to medical school to become a geriatrician until I found occupational therapy which provided a much more direct (and less costly) path to my goal. I was privileged to have two grandmothers who both had challenging lives but remained strong and independent in our community. They were great role models of what it means to live life to its fullest.”

As director, Toto will oversee the research, education and service activities of the HHL and connect the lab’s activities to the many organizations dedicated to supporting successful aging in place.

Toto has been involved with the HHL since its purchase by the university in April 2022. The HHL opened to its first visitors in August 2022. Toto oversaw the implementation of new technology-enabled models of in-home care delivery, training programs and student research.

“I’m thrilled to take on this new and exciting role,” Toto said. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime for me and a true culmination of the work I’ve done for my entire occupational therapy career, making this world – and especially my home of Pittsburgh – a better place to grow old.”