Dr. Richard S. Isaacson is a renowned neurologist with a focus on the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease. He is the Founder and Former Director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic, a first-of-its-kind in the world, at Weill Cornell Medicine & NewYork Presbyterian, where he was also Assistant Dean of Faculty Development and Associate Professor of Neurology.
Dr. Isaacson remains on faculty as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Neurology at Weill Cornell and comes to Atria from Florida Atlantic University Schmidt College of Medicine, where he most recently served as Director of the Center for Brain Health.
On his decision to join Atria, he says he was drawn to work in a medical environment where being forward-thinking is encouraged rather than frowned upon. “This approach often goes against the traditional grain in medical care, which is typically informed by practice guidelines that are often outdated soon after being published,” he says. “At Atria, we have the time and personnel to have multidisciplinary care discussions about each and every patient and family we see.”
Dr. Isaacson began his academic career in an accelerated six-year program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, where he earned his Bachelor of Liberal Arts at age 19 and his medical degree at the age of 23. He cites a family history of Alzheimer’s—as well as his older brother, also a neurologist—as early inspiration for his focus on the disease.
“Our research strives to go beyond ‘thinking outside the box’ and instead to ‘making the box bigger,’” says Dr. Isaacson. “This is the only way to shift the paradigm from sick care to well care before disease pathology becomes resistant to treatment.”
There is a saying among Alzheimer’s experts that to know one person with the disease is to, well, know one person with the disease—because it presents so distinctively in different people. To address this, Dr. Isaacson has pioneered methods using a precision-medicine approach to Alzheimer’s risk reduction in his own practice, and he served as Principal Investigator for the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic’s “Comparative Effectiveness Dementia & Alzheimer’s Registry” (CEDAR), a study that aims to uncover evidence that informs and leads to better, more precision-driven care.
Prior to his work at Weill Cornell, Dr. Isaacson was Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology and Vice Chair for Education at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He completed his residency in neurology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center / Harvard Medical School, and his medical internship at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach.
In order to address his own risk for Alzheimer’s, he has made several adjustments to his lifestyle. “The totality of the evidence is now overwhelming,” he says. “I believe, based on the research available, that preventative lifestyle changes and individualized care based on emerging principles of precision medicine can meaningfully reduce risk—and can also benefit overall health.”
Credentials
- Founder & Former DirectorAlzheimer’s Prevention Clinic, Weill Cornell Memory Disorders Program
- Adjunct Associate Professor of NeurologyNewYork Presbyterian / Weill Cornell Medical Center
- Former Assistant Dean of Faculty DevelopmentNewYork Presbyterian / Weill Cornell Medical Center
- Creator & Medical and Scientific Development LeadAlzheimer’s Universe
- Former DirectorNeurology Residency Program, Weill Cornell Medicine
- Former Education DirectorThe McKnight Brain Institute, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
- Former Associate Professor of Clinical NeurologyUniversity of Miami Miller School of Medicine
- Former Vice Chair of EducationUniversity of Miami Miller School of Medicine
- Former Neurology Residency Program DirectorUniversity of Miami Miller School of Medicine
- Former DirectorCenter for Brain Health, Florida Atlantic University
Awards
- A.B. Baker Teacher Recognition AwardAmerican Academy of Neurology
- MemberAlpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society
- Distinguished Author
Affiliations
- TrusteeThe McKnight Brain Research Foundation
- Former ChairAmerican Academy of Neurology e-Learning Subcommittee
- FellowAmerican Academy of Neurology
Meet Our Doctors
Dr. David W. Dodick
Chief Science & Medical Officer, Atria; Co-Chair, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Paul G. Lee
Chief Clinical Consultant
Dr. Richard S. Isaacson
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Lawrence C. Newman
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Ken Shubin Stein
Co-Founder, Atria; Co-Founder and CEO, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Nieca Goldberg
Women’s Health & Cardiology, Medical Director of Atria New York
Dr. Benjamin H. Lewis
Director of Atria South Florida; Cardiology
Dr. Rony Shimony
Director of Cardiology
Dr. Jahangir Rahman
Internal Medicine
Dr. Jennifer McGugins Hill
Internal Medicine
Dr. Edward J. Greaney
Internal Medicine
Dr. Bernard M. Kruger
Internal Medicine
Dr. Yadiera M. Brown
Family Medicine
Dr. Daniel Angerbauer
Preventive Medicine
Dr. Nicholas D. Caputo
Director of Urgent & Home Care
Dr. Evelyn C. Granieri
Director of Geriatrics
Dr. Carmela Seymour
Gynecology
Dr. Panta Rouhani Schaffer
Medical Dermatology
Mr. Kyle O’Flaherty
Director of Performance and Movement; Physical Therapy
Dr. Kelly Fradin
Director of Pediatrics
Dr. Hina J. Talib
Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
Dr. Cory Kercher
Pediatrics
Dr. Amish Nishawala
Pediatrics
Dr. Kersha S. Pennicott
Pediatrics & Urgent Care
Dr. David W. Dodick
Chief Science & Medical Officer, Atria; Co-Chair, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Paul G. Lee
Chief Clinical Consultant
Dr. Richard S. Isaacson
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Lawrence C. Newman
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Ken Shubin Stein
Co-Founder, Atria; Co-Founder and CEO, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Nieca Goldberg
Women’s Health & Cardiology, Medical Director of Atria New York
Dr. Benjamin H. Lewis
Director of Atria South Florida; Cardiology
Dr. Rony Shimony
Director of Cardiology
Dr. Jahangir Rahman
Internal Medicine
Dr. Jennifer McGugins Hill
Internal Medicine
Dr. Edward J. Greaney
Internal Medicine
Dr. Bernard M. Kruger
Internal Medicine
Dr. Yadiera M. Brown
Family Medicine
Dr. Daniel Angerbauer
Preventive Medicine
Dr. Nicholas D. Caputo
Director of Urgent & Home Care
Dr. Evelyn C. Granieri
Director of Geriatrics
Dr. Carmela Seymour
Gynecology
Dr. Panta Rouhani Schaffer
Medical Dermatology
Mr. Kyle O’Flaherty
Director of Performance and Movement; Physical Therapy
Dr. Kelly Fradin
Director of Pediatrics
Dr. Hina J. Talib
Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
Dr. Cory Kercher
Pediatrics
Dr. Amish Nishawala
Pediatrics
Dr. Kersha S. Pennicott
Pediatrics & Urgent Care
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Dr. David W. Dodick
Chief Science & Medical Officer, Atria; Co-Chair, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Paul G. Lee
Chief Clinical Consultant
Dr. Richard S. Isaacson
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Lawrence C. Newman
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Ken Shubin Stein
Co-Founder, Atria; Co-Founder and CEO, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Nieca Goldberg
Women’s Health & Cardiology, Medical Director of Atria New York
Dr. Benjamin H. Lewis
Director of Atria South Florida; Cardiology
Dr. Rony Shimony
Director of Cardiology
Dr. Jahangir Rahman
Internal Medicine
Dr. Jennifer McGugins Hill
Internal Medicine
Dr. Edward J. Greaney
Internal Medicine
Dr. Bernard M. Kruger
Internal Medicine
Dr. Yadiera M. Brown
Family Medicine
Dr. Daniel Angerbauer
Preventive Medicine
Dr. Nicholas D. Caputo
Director of Urgent & Home Care
Dr. Evelyn C. Granieri
Director of Geriatrics
Dr. Carmela Seymour
Gynecology
Dr. Panta Rouhani Schaffer
Medical Dermatology
Mr. Kyle O’Flaherty
Director of Performance and Movement; Physical Therapy
Dr. Kelly Fradin
Director of Pediatrics
Dr. Hina J. Talib
Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
Dr. Cory Kercher
Pediatrics
Dr. Amish Nishawala
Pediatrics
Dr. Kersha S. Pennicott
Pediatrics & Urgent Care
Dr. David W. Dodick
Chief Science & Medical Officer, Atria; Co-Chair, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Paul G. Lee
Chief Clinical Consultant
Dr. Richard S. Isaacson
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Lawrence C. Newman
Director of Brain Health
Dr. Ken Shubin Stein
Co-Founder, Atria; Co-Founder and CEO, Atria Academy of Science & Medicine
Dr. Nieca Goldberg
Women’s Health & Cardiology, Medical Director of Atria New York
Dr. Benjamin H. Lewis
Director of Atria South Florida; Cardiology
Dr. Rony Shimony
Director of Cardiology
Dr. Jahangir Rahman
Internal Medicine
Dr. Jennifer McGugins Hill
Internal Medicine
Dr. Edward J. Greaney
Internal Medicine
Dr. Bernard M. Kruger
Internal Medicine
Dr. Yadiera M. Brown
Family Medicine
Dr. Daniel Angerbauer
Preventive Medicine
Dr. Nicholas D. Caputo
Director of Urgent & Home Care
Dr. Evelyn C. Granieri
Director of Geriatrics
Dr. Carmela Seymour
Gynecology
Dr. Panta Rouhani Schaffer
Medical Dermatology
Mr. Kyle O’Flaherty
Director of Performance and Movement; Physical Therapy
Dr. Kelly Fradin
Director of Pediatrics
Dr. Hina J. Talib
Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
Dr. Cory Kercher
Pediatrics
Dr. Amish Nishawala
Pediatrics
Dr. Kersha S. Pennicott
Pediatrics & Urgent Care
