Spring 2022 Research Update
Dr. Brenda Beagan
Congratulations to School of Occupational Therapy Professor, Brenda Beagan! Dr Beagan's name, along with names of former School Colleagues, Liz Townsend and Anita Unruh, have been included in Stanford University's World’s Top 2% Scientists on the 2021 data stat list. Well deserved!
Written by School Associate Professor, and Research and Scholarship Committee Chair, Dr. Niki Kiepek
Faculty and student researchers at the School of Occupational Therapy continue to engage in innovative occupational therapy and occupational science research, exploring topics such as inclusion and belonging, family engagement, fatigue management, psychotherapy, systemic racism, and disability. Some recent publications are listed here and we invite you to connect with faculty if you'd like to learn more about their work and possible collaborations.
Over the past year, a number of faculty received funding to advance their programs of research. Grace Warner is our featured faculty member this month. She and Tanya Packer were awarded funding by the Nova Scotia Research Fund and Department of Seniors and Long-Term Care for the "ACTing Collectively" aimed at supporting community-living older adults to age well in communities.
We are also proud of our faculty and graduate students in the Masters of Occupational Therapy, Masters of Occupational Science, and PhD in Health programs, who will be engaging in upcoming conferences, including: the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists Conference, the World Occupational Science Conference, the World Federation of Occupational Therapists Congress, and the Society for the Study of Occupation:USA Conference. Research conducted by researchers at the Dalhousie School of Occupational is having local, national, and international impact!
Featured Faculty Researcher - Dr. Grace Warner
The featured faculty researcher in this issue of Occupation Matters is Professor Grace Warner. Dr. Warner Is Co-Principal Investigator along with fellow faculty member Dr. Tanya Packer, on the successful ACTing Collectively grant proposal. (See the full listing of partners and co-investigators including School Drs. Sorayya Askari and Parisa Ghanouni.)
The ACTing Collectively research project will pilot an innovative approach to gathering data on the needs of, and available resources for, community-living older adults to age well in communities.
The vision of the ACTing Collectively research project is to use a set of integrated tools (Age Care Technology (ACTTM) to "1) assess the needs of older adults and provide them with an individualized report linked to a list of related community resources, and 2) connect to a global database that tracks intervention outcomes and trajectories in aging adults’ wellbeing, independence, social connection and health in other locations. A unique aspect of this project will be the design and creation of Community Profile Reports, intended to inform local policy makers and planners about the specific needs of their communities."
The project is funded by the Nova Scotia Research Fund ($99,308; 2021-2024) and Department of Seniors and Long-Term Care ($517,500; 2022-2025).
For partner listing and information read: ACTing Collectively to map and address the needs of community-living older adults in Nova Scotia.
Or listen to CBC Cape Breton interview with Dr. Warner: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-24/clip/15900884