Research Location: University of British Columbia

Co-lead: Armansa Glodjo BC Children’s Hospital and Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children

Team members: Yael Mayer UBC Mor Cohen-Eillig BCCH Janice Chan UBC Natasha Kuzyk UBC Ryan Octosa UBC Kathy Xie Student

Children’s overuse of screen time has become a pandemic, even more so during COVID-19, as quarantining and social distancing have increased screen time use. Children with autism spectrum disorder are even more vulnerable when it comes to technology use. They spend more time with screens, and they usually choose isolated activities such as watching videos. Extensive use of screens has many harmful effects, including aggressive behaviour, poor management of emotions, sleep problems, obesity, and engagement in risky behaviours. The ways to decrease risks for children with autism are still unknown.

 

Currently, there aren’t any clear guidelines on managing screen time for parents and clinicians of children with autism. The existing guidelines do not include clear strategies and are based only on studies of typically developing children. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to create clear and applicable screen time guidelines for parents and clinicians of children with autism. We will collaborate with parents and clinicians to develop strategies and recommendations for using screen time properly and decreasing the risks of screen time misuse among children with autism.

Co-lead: Michael McKenzie  BC Cancer

Team members:  Leah Lambert  BC Cancer, UBC Annette Brown UBC Kelli Stajduhar UVic Stuart Peacock BC Cancer Fuschia Howard UBC Jagbir Kaur BC Cancer Scott Beck UBC Helen McTaggart-Cowan SFU

Early diagnosis and timely treatment are vital to ensure the best outcomes for cancer patients. While major advancements have improved cancer outcomes, alarming differences exist for people who experience social and health inequities. Often, people from marginalized populations present with advanced cancers and have challenges accessing care for diagnosis and treatment due to effects of: structural inequities; impacts of racism, discrimination and stigma; and mismatches between usual approaches to care and individuals’ needs.

Through a series of four virtual meetings, we will bring together healthcare providers, operational leaders, community partners and academic experts to reflect on and discuss the ways in which current cancer care practices, policies and systems are contributing to inequities. Meetings will be aimed at discussing health equity and the state of cancer differences in BC to develop a clear understanding of the problem and to identify challenges and opportunities. Our goal is to establish collaborative partnerships, facilitate knowledge exchange and develop a research proposal to investigate recommendations and solutions for promoting equity in cancer care and improving disparities in cancer outcomes in BC.

Co-lead:  Michelle Carter Providence Health Care

Team members:  Wendy Hall  UBC Angela Russolillo St. Paul's Hospital Brittany Bingham VCH Aboriginal Health Christine Ou UBC Valerie Rychel St. Paul's Hospital Sheila Duffy Pacific Post Partum Society Nichole Fairbrother UBC

Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) are the most common obstetrical complication in Canada, with serious implications for both the mother and infant. Untreated PMADs are associated with increased risks for poor health and social outcomes, including maternal suicide and medical complications as well as impaired infant and child development. There is increasing scientific evidence that collaboration across clinical services is essential to addressing the complex biopsychosocial needs associated with PMADs. Nevertheless, perinatal mental health (PMH) services in Canada remain fragmented, often resulting in missed opportunities to support necessary care and treatment. 

There is an immediate need to improve the access and integration of services for PMADs in BC. In an effort to narrow the evidence to practice gap, we plan to create a collaboration between clinicians, researchers and individuals with lived experience through a scientific consensus process (Delphi approach) and one-day virtual workshop. Our main objective is to develop an evidence-based, user-informed model of care to advance integrated PMH care delivery in BC and beyond.

Co-lead:  David Keselman Louis Brier Home and Hospital

Team members: Karen Neilson BC Ministry of Health Heather Cook  BC Ministry of Health Maura McPhee UBC Alison Phinney UBC  Sabina Staempfli UBC Jennifer Stokes Island Health Ayako Nilssen Island Health Vicki Andersen Louise Brier Home and Hospital Mirsad Dragic Louis Brier Home and Hospital Keren Gersman Louise Brier Home and Hospital Dan Galazka Louise Brier Home and Hospital Michael Kary BC Care Providers Association Pam Baxter  McMaster University

In Canada, 81% of COVID-19 deaths were in long-term care (LTC) settings. To slow the virus spread, the BC government mandated LTC sites to introduce a series of new practices and policies. For example, families and visitors were no longer allowed into LTC sites; and staff were banned from working in more than one location. In June 2020, our research team received an MSFHR grant to examine the intended and unintended consequences of these practices and policies on residents, families and staff in a ‘gold standard’ publicly funded facility with no COVID cases. We have had many interesting findings related to effective pandemic management to date, but it is unclear if these findings are applicable to other BC LTC sites.

The proposed project will bring together nearly 170 researchers and research users across 5 regional health authorities to identify best pandemic management practices and policies and to discuss strategies for their uptake. The network represents 7 key stakeholder groups including policy/advocacy, leadership and resident and family representatives. The project outcomes include recommendations for effective pandemic management in publicly funded BC LTC sites and a research advisory group to support future research.

Co-lead:  Alan Bates BC Cancer

Team members:  Cheri Van Patten  BC Cancer Stuart Peacock  SFU Helen McTaggart-Cowan  SFU Guy Faulkner UBC Alina Gerrie BC Cancer Nathalie LeVasseur BC Cancer Rosemary Cashman BC Cancer Kendra Zadravec UBC G. Haukur Guomundsson UBC Scott Lear SFU Jeremy McAllister Physiotherapy Board of BC

The Nutrition and Exercise During Treatment (NEXT) Program is a long-standing collaboration (since 1999) between BCC and the UBC. In-person programming has been developed, research tested, and then offered to BCC patients. To meet evolving health needs, especially for British Columbians who live in rural and remote locations, coupled with the evolving needs for the current pandemic, we need to further develop tools to effectively shift into virtual models of care. This collaborative project will bring together a working group to plan and prioritize a research agenda to develop accessible and effective virtual (online) supportive care (exercise and nutrition programs) for people living with, and beyond, cancer in British Columbia. This collaboration will include a core working group of researchers (UBC, Simon Fraser and BCC), patient partners and people working in delivery and administration of clinical cancer care in British Columbia (Patient Partners, Allied Health Professionals, Oncologists, Nurse Practitioners, and Administrators).