Research Location: University of Victoria

Do you know someone affected by a traumatic brain injury (TBI)? In Canada, about 1 in 50 people live with brain injuries, dramatically altering lives and making navigation through the healthcare system challenging. Further, many survivors lack the necessary support from family and peers, which makes the recovery journey difficult. The Wolves’ Den, part of the Brain Changes Initiative, is a peer support and education group dedicated to improving the lives of TBI survivors. It promotes six pillars of brain health: exercise, cognitive training, mindfulness, nutrition, sleep, and reducing harmful exposures. Here, TBI survivors can share stories, meets experts, and learn how to enhance their recovery. This project aims to evaluate and expand the Wolves’ Den program. We aim to conduct a comprehensive assessment to evaluate Wolves’ Den. This includes qualitative and quantitative methods to collect feedback from members, refine the program, and improve offerings. The funding will also support expert sessions, facilitation, the creation of TBI-accessible session recaps, and outreach to attract more participants. Our goal is to ensure the program remains a leading resource for TBI recovery, continually adapting to meet community needs.

In rural and remote communities across North Vancouver Island, there is a growing number of older adults who need supports to stay at home. This region has a disproportionately higher proportion of older adults in the province. With changing demographics due to out-migration of young workers (for urban job opportunities) and in-migration of older adults (due to lower cost of living and desirable retirement area), keeping up with services has been more challenging than in other places.

This project seeks to build community-engaged patient-oriented research partnerships with social-sector agencies, service providers, private businesses, government partners, and people from local communities in rural and remote locations within North Vancouver Island. Together, we will gather uncertainties facing vulnerable older adults in rural and remote communities about staying at home, and jointly plan a co-design workshop to develop a plan to engage researchers, research users, and funders with our findings.

Project outcomes include 1) research agenda on aging at home in rural and remote communities; and 2) network of partners and collaborators for future research and grant applications.

Hip and knee replacements are common procedures in Canada that improve mobility and reduce pain for individuals suffering from severe arthritis. To support pre- and post-surgical care, tailored exercise programs are integral. Unfortunately, access is often limited. This is especially true in rural areas, where cultural and language barriers persist. The Healthy Hips and Knees program offered by YMCA BC caters to those awaiting or recovering from surgery. Despite high demand, the program is currently available only in Prince George. To address this, YMCA BC hopes to expand its reach across British Columbia. The research team will collaborate with YMCA-BC to co-develop a research agenda. We will develop a plan to increase program reach and accessibility, particularly in underserved communities and groups. We will also ensure the program can continue over time. In addition, we have an evaluation plan to check how effective the program is, how well it is being adopted and implemented, and how it is maintained. This project will enhance care delivery for people with hip and knee replacements while identifying funding opportunities to sustain program expansion.

Adolescence (ages 12-18) and young adulthood (ages 19-29) are typically the time when individuals establish autonomy and independence, develop healthy habits (e.g., exercise and nutritional food preferences), form and maintain healthy relationships, and build capacity for economic success. Poor physical health and health habits in these life periods contribute to later risks for disease and associated costs. Yet, we do not have Canadian data that connect health across adolescence and young adulthood to long-term health in early mid-life (ages 35-45). The proposed project builds on an existing and robust community-based sample, the Victoria Health Youth Survey (V-HYS) which began in 2003 (N=662; ages 12-18). Our team will partner with Drs. Fyfe and Kay (Island Health) and Dr. Thumath (Ministry of Health) to develop a plan to collect follow-up data from these now adults including evidence-based measures of physical health, mental health, substance use, healthy relationships, and social determinants of health. Our partnerships will ensure findings provide information about what matters for health long-term for Canadians and inform policy responses that can support midlife health, mental health, education, labour, and social supports.

Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) is a likely precursor to dementia. With no known cure for dementia, and a rapidly aging world population, there is great need for research that targets reducing risk. Our team has developed and pilot-tested an mHealth-app-based psychoeducation intervention targeting cognitive health promotion for older adults; the results of this pilot study reflected a highly feasible intervention, but that many participants wanted an “extra challenge” in learning and applying their new knowledge. The proposed project will work with knowledge users (e.g., people with SCD or lived experience of dementia and related disorders, family members, caregivers, clinicians, and advocates) to develop a plan for enhancing engagement through gamification. We will achieve this goal by consulting with knowledge users through a working group of persons with lived experience (PWLE), researchers, developers, and a clinician. This working group will identify the priorities of knowledge users for the enhancement of the intervention and how to move forward. This project will also disseminate knowledge gained from the working group consultations to research users via a public forum, an academic paper, and a series of infographics.