Biennial Global Ageing Conference

Speakers A-C

Mary Lou Ackerman

Mary Lou Ackerman

Vice President Innovation, SE Health

Oral Session 17 –  HOME- & COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES
Dementia, A Complex Problem Requiring Comprehensive Solutions
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Presentation 1: 3:15 pm – 3:35 pm
Mary Lou Ackerman is Vice President of Innovation with Saint Elizabeth. Her background is extensive, as a nurse, Mary Lou has augmented her clinical background with a graduate business degree and significant experience with health informatics. Mary Lou has a passion for community health care, using innovative solutions to shape the future of aging well and support both formal and informal caregivers.
Kyla Alsbury

Kyla Alsbury

PhD Student

Oral Session 5 – Models of Care and Programs for Vulnerable Populations
Innovative Models for Long-Term Care – Helping Owners and Operators Decide
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Presentation 1: 11:00 am – 11:20 am
Kyla Alsbury is a physiotherapist whose clinical experience is primarily with older adults. Kyla acquired a BASc from McGill University and went on to complete her MScPT at Queen’s University. While practicing clinically was rewarding, Kyla wanted to make a greater impact by contributing to research. Kyla is currently a PhD student at the University of Toronto supervised by Dr. Nancy Salbach. Her research interests include services for older adults and community-based rehabilitation programs.
Dr. Majd Alwan

Dr. Majd Alwan

Senior Vice President of Technology and Executive Director of the LeadingAge Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST)

2019 Global Ageing Network Workforce Summit
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
8:00 am – 5:30 pm
Majd Alwan, Ph.D., a noted researcher and authority on aging-services technologies, is LeadingAge’s senior vice president of technology, and executive director of the LeadingAge Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST).
Dr. Alwan is responsible for creating and leading a network of technology companies, providers and research institutions focused on technology solutions for an aging society.

The network advances the interests of older consumers, caregivers and providers and fosters opportunities for collaboration between provider organizations, technology companies, and research institutions in exploring product development, testing prototypes, evaluating technology and deploying technology-enabled care models.

Prior to joining CAST, Majd served as an Assistant Professor and the Director of the Robotics and Eldercare Technologies Program at the University of Virginia’s Medical Automation Research Center. His research interests there included passive functional and health assessment, biomedical instrumentation, medical automation, as well as eldercare and assistive technologies.

As a volunteer, Dr. Alwan chaired the Funding Aging Services Technologies committee and the Pilots committee for CAST. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE’s Engineering in Medicine and Biology, and Robotics and Automation Societies, and a member of IEEE-USA’s Medical Technology Policy Committee and the Geriatric Care Workgroup. Alwan also serves on the Alzheimer’s Association’s Work Group on Technology.

Dr. Alwan received his Ph.D. in intelligent robotics from Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, University of London, a Master’s of Science degree in control engineering with distinction from Bradford University, and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Damascus University.

Ana Paula Anjos

Ana Paula Anjos

Manager of Quality, Kensington Health

POSTER PRESENTATION
Poster #6 – Building a Culture of Quality – Quality Day at Kensington Health
Thursday, September 19, 2019
12:45 pm – 1:00 pm
Ana Paula Anjos is the Manager of Quality at Kensington Health. She is a Masters prepared ER and trauma nurse with research and teaching experience. She is passionate about building capabilities to facilitate data driven decision making to improve clinical quality, patient safety, and daily workflows; as well as, developing practical near term solutions to the healthcare challenges of adopting and meeting quality improvement strategies and recommendations.
Barbara (Barb) Antone

Barbara (Barb) Antone

Activities Manager, Tsi’ Nu Yoyantle Na’ Tuhuwatisni / Oneida Long Term Care Home

Oral Session 16 – SERVING DIVERSE POPULATIONS
Supporting the Health and Well-Being of Indigenous Residents in Long-Term Care

Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Presentation 3: 3:55 pm – 4:15 pm

Barb started working as a Health Care Aide in long term care in 1987 and then transitioned into a recreation role in long-term care after receiving her diploma in Recreation & Leisure in 1995 and later to an Activities Manager in 2009.  Barb is a member of the Ontario Caring Advisory Circle where she contributes to the development and identification resources to support Indigenous residents in long-term care.
Stephanie Arcadia

Stephanie Arcadia

Research Project Manager, Integrace Institute

Oral Session 6 – GLOBAL INSIGHTS
Effects of Personally Meaningful Music on Mood and Behavior in Individuals with Dementia
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Presentation 2: 11:20 am – 11:40 am
Stephanie found her passion for research during her senior year at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology in 2017. Today, she is making a difference in the lives of people living with neurocognitive impairments. As the Research Project Manager at the Integrace Institute, Stephanie is part of the team that implements person-centered research in the community to identify new approaches to meaningful living for those on this journey. Through these community-based research studies, she works closely with partner organizations to collect the research findings and turn them into data that will soon become the foundation for new forward-thinking strategies that will transform lives. Stephanie and Integrace Institute found each other in 2017, when Stephanie’s family relocated to Maryland. Most recently, Stephanie presented the Institute’s “Meaningful Music Study” at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Los Angeles, CA.
Dr. Chantal Backman

Dr. Chantal Backman

Associate Professor, School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, at the University of Ottawa; Affiliate Investigator, Clinical Epidemiology Program of The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute; Affiliate Investigator in the Care of the Elderly program at the Bruyère Research Institute

Workshop 13 – Best Practices Using the Five Senses
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm

Dr. Backman is an Associate Professor in the School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, at the University of Ottawa, an Affiliate Investigator in the Clinical Epidemiology Program of The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, and an Affiliate Investigator in the Care of the Elderly program at the Bruyère Research Institute.

Her research program is focused on improving the quality, safety, and experience of older adults as they navigate through the healthcare system. Her research program covers topics related to frail older adults in acute care, geriatric rehabilitation and long-term care settings. The specific areas of foci include: 1) quality and safety interventions for older adults; 2) safe person- and family-centered care transitions between settings; and 3) sense-sensitive practices for residents living in long-term care communities.

Mel Barsky

Mel Barsky

Director, Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI)

Workshop 10 – Global Innovative Solutions for Canadian Long Term CareDementia, A Complex Problem Requiring Comprehensive Solutions
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Mel Barsky is a Director at the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI).  CABHI, led by Baycrest Health Sciences, helps innovators develop, disseminate, scale, and promote adoption of promising innovations in the aging and brain health sector. CABHI was formed as a unique private / public collaboration that raised over $124M and has levered an additional $70M+ for investing in validation testing in the brain health and longevity sector. Mel is leading the continued Canadian and international growth of CABHI.

Prior to CABHI, Mel was Co-Founder, President & COO of INTERVENT Canada.  INTERVENT has served over 2.5 million patients globally; over 200 corporations; and has been published in more than 100 peer reviewed major medical journals demonstrating the efficacy of its programs and improvement in health outcomes.

Previously, Mel was a Founding Partner and Executive Director of Scotiabank Private Equity Investments, where, he invested private and public ventures, primarily in financial services and information technology sectors.

Mel was also Director of Business Development & Sales Strategy for corporate card and travel products at American Express.

In his spare time, Mel enjoys playing basketball, guitar and travelling with his wife, 5 kids and Australian Labradoodle.

Kelly Batson

Kelly Batson

Manager, Resident Care, Education & Operations, Trillium Villa Nursing Home, Steeves & Rozema Group

Oral Session 14  – THE EVOLUTION OF CANNABIS USE IN SENIORS CARE
Cannabis Use as an Alternative for Opioids, Antipsychotics and Antidepressants in Long Term Care
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Presentation 2: 3:35 pm – 3:55 pm
Kelly Batson, RN, BSN, earned her BScN Honours degree from the University of Windsor. She has 11 years of nursing experience and 5 years of experience as a clinical nurse educator. For the past five years, she’s overseen nursing operations in varying roles within the long term care sector and currently holds the role of Manager Resident Care, Education and Operations at Trillium Villa Nursing Home in Sarnia, Ontario.
Chris Beekman

Chris Beekman

Director, Corporate Development, PointClickCare

2019 Global Ageing Network Workforce Summit
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
8:00 am – 5:30 pm
Chris Beekman’s biography coming soon.

Juan Manuel Rodriguez Bernabeu

MD, Residencia Los Robles Gerhoteles Madrid

Workshop 13 – Best Practices Using the Five Senses
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Juan Manuel Rodriguez Bernabeu’s biography coming soon.

Susan Blackbourn

Director Quality and Safety Residential Aged Care, Mercy Health, Australia

POSTER PRESENTATION
Poster #1 – Mercy Health’s Residential Aged Care Quality System Framework
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
12:30 pm – 12:45 pm
Susan is an experienced Quality Manager with her main focus being on aged care. Her primary objective is the development and implementation of innovative quality systems that have the resident as the focus of the monitoring and measuring. Susan is passionate about creating systems whereby residential aged care recipients receive the best care in the best settings, and ensuring that care and management systems exceed industry standards and legislative requirements.
Dr. Veronique Boscart

Dr. Veronique Boscart

Executive dean, School of Health & Life Sciences, CIHR/Schlegel Industrial Research Chair for Colleges in Seniors Care; Director, Schlegel Centre for Advancing Seniors Care at Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning

2019 Global Ageing Network Workforce Summit
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
8:00 am – 5:30 pm
Dr. Veronique Boscart has extensive nursing experience including working as a clinician, educator, manager and researcher in an international setting. Her research interests range from the substantive area of evidence-based care in gerontology, best practices in research methods with older adults to the development of gerontological education for health care professionals and care delivery models in residential care. She has published over sixty peer reviewed manuscripts and is the lead author on the first Canadian edition of Gerontological Nursing and Healthy Aging (2011, revised 2018). Boscart is the executive dean, School of Health & Life Sciences, CIHR/Schlegel Industrial Research Chair for Colleges in Seniors Care and director of the Schlegel Centre for Advancing Seniors Care at Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. She is Principal Investigator on several grants, and has received funding from Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada; Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care; Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development; Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario; and Canadian Frailty Network. Boscart is also on the Board of Directors at Canadian Gerontological Nursing Association, the RIA, and the National Initiative for the Care of the Elderly, and is a Section Editor for the Canadian Journal on Aging. She is a past board member at Canadian Association of Gerontology and the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario. Boscart is also an Associate Professor at the University of Waterloo, McMaster University, and an Adjunct Scientist at Toronto Rehabilitation Institute.
Ryanna Bowling

Ryanna Bowling

Program Lead, Health Workforce Information Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI)

ORAL SESSION 7 –  OPTIMIZING THE HEALTH WORKFORCE
Taking a closer look at pan-Canadian health workforce trends in long-term care
Wednesday September 18, 1019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Presentation 3: 2:40 pm – 3:00 pm

Ryanna Bowling, Program Lead at the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), has over a decade of experience working with health workforce data. Leveraging her passion for stakeholder engagement and outreach, she’s recently presented key findings on health workforce trends in long-term care and international graduates.

Diane Boyer

Project Lead OPUS-AP, CIUSSS Estrie-CHUS

Oral Session 21 – ORGANIZATIONAL AND SYSTEM QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS
Accelerating the Spread and Scale of Innovations in Health in Diverse Contexts: Appropriate Use of Antipsyschotics in Long-Term Care
Thursday, September 19, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Presentation 1: 2:00 pm – 2:20 pm
Diane Boyer holds a master’s in public administration and has extensive experience in leadership positions within the healthcare system in Quebec. She also has extensive experience leading large scale implementation projects within the healthcare system in Quebec.
Matthew Braun

Matthew Braun

Regional Manager of Education & Resident Services, Revera Long Term Care

Workshop 8 – The Person Centredness Journey: Our Story of Success
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Matthew Braun is an Occupational Therapist who has had a long standing passion for cultural transformation away from an institutional model toward a person centred model of care. He is a dynamic presenter for many years and is proud to engage audiences with practical knowledge and empowerment. During the last 5 years he has been championing the cause of person centredness as it relates to organizational practices.
Dr. Judy Brown

Dr. Judy Brown

Faculty Leader, Leading Age’s Leadership Academy

Global Aging Leadership Retreat
Monday, September 16, 2019
8:30 am – 4:30 pm
and
Tuesday, September 17,2019
8:30 am – 4:30 pm
Judy Brown is an educator, speaker, facilitator, poet and writer, whose work in organizations revolves around themes of renewal, change, learning, creativity and, dialogue. For the past 15 years she has been the faculty leader for Leading Age’s Leadership Academy.
Her books include A Leader’s Guide to Reflective Practice, four collections of her poetry, The Sea Accepts All Rivers, Simple Gifts, Steppingstones, No One Swims alone. Her most recent leadership book is The Art and Spirit of Leadership.

Dr. Brown has taught leadership at the University of Maryland, served as a White House Fellow, and has worked in a range of sectors including manufacturing, arts, aging services, and the intelligence community. She has a passion for practices that simultaneously connect us with the world of ideas and the world of practice.

A native of a small fishing village in northern Michigan, her heritage is that of agriculture and cooperative extension, which has given her a commitment to the practical use of ideas, frameworks, rich language and reflection as a way to transform our lives and our work. She lives in the USA, on a tidal creek off the Chesapeake Bay. She can be reached at: www.judysorumbrown.com or judybrown@aol.com

Susan Brown

Susan Brown

Director of Research Coordination and Research-Practice Integration, Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging

Workshop 12 – Developing a Practical Framework for Measuring Culture Change in Ontario Long-term Care Homes – A Pilot Project
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
As Director of Research Coordination and Research-Practice Integration, Susan works with researchers, older adults, and care partners to look for answers to questions that are meaningful for individuals, relevant to the senior living sector, and have high potential to impact practice and/or policy. Susan explores opportunities to enhance quality of life and quality of care for older adults by searching for the innovation that lies at the intersection of research, education, practice, and lived experience.
Andrea Burns

Andrea Burns

Director of the Age-Friendly Boston initiative, City of Boston

Oral Session 17: HOME- & COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES
Age Friendly, Accessible Cities and Towns: Improving Our Lives While Increasing Senior Living Development Opportunities
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Presentation 2: 3:35 pm – 3:55 pm
Andrea has directed the Age-Friendly Boston initiative for the City of Boston since November of 2014.

Prior to her work at the City of Boston, Andrea worked as an independent journalist and photographer.

Elected as an at-large city councilor in Easthampton, MA in 2009, Andrea worked to enhance quality of life for residents, supporting affordable housing, business development for the agricultural sector, and city planning that embraced the “complete streets” principles.

Karen Campbell

Karen Campbell

Principal Investigator, Western University

Workshop 1 – The Albert Project™: Can Virtual Reality Simulation Reduce Depression and Agitation in Long Term Care Residents with Moderate to Severe Dementia?
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Karen is an RN PhD is the adjunct faculty for the Master’s of Clinical Science in Wound Healing at Western University in Canada. As well she is the President of ISTAP. She has functioned as an advanced practice nurse in Geriatrics and Wound Care. Karen was the co-chair of the RNAO BPG on Pressure Injuries. She has been a panel member on the International Skin Tear Advisory Panel and IAD International Best Practice Principles.
Joe Carella

Joe Carella

Executive Director, Scandinavian Living Center

Oral Session 18 – COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Creating Unlimited Options For Aging: The Impact of Community-Centered Living
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Presentation 1: 3:15 pm – 3:35 pm
Joe Carella is the Executive Director of the Scandinavian Living Center. The design and development of the Scandinavian Living Center was based on the research and principles from his first book, “Unlimited Options for Aging”. His second book, “Creating Unlimited Options for Aging, The Path Forward” was recently released and introduces the critical concept of community centered living.

Joe has an MBA from Babson College and an undergraduate degree from Northeastern University.

Elena Ceban

Elena Ceban

Supported Living Manager, Lasell Village

Oral Session 19 – THE EMERGING WORKFORCE
Living and Learning with Dementia
Thursday, September 19, 2019
2:00 – 3:00 pm
Presentation 3: 2:40 pm – 3:00 pm
I am Elena Ceban. I have been working as Supported Living Unit Manager at Lasell Village, a Life Plan Community in Auburndale, MA, for almost 2 years. I have a bachelor’s degree in English language philology and a Master’s degree in Educational Management currently pursuing my MBA as well.
Paula Chidwick

Paula Chidwick

Director Research & Corporate Ethics, William Osler Health System

Oral Session 10 – DEMENTIA AND SEXUALITY
Sexual Activity & Ethics in Long-Term Care: When Is it Your Business?
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
2:00 – 3:00 pm
Presentation 2: 2:20 pm – 2:40 pm
Dr. Paula Chidwick is the Director Research & Corporate Ethics at William Osler Health System and the founding member of the Osler’s Ethics Quality Improvement Lab. She has a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Guelph and a Fellowship in Clinical Ethics from the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics. She is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Queen’s University School of Nursing and holds a certificate from the Rotman School of Management on Integrative Thinking. Paula is a Health Quality Ontario IDEAS Advanced Learning Program Graduate and faculty at Osgoode’s Certificate in Clinical Risk, Negligence, & Claims Management. In 2015, Paula was awarded the Health Quality Ontario IDEAS Alumni Award for her work on ethics quality improvement on transfers in long term care. She has served on the CBS Executive, Health Canada’s Scientific and Expert Advisory Panels, MOHLTC Critical Care Coaching Teams and Critical Care Services Ontario.
Im Ja Choi

Im Ja Choi

Founder & CEO, Penn Asian Senior Services (PASSi)

2019 Global Ageing Network Workforce Summit
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
8:00 am – 5:30 pm

Workshop 20 – Innovative Solutions to Serving a Culturally Diverse Aging Population: Penn Asian Senior Services’ Excellence in Ageing Services Model
Thursday, September 19, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Ms. Choi is a Korean American innovator who founded PASSi, Global Ageing Network’s 2017 Excellence in Ageing Services awardee. After 14 years of her compelling leadership and personal experience overcoming challenges in caring for her English-limited mother, PASSi became the largest home care and adult day care provider in Pennsylvania for Asian Americans. Her entrepreneurial impulse paired with genuine compassion for Asian seniors are the driving forces behind PASSi’s success and quality-driven services.
Shurjeel Choudhri

Shurjeel Choudhri

Senior Vice President and Head, Medical and Scientific Affairs, Bayer Inc.

Oral Session 22 – CONSUMER TECHNOLOGY
Bayer Presentation
Thursday, September 19
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Presentation 3: 2:40 pm – 3:00 pm
Dr. Choudhri is the Head of Medical and Scientific Affairs (M&SA) for Bayer Inc. He joined Bayer Corporation in 1999 and has had significant experience with the Bayer US and Global medical organizations. Before assuming his current role as Head of M&SA in Canada, Dr. Choudhri was a Global Clinical Leader, Anti-Infectives with Bayer Global Clinical Development.

Prior to joining Bayer, Dr. Choudhri was an assistant professor in the Departments of Medical Microbiology and Internal Medicine at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. He was also the director of the AIDS program at the St. Boniface General Hospital in Winnipeg; and the Manitoba satellite director for the Canadian HIV Clinical Trials Network.

Dr. Choudhri obtained his MD and did his specialty training in internal medicine and sub-specialty training in infectious diseases at the University of Manitoba. Following completion of his training, he completed a senior research fellowship in Nairobi, Kenya. In 1996, he was awarded the Young Investigator Award by the Canadian Association of HIV Researchers. Dr. Choudhri has authored or co-authored over 100 scientific abstracts and has contributed to over 40 peer-reviewed publications. He played an active role in the creation of the Canadian Clinical Trials Asset Map. Dr. Choudhri is currently the chair of the Canadian Clinical Trials Coordinating Centre executive committee, a member of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health (ICRH) institutional advisory board, and a member of the Cardiac Arrhythmia Network of Canada (CANet) board. He is a passionate advocate for mobile and digital Health and is also member of the Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance (CATA) Mobile Health Advisory Board.

Rhonda Collins

Rhonda Collins

Chief Medical Officer, Revera Inc.

Oral Session 15 – LEADERSHIP PERSPECTIVES
Chief Medical Officer: A 
Novel Model of Service Toward Clinical Excellence
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
Presentation 2: 3:35 pm – 3:55 pm
Chief Medical Officer for a leading owner and operator of Long Term Care and Retirement Residences in Canada.

Family physician with a Certificate of Added competence in Care of the Elderly.

Clinical Consultant for Senior’s Mental Health Outreach.

Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University.

Member of the Ontario Retirement Communities Association Dementia Task Force.

Member of the Health Quality Ontario Quality Improvement Committee.

 David Conn

David Conn

VP Education, Baycrest Health Sciences

POSTER PRESENTATION
POSTER #1 – Project ECHO Care of the Elderly-Long-Term Care
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
12:30 pm – 12:45 pm
Dr. David Conn is VP Education and Director of the Centre for Education & Knowledge Exchange at Baycrest and Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto. He is founding Co-Chair of the Canadian Coalition for Seniors’ Mental Health and Past President of the Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry. His academic interests include nursing home psychiatry, telepsychiatry, guideline development and knowledge translation.
Stephen Cornelissen

Stephen Cornelissen

Group Chief Executive Officer, Mercy Health

2019 Global Ageing Network Workforce Summit
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
8:00 am – 5:30 pm

Panel – That’s Debatable – Challenges for Aged Care Providers of the Future
Thursday, September 19, 2019
10:30 am – 12:00 pm

Stephen has extensive experience in the health and aged care industry in Australia and New Zealand. Since Stephen assumed the role of Group Chief Executive Officer at Mercy Health on 1 July 2011, the organisation has grown significantly. Mercy Health has expanded its aged care operations into Western Australia and Queensland, and acquired 14 more homes in Victoria. It has grown its expertise and international reputation in perinatal medicine, established Victoria’s first breastmilk bank and helped secure more than $130 million in government funding for the expansion and redevelopment of Werribee Mercy Hospital and the Mercy Mental Health service to help care for a growing population in Melbourne’s south west. Stephen was named CEO of the Year and Health & Pharmaceuticals Executive of the Year at The CEO Magazine’s 2016 Executive of the Year Awards. Stephen champions equity and inclusion in his role as a Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) Pay Equity Ambassador and plays an active role in supporting the retention of Mercy Health’s WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality citation each year. Stephen has undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications from the University of Oxford, University of New South Wales, Deakin University and Australian Catholic University where he has also been awarded the honorary title of Adjunct Professor for his work in health and aged care. He has also undertaken further development at Harvard Business School.
Dr. Andrew Costa

Dr. Andrew Costa

Assistant Professor and Schlegel Chair in Clinical Epidemiology, McMaster University

Workshop 12 – Developing a Practical Framework for Measuring Culture Change in Ontario Long-term Care Homes – A Pilot Project
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
3:15 pm – 4:15 pm

Innovator’s Den
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
3:30 pm – 5:00 pm

 

Andrew P. Costa, PhD

Dr. Costa is an Assistant Professor and Schlegel Research Chair in Clinical Epidemiology & Aging in the Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics and Department of Medicine at McMaster University. He also serves as the Research Director at the DeGroote School of Medicine, Waterloo Regional Campus. He is an interRAI Fellow, Associate Scientific Director of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging, and Adjunct Scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES). His program of research makes use of health information (‘big data’) to target, develop, and evaluate models of care in home and community care, emergency departments, and long-term care. 

Main Affiliations: 

  • Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact
    (formerly “Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics”), McMaster University;
  • Department of Medicine, McMaster University

Main Titles/Positions: 

  • Assistant Professor & Schlegel Chair in Clinical Epidemiology and Aging (2014-)
  • Research Director, Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, Waterloo Regional Campus (2017-)

Research & Educational Interests:  Geriatrics/care of older adults; health care design, delivery, & analysis (models of care); health measurement; prognostic modeling, diagnostic algorithms and decision support; chronic disease management; large cohort studies; pragmatic trial methods

Current Projects (as PI, co-PI):

  • DIVERT-CARE TRIAL (Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03012256), largest Canadian pragmatic cluster randomized trial in home care. Funded by: CIHR.
  • The Physician Quality Score in Long-term Care. Developing and validating process-based quality measures for medical practice in nursing homes across North America. Collaborating with Baycrest, Rand Health (USA), UCLA, and Florida State University. Funder: CCABHI.
  • Health Data Library, a data portal for census-level personal health information and high-end analytics (machine learning, etc.). Includes extensive personal health information from the HNHB LHIN and Schlegel Villages. Funded by: CIHR, HNHB LHIN, and Schlegel Villages.
  • ICES McMaster, various projects using census-level Ontario data, including:
    • Creating the first Census-level Retirement Home Cohort in Ontario
    • Influence of Nursing Home Resident Characteristics, Staffing, Medications, and Physician Models of Care on Hospital Transfers in Ontario
    • Influence of primary care model on urgent and emergent health service use among home care client
    • Funded by: ON MOHLTC (HSRF), CIHR.
  • Common Assessments for Repeated Paramedic Service Encounters (CARPE), large prospective cohort study of community paramedicine patients in Ontario. Funded by: MITACS.
  • Community Paramedicine Secretariat of Ontario. Collaboration with Mount Sinai Hospital to house the Secretariat and its functions. Funded by: All Ontario LHINs.
  • ACT ON Chronic Disease, development and deployment of a multi-platform informal caregiver education program in home care. Funded by: ON MOHLTC.
  • McMaster Passport for Ageing / Geriatric Education “MacPAGE” (https://macpage.mcmaster.ca, a scalable education program to introduce medical students to the care of older adults though experiential learning and skills development.
  • McMaster Evidence-based Medicine Case Report Journal (https://ebmcr.mcmaster.ca/), features real clinical cases to show how evidence-based medicine should be practiced.

Key Recent Publications:

  • Schumacher C, Lackey C, Haughton D, Peirce T, Boscart VM, Davey M, Harkness K, Heckman GA, Junek M, McKelvie R, Mitchell L, Sinha SK, Costa AP. A Chronic Disease Management Intervention for Home Care Patients with Cardio-Respiratory Symptoms: The DIVERT-CARE Intervention. Canadian Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing (CJCN), 2018, 28(3): 18-26.
  • Jones, A.^; Schumacher C.; Bronskill S.; Campitelli M.; Poss J.; Seow H.; Costa A.P. The association between home care services and same-day emergency department utilization: a case-crossover study. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 2018 Apr 30; 190(17): E525–E531
  • Costa, A.P. Charting age-associated cognitive decline. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 2017, 189(48):E1470-1471.
  • Brousseau, A.^; Dent, E.; Hubbard, R.; Melady, D.; Emond, M.; Mercier, E.; Costa, A.P. Identification of older adults with frailty in the Emergency Department using a Frailty Index: Results from a Multinational Study. Age and Ageing, 2017, Nov 20:1-7.

Team (grant funding): 1 FTE Post-doc, 4 FTE research staff, 5 PhD Students, 4 MSc Students, 3 part-time research support staff  

Recent Awards & Honours:

  • 2018 Mentorship & Supervision Excellence Award (Full Time/Joint Faculty), Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, & Impact; McMaster University
  • 2018 Regional Assistant Dean’s Award of Excellence in Medical Education, McMaster M.G. DeGroote Waterloo Regional Campus

Website (research): https://bdg.mcmaster.ca/
Website (education): https://wrcresearch.mcmaster.ca/
Twitter: @andrew_p_costa
Google Scholar Link:  https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=61vetQ4AAAAJ&hl=en

Steven Crawford

Steven Crawford

Chief Executive Officer, McCormick Care Group

Oral Session 9 – LTC DESIGN
Engaging College Student to Improve Design for Human Centric Experience
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Presentation 2: 2:20 pm – 2:40 pm
Steven joined the McCormick Care Group as CEO in the spring of 2000.  Prior to this position, Steven was Vice President, Finance for Cuddy Food Products.  He served in various capacities, including as Director of Tax and Treasury, Cuddy International and as General Manager, Cuddy Food Products.  Prior to joining Cuddy, Steven worked as a Senior Manager, Tax at KPMG in Waterloo, and after articling with KPMG in Ottawa, he received his CA designation in 1985. Steven completed his MBA in 1998 from Wilfrid Laurier University and his Bachelor of Business Administration at Wilfrid Laurier University in 1984.

Steven is currently a member of the South West Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) Long-Term Care Homes Network Council and a member of the OLTCA’s Financial Liaison Committee.

Tammy Cumming

Tammy Cumming

Manager, UW-Schlegel Research Institute for Aging

Oral Session 19 – THE EMERGING WORKFORCE
Engaging Tomorrow’s Long-Term Care Workforce Today
Thursday, September 19, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Presentation 2: 2:20 pm – 2:40 pm
Tammy manages the Ontario Centre for Learning, Research and Innovation in Long-Term Care at the UW-Schlegel Research Institute for Aging where she leads a dynamic team that supports the development and identification of resources for long-term care homes. Tammy’s career includes 15-years with the University of Waterloo executing large national and provincial programs that inform policy change. Tammy has expertise in research and program methodology, team leadership and stakeholder engagement.

Tanya Mac Donald

Senior Improvement Lead, Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement

Oral Session 21 – ORGANIZATIONAL AND SYSTEM QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS
Accelerating the Spread and Scale of Innovations in Health in Diverse Contexts: Appropriate use of Antipsyschotics in Long-Term Care
Thursday, September 19, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Presentation 1: 2:00 pm – 2:20 pm
Tanya Mac Donald is a physiotherapist by training with a Master’s in Epidemiology and Community Medicine. She has extensive clinical experience in large teaching facilities and has been working in quality improvement in healthcare for the past 7 years.
Mohammad Mahoor

Mohammad Mahoor

Associate Professor, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Denver

Workshop 18 – Social Connectivity: Enhancing Wellness Through Technology
Thursday, September 19, 2019
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Dr. Mohammad Mahoor graduated with a Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Miami, with undergraduate and master’s degrees from Iran. Dr. Mahoor is co-founder and president of DreamFace Tech, LLC, an organization that is committed to fully develop the “Ryan CompanionBot”, helping people with dementia. Dr. Mahoor has had his work published in numerous scholarly publications and has been interviewed by multimedia organizations such as Forbes online.