Waterloo - Three Laurier researchers have been successful in the last round of funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

Susan Cadell of Social Work (with several co-investigators), Dawn Dalby of Kinesiology (with several co-investigators, including Paula Fletcher of Kinesiology) and Terry Mitchell of Psychology (with co-investigator Robb Travers of Psychology) have received funding for a variety of research initiatives.

Mitchell has received funding of $24,741 from the Institute of Cancer Research to host a meeting this fall of the Indigenous Cancer Care Resource Research Network, which she is forming. The meeting will bring together key Aboriginal and Native American researchers and stakeholders to exchange knowledge of culturally appropriate cancer care resources.

The meeting builds on Mitchell’s previous CIHR-funded work which identified silence around cancer as a critical issue in the health of vulnerable populations.

Dalby is receiving just under $50,000 from The Institute of Aging for a one-year project looking at how to get service providers to make better use of existing assessment data for seniors receiving home-care services. This project builds on a previous CIHR-funded grant, held by Dalby, which recognized the need for service providers and home-care professionals to work more closely in using and sharing existing data. Community Care Access Centres collect large quantities of data for home-care clients, covering such areas as pain, mood, activities like dressing and bathing, and support from friends and family. The question is whether in-home service providers such as physiotherapists have access to the data that has been collected, and use those data in their daily practice. It may lead to better outcomes such as fewer falls, greater independence, and an improved quality of life for patients.

Cadell has received $348,000 over three years to continue her research into the experiences of parent caregivers and bereaved parents of children with life-limiting illnesses such as cancer.

A previous study indicated that parent caregivers can experience positive changes while caring for their child, even a child with the most serious conditions. Her new study is to examine changes over time in the personal growth of parent caregivers. It will also test a model of how stress, personal resources, and spirituality influence growth in bereaved parents, and to describe how that model relates to the model of growth in caregiving parents.

The purpose of Cadell’s study is to provide an increased understanding of the positive processes in the caregiving and bereavement experiences of parents with a child with a life-limiting illness. Understanding factors that allow growth in such dire circumstances is an important step in the development of interventions that could relieve some of the stresses these parents face.