Spatializing Care Lab | St. Francis Xavier University

What's Happening at the Lab

Events

Participation in the Symposium, Demand and Supply of Long Term Care Services: New Perspectives from Economics, Sociology and Political Sciences on April 18-19, 2024.

This event was organized by Marie-Louise Leroux (UQAM, CIRANO) and Patrik Marier (Concordia University), in collaboration with CREEI, CREGÉS, FRQSC, the RSI, ESG UQAM, Concordia University and CIRANO. Some of the questions that were addressed:

What solutions should public authorities put in place to provide adequate support and care for seniors and their caregivers?
Will seniors have the financial resources to meet increased needs, such as adapting their housing, using nursing services and help with daily living tasks?
What are the preferences of seniors regarding the mode of care in the event of loss of autonomy?
What are the financial and psychological consequences for the relatives (caregivers) of seniors losing their autonomy?

Text in white font reads "Promsing Directions in Community Programming for Aging Nova Scotians" against a navy blue background with a picture of white teacup in a yellow square in the lower right corner.

Lunch & Learn: Promising Directions in Community Programming for Aging Nova Scotians

On Thursday, April 11, 2024, over 30 people gathered at St. Francis Xavier University representing diverse organizations, geographies and interests across in Northeastern Nova Scotia involved in health, social and cultural community programming, research and advocacy for people 55+. The event featured special presentations by Dr. Ann Bigelow, President of Keep Well Antigonish, Lydia Kerr, Project Manager for Communities and Healthy Aging at the Centre for Excellence in Healthy Aging, Cape Breton University and Michelle MacPhee, Project Coordiantor, Centre on Rural Aging and Health (CORAH) at Nova Scotia Community College Strait Campus.

News

Nova Scotia Government Responds to the Accessibility Act Review

Government accepts 47 of the 48 recommendations from the independent review, in six key areas: 1) accelerating standards development; 2) expanding First Voice involvement and using an intersectional approach; 3) improving public communications about accessibility work; 4) building prescribed public sector capacity to implement accessibility plans and comply with standards; 5) monitoring accessibility improvements in healthcare, justice and housing; 6) strengthening monitoring, accountability and progress reporting.

Nova Scotia's Inaugural Accessibility Act Review Report Released

Nova Scotia's Accessibility Act was proclaimed in 2017 with a goal of achieving an accessible Nova Scotia by 2030. The Act guides development of accessibility standards for the built environment, education, employment, the delivery and receipt of goods and services, information and communication, public transportation and transportation infrastructure, and other prescribed activities. Dr. Katie Aubrecht was appointed by the Department of Justice (Nova Scotia Government) to lead the inaugural review of the Act. The review team included Kelly O’Neil, (lead associate), Dr. Tammy Bernasky, Dr. Emily Reid-Musson, Julianne Acker-Verney, Lisa Snider, Shirley Hodder, Mary Jane Kelly, Shala Knocton, Miriam Schroeder, and Jami Horne. Canadian Centre on Disability Studies Incorporated, operating as Eviance (www.eviance.ca), provided editorial and research work for this report with significant contributions by Dr. Cameron Crawford, Eviance Senior Data and Policy Officer, and Dr. Susan L. Hardie, Eviance Executive Director. The review adopted an inclusive design approach and engaged accessibility subject matter experts. Steven Estey, Sherry Costa-Lorenz, Anne Camozzi, Rosie Sylliboy, Conrad Saulis, Melanie Gaunt, Vicky Levack, and Sylvia Parris-Drummond offered valued insight and guidance at various points in the review.

RECENT Research Publications and Presentations

Peer-Reviewed Academic Journal Publications

Hande, M.J., Owusu, P., Aubrecht, K., Cloutier, D., Estabrooks, C., & Keefe, J. (2024). Towards equitable representation in long-term residential care: Widening the circle to ensure 'essential voices' in research teams. Research Involvement and Engagement, 10(34), 1-10. http://doi.org/10.1186/s40900-024-00562-6
Hoben, M., Dymchuk, E., Doupe, M., Keefe, J., Aubrecht, K., Kelly, C., Stajduhar, K., Banerjee, S., O'Rourke, H., Chamberlain, S., Beeber, A., Salma, J., Jarrett, P., Arya, A., Corbett, K., Devkota, R., Ristau, M., Shrestha, S., & Estabrooks, C. (2024). Counting what counts: Assessing quality of life and its social determinants among nursing home residents with dementia. BMC Geriatrics, 24(77), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-04710-1
Giosa, J., Kalles, E., McAiney, Oelke, N., Aubrecht, K., McNeil, H., Perez, O.H., & Holyoke, P. (2024). Co-designing action oriented mental health conversations between care providers and aging Canadians in the community. BMJ Open, 14(1), 1-10. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-079653
Reid-Musson, E., Aubrecht, K., Kelly, C., Embrett, M., Hallstrom, L., Hamilton-Hinch, B., Johnson, S., Knocton, S., Lawrence, L., MacDonald, M., Mah, J., Marier, P., Moody, E., & Sim, M. (2023). Participatory evaluation of a direct payment program for equity in dementia care in Nova Scotia, Canada. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 22. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069231197962

Project Reports

Aubrecht, K., Burke, R., Keefe, J., Kelly, C., Gahagan, J., Hade, M.J., Hardie, S., Flynn, T., Dowling, L., DePodesta, M., Nadeau, S., Kocki, J., & Knocton, S. (June, 2023). Evidence to assess the impact of COVID-19 on community-based dementia care in Nova Scotia. Spatializing Care: Intersectional Disability Studies Lab (pp. 1-39). Antigonish, NS: St. Francis Xavier University.
Burke, R., Kelly, M.J., & Aubrecht, K. (May, 2023). Accessible, functional sheltering for persons with disabilities. MacEachen Institute for Public Policy and Governance (pp. 1-8). Halifax, NS: Dalhousie University.

Presentations

Aubrecht, K. (2024). Outline for a political economy of long-term care: Bourdieusian reflections on the Quadruple Aim and Health Equity for All. Oral presentation at Demand and Supply of Long-term Care Services, UQAM, Concordia and CIRANO. Montreal, QC. April 18.
Godin, J., Brown, J., Mah, J., Aubrecht, K., Roulin, N., & Andrew, M. (2023). Can people living with early-stage dementia get appropriate accommodations at work? A survey of human resource professionals in Nova Scotia. Poster presentation at the Canadian Conference on Dementia. Toronto, ON. November 2.
Giosa, J., Kalles, E., Holyoke, P., McAiney, C., Oelke, N., Aubrecht, K., Habib Perez, O., McNeil, H., Beresford, T., & Peak, A. (2023). Community-engaged research on aging and mental health: Adapting a visual model to guide mental health conversations among older adults, caregivers and care providers in home and community care. Oral presentation at the Canadian Association on Gerontology annual conference. Hilton Toronto, Toronto, ON. October 27.
Aubrecht, K., Kelly, C., & Rice, C. (2023). Centering the aging/disability nexus. Oral presentation at the Canadian Association on Gerontology annual conference. Hilton Toronto, Toronto, ON. October 28.
Godin, J., Atiyah, N., Brown, J., Mah, J., Roulin, N., Aubrecht, K., & Andrew, M. (2023). Working with dementia: How people living with dementia are perceived by human resource professionals in Nova Scotia, Canada. Oral presentation at the Canadian Association on Gerontology annual conference. Hilton Toronto, Toronto, ON. October 27.
Knocton, S., Aubrecht, K., & Reid-Musson, E. (2023). Understanding the applicability of the Quintuple Aim in health services and policy research on dementia. Poster presentation at the Canadian Association on Gerontology annual conference. Hilton Toronto, Toronto, ON. October 27.
Aubrecht, K., Reid-Musson, E., & Knocton, S. (2023). Justice and inclusion for people living with dementia through the lens of neurodiversity: A theoretical commentary. Oral presentation at the Canadian Association on Gerontology annual conference. Hilton Toronto, Toronto, ON. October 27.
Giosa, J., Kalles, E., Holyoke, P., McAiney, C., Oelke, N., Aubrecht, K., McNeil, H., & Habib Perez, O. (2023). Working with experts-by-experience to co-design an evidence-based approach to starting mental health conversations with older adults in the community. Symposia: Aging and mental health in Canada: Working with experts-by-experience to identify priorities, address research gaps and mobilize knowledge. Annual CAGP-CCSMH scientific meeting. St. John’s, NFLD. September 29.