Reitman Centre Research
Besides addressing the complex needs and challenges of informal carers with the CARERS intervention, Reitman Centre staff also provides a variety of innovative training and education programs both for informal carers and health professionals. The Reitman research team leads and supports exciting research initiatives arising from these clinical and training activities. Over the years, we have also developed meaningful partnerships with research user groups (e.g. community organizations, industry, policy makers etc.) to ensure effective research transfer. Some research and evaluation projects currently in progress are:
- Evaluation of the clinical effectiveness of Reitman Centre Working CARERS Program (RCWCP) (Funded by Employment and Social Development Canada)
- Development of the Fidelity Assessment Tool to measure adherence and competence of newly trained CARERS Group leaders (Funded by University of Toronto Continuing Education and Research Development grant)
- Testing the effectiveness of a newly developed tool, called the Dementia Caregiver Interview Guide, to identify high risk caregivers (led by Drs. Rhonda Feldman and Joel Sadavoy)
- Exploration of the effectiveness of a Home-based Primary Care Team (Research collaboration with Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre)
- Evaluation of an online dementia-care training program (Collaboration with the Alzheimer Society of Toronto)
In 2014, Drs. Sadavoy and Mary Chiu were awarded a 5-year CIHR grant to undertake a national, multi-site research program to better understand and improve the psychosocial experiences of family caregivers who are caring for individuals with dementia and concurrently employed in the Canadian workforce. The Reitman research team will work closely with researchers from Ontario, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and British Columbia to:
- Understand the issues and challenges facing employed, dementia family caregivers in Canada using a national caregiver survey;
- Evaluate the broader economic and social impact of RCWCP;
- Assess the scalability and rural adaptability of the RCWCP in Manitoba and Nova Scotia.
