Real-World Evidence Platform

PRECISE-MH: PREcision Care with Information, Science and Experience - Mental Health (PRECISE-MH) – Calgary Health Foundation (PIs: Dallas Seitz, Julia Kirkham, Valerie Taylor, Scott Patten, Monty Gosh, Geoffrey Messier)

Funder: Calgary Health Foundation

Project Summary: Addictions and mental health (AMH) problems are among the most disabling, expensive and challenging health conditions in Canada. Population-based administrative healthcare databases provide an opportunity to study many of the factors associated with the development of AMH and outcomes associated with these disorders. Homelessness and involvement with police services are two important factors associated with AMH Understanding the prevalence of homelessness and police contact among individuals with AMH problems and the characteristics of these individuals is critical to ensuring there are adequate AMH services available to support individuals with AMH problems who experience homelessness or who are in contact with police services. Predicting which individuals with AMH problems are most likely to experience homelessness or involvement with police services is necessary in order to prevent potentially avoidable use of homeless shelter and police services among individuals with AMH problems. Our project first determine the characteristics of individuals with AMH who experience homelessness or involvement with police services. We will develop models to predict homelessness and contact with police among individuals with AMH problems. Overall, this project will help to better understand the factors associated with the homelessness and police involvement among people with AMH problems and inform the delivery of health, housing and police services to better meet the needs of this complex population.

Alzheimer’s Disease in Alberta: Understanding the Current State and Readiness for Disease Modifying Therapies – University Health Foundation – Alberta Roche Collaboration in Health (PI: Dallas Seitz)

Funder: University Health Foundation

Project Summary: The population of Alberta is aging and there are increasing numbers of Albertans who are affected by Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. At the present time little is known about the numbers of people affected by dementia in Alberta or how they interact with the health care system. Understanding the health care journeys of people with dementia is a critical step in understanding how to plan supports and services for people affected by Alzheimer’s disease and their families. Although there are medications currently approved for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease in Canada, these medications only produce temporary benefits on dementia symptoms and do not change the underlying disease course. However, research on treatments that may impact on the underlying disease course of Alzheimer’s disease (disease modifying therapies) are nearing the phase where these treatments may be approved for use in Canada in the near future. These new treatments will require that physicians and health services are prepared to offer these medications and safely monitor their use Canada. Understanding how physicians and other health care providers currently assess and manage dementia is important to prepare our health system to be ready for when these new treatments once they are approved for use in Canada. Overall, our project will describe the current state of people impacted by Alzheimer’s disease in Alberta and identify strategies that may be used to help implement new dementia treatments that may be approved by Health Canada in the future.

Measuring and Improving the Quality of Community-Based Dementia Care - Alzheimer's Association (PI: Dallas Seitz)

Funder: Alzheimer's Association

Project Summary: There are an increasing number of people living with dementia. Improving and maintaining quality of life is rated as the highest priority for people living with dementia and their caregivers. While many factors contribute to quality of life, high quality health care is an important component of optimizing quality of life for people living with dementia. The provision of high-quality dementia care is also important to health care providers, community service providers and society broadly. The first step towards improving quality of care for people living with dementia and their care partners is to measure the quality of care. Our project will incorporate the perspectives of people living with dementia, their family carers, and individuals representing health and social services involved in dementia care to identify key measures of health care quality for people living with dementia in community settings. We will then assess the current state of dementia care in Alberta, Canada and identify factors that are associated with higher or lower scores on measures of health care quality. This information will be shared with decision makers to inform future strategies to monitor and improve dementia care both in Alberta and throughout Canada. Overall, our project will provide critical information about dementia care in Canada and internationally and help identify ways to improve care for the growing population of people impacted by dementia.

The goals of our research project are to identify ways to measure the quality of health care services provided to people living with dementia.