Anita Margaret Myers

​Cross appointment with the Department of Kinesiology, University of Waterloo

Research interests

Older adults are the fastest growing segment of the driving population which raises safety concerns as this group is disproportionately involved in fatal, at-fault collisions per distance driven. Concerns for public safety, however, must be balanced against the costs of population level, age-based screening, the onus on physicians to report at-risk patients, and needs of older adults for continued, independent mobility (including environmental design and public transportation). Addressing these issues requires a multi-faceted, collaborative approach for both research and knowledge mobilization.

For instance, one of my recent projects involved an evaluation of  Canadian licensing policies and procedures for regulating medically-at-risk and older drivers. We then used web-based technologies to promote and evaluate the utilization of a website containing data on both Canada and US polices. Several of my graduate students have conducted studies on the self-regulatory driving practices of both healthy older drivers and those with neurological disorders (such as Parkinson’s disease), using in-vehicle devices including GPS. I am also involved in a five-year, prospective cohort study of drivers (aged 70 and over). This multi-centre study funded by CIHR (Candrive II), which began in 2009 in nine Canadian cities, and subsequently added sites in  Australia and New Zealand, in unique in size (over 1,200 participants recruited), duration and scope. While one of our primary objectives is to develop a clinical decision-rule for identifying at-risk drivers (suitable for use in physician’s office), this study also enables us to address other important research questions.  

Major funding sources

Canadian Institutes of Health Research -Institute of Aging

Health Canada

Ministry of Transporation Ontario

CanDRIVE

Selected publications

• Myers AM. Program Evaluation for Exercise Leaders.  Champaign IL: Human Kinetics. 1999.
• Johnson CS, Myers AM, Scholey LM, Cyarto EV & Ecclestone NA. Outcome evaluation of the Canadian Centre for Activity and Aging’s Home Support Exercise Program for frail older adults. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity 2003; 11: 408-424.
• Tudor-Locke C & Myers AM. Methodological considerations for researchers and practitioners using pedometers to measure physical (ambulatory) activity.Research Quarterly for Exercise & Sport 2001; 72: 1-12. Awarded the 2002 Research Writing Award
• Cyarto EV, Myers AM & Tudor-Locke C. Pedometer accuracy in nursing home and community-dwelling older adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 2004; 36(2): 205-209.
• Tudor-Locke C, Bell RC, Myers AM, Harris SB, Ecclestone NA, Lauzon N & Rodger NW. Controlled outcome evaluation of the First Step Program: A daily physical activity intervention for individuals with Type 2 diabetes. International Journal of Obesity 2004; 28(1): 113-119.
• Gauthier B, Barrington G, Bozzo SL, Chaytor K, Cullen J, Lahey R, Malatest R, Mason G, Mayne J, Myers AM, Porteous NL & Roy S. The lay of the land: Evaluation practice in Canada today. Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation 2004; 19(1): 143-170.
• Myers AM & Pearce NJ. Examination of Screening Tools for Potential Use by Driver Improvement Counsellors. Technical report for the Safety Policy Branch, The Ministry of Transportation, Ontario, 2004.
• Myers AM. Pilot Study of Revised Group Education Session Curriculum for Drivers Aged 80 and Over. Technical report for the Safety Policy Branch, The Ministry of Transportation, Ontario, 2004.
• Myers AM, Cyarto EV & Blanchard R. Challenges in quantifying mobility in frail older adults. European Review of Aging and Physical Activity 2005; 2: 13-21.
• Pearce NJ, Myers, AM, Blanchard RA. Assessing subjective fall concerns in residential living seniors: Development of the Activities-specific Fall Caution (AFC) Scale. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 2007; 88: 724-731.
• Myers AM, Paradis J, Blanchard RA. Conceptualizing and measuring driving confidence in older drivers: Development of the Day and Night Driving Comfort Scales. Submitted to Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
• Huijbregts M, Myers AM, Streiner D, Teasell R. Assisting people with stroke and care partners: The relative benefits of the Moving On after STroke (MOST) and Living With Stroke (LWS) programs. Submitted to Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation.
• Myers AM, Blanchard RA, MacDonald L, Porter MM. Process evaluation of the AAA Roadwise Review CD-ROM: Experiences of older drivers using the self-assessment tool. Submitted to Topics in Geriatric Rehabilitation.

Selected professional activities and networks

Canadian Centre for Activity and Aging

Canadian Evaluation Society

Active Living Coalition for Older Adults

For more information about my research, please visit my research page.