Colleen Maxwell, professor at the University of Waterloo School of Pharmacy and senior scientist with ICES, Dr. Ruth Ann Marrie, professor at Dalhousie University, along with their colleagues Dr. James Bolton, professor at the University of Manitoba, and Dr. Zahra Goodarzi, associate professor at the University of Calgary, have received more than $900,000 in funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) Enhanced Surveillance for Chronic Disease Program, the agency responsible for protecting the health of Canadians through the prevention of infectious and chronic diseases. The objective of this program is to improve surveillance information for public health, chronic disease and injury.
The grant for Enhanced mental health surveillance in community care and long-term care settings, will allow the research team to improve the tracking of mental health conditions across Canada for those receiving care in their home or in a long-term care setting. The researchers will look at how often mental illness occurs in these settings, whether the detection and health care for their mental illness changes when they transition from home care to long-term care, different information sources to track mental illnesses and the factors associated with these conditions.
“We currently have a poor understanding of mental health conditions among Canadians in home and long-term care settings and our research will identify the best approaches and data for detecting and monitoring different mental illnesses and related health care needs,” Maxwell says.
Researchers will examine existing health records, billing data and clinical data between 2012 and 2023 from Ontario, Manitoba and Alberta to provide estimates of the proportion of persons in home care and long-term care living with various mental illnesses and how often they visit a physician or hospital for their condition. Statistical modelling will determine who is at higher risk for mental illness in these care settings.
Better tracking of mental health conditions will guide policymakers about where to assign resources to address mental health needs in both care environments.
“Working closely with health care providers, policy decision-makers and persons with lived experience, our research program will guide interventions and health policy to enhance the prevention, detection and quality of care of mental illness among adults receiving continuing care services,” Maxwell says.