Program
MSc Public Health and Health Systems
Graduate supervisor
My thesis
My thesis compared health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in parents of children with mental illness to adult Canadian population norms and found that these parents had significantly poorer physical and mental HRQoL. Health-related quality of life includes one’s perceptions of their day-to-day functioning and well-being in domains including physical, social and mental health (Hays & Reeve, 2008). While controlling for demographic factors such as age, gender and clinical factors such as parental stress and mental health, I modelled the association between family functioning and HRQoL in parents. I examined whether the nature of this relationship was augmented by factors such as child age or parental mental health. Family dysfunction was found to be associated with poorer mental HRQoL in parents and this association was robust. These findings support the adoption of approaches to care that foster active collaboration among healthcare providers, children and their families (i.e., family-centred care) within child psychiatry settings in an effort to promote the best possible health outcomes for all family members.
My time in the School of Public Health and Health Systems (SPHHS)
I have had the opportunity to meet and work with so many great people in SPHHS. The staff and students are so welcoming and friendly, and I have made lifelong friends here. I have learned a lot through working and collaborating with my fellow students and colleagues.
Reference:
Hays,
R.
D.,
&
Reeve,
B.
B.
(2008).
Measurement
and
modeling
of
health-related
quality
of
life.
International
Encyclopedia
of
Public
Health,
241–252.
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012373960-5.00336-1