Pushing the Boundaries of Research in Dementia Care and Support
Message from Dr. Jane Rylett

Canada's National Ballet School is one of ten recipients of the Institute of Aging's Implementation Science Team Grants. With this funding Dr. Rachel Bar and her team expand and evaluate the school's Sharing Dance Older Adults program with people living with dementia in historically excluded communities.

This is the third Funding Opportunity from the Brain Health and Cognitive Impairment in Aging research initiative.

CIHR-IA, together with the Institute of Health Services and Policy Research and the Azrieli Foundation's Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence, funded ten teams for the 2024 competition, committing a total of $7.48 million. This funding will help researchers assess programs and services for people affected by cognitive impairment and dementia. They will evaluate how effective and accessible these programs are to ensure everyone can get the help and support they need.

I was impressed with the variety of projects submitted this year. The nine other projects to receive funding are:

  • Evaluating the implementation, effectiveness, and scalability of the Behavior Success Agent program: Promoting quality integrated dementia care and building capacity in acute care settings; Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care, Ontario.
  • Reconnecting care partners to persons living with dementia through primary care surveillance data; Perley Health, Ontario.
  • Assessing the Impact of DAy programs on individuals living with Dementia and their family/friend Caregivers (AIDA-DemCare): A prospective, cross-provincial cohort study; York University, Ontario.
  • Revolutionizing Dementia Care Transition through the Learning Health System (LHS) model at Vancouver Coastal Health; University of British Columbia, British Columbia.
  • AHEAD with eConsult: Advancing Health Equity and Access to specialist care for persons with lived and living experience of Dementia; University of Ottawa, Ontario.
  • Evaluating the implementation of a dementia screening program for people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities in community agencies across Canada: Facilitators, barriers, and next steps for spread and scale; Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Ontario.
  • A Realist Evaluation of Rare Dementia Support: People, Spaces, and Places; Nipissing University, Ontario.
  • Moving upstream: Integrating a palliative approach into dementia care; University of Manitoba, Manitoba.
  • Dementia in the Outdoors: Exploring the Mechanisms of Engagement; Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Every one of these projects brings a unique perspective and approach to tackling the challenges faced by those impacted by dementia. Please visit the Brain Health and Cognitive Impairment in Aging Research Initiative grant results webpage for more information.

Thank you for your interest in IA's mission to make a meaningful difference in the lives of individuals and families impacted by dementia.

Dr. Jane Rylett
Scientific Director, Institute of Aging

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