ABC-SC Team

Principal Investigators
Grace Johnston
Robin Urquhart
Co-Investigators
Fred Burge
Judith Fisher
David Haardt
Janice Howes
Melanie Keats
Jennifer Payne
Geoff Porter
Danny Rayson
Tallal Younis

Principal Investiagors

Grace Johnston, MHSA, PhD

Positions: Professor and Graduate Coordinator, School of Health Administration, Dalhousie University; Senior Epidemiologist, Surveillance and Epidemiology Unit, Cancer Care Nova Scotia; and Principal Investigator, Network for End of Life Studies: Interdisciplinary Capacity Enhancement (NELS ICE), Canadian Institutes of Health Research grant

Expertise: Epidemiology, health services research using administrative databases, cancer control, screening, palliative and end of life care, interdisciplinary learning, knowledge exchange, advocacy, mentoring

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Focused data analyses on supportive care (SC) for women with advanced breast cancer; Greater understanding on the forms and cost of SC, and predictors of who has access to SC; Refinement of interdisciplinary research team development methods and knowledge exchange

Robin Urquhart, PhD Candidate

Positions: Knowledge Broker, Cancer Outcomes Research Program, Cancer Care Nova Scotia

Expertise: Knowledge exchange and
translation, health services research, linked administrative data methods, qualitative methodologies

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge:
Improved understanding of effective knowledge exchange processes toward building interdisciplinary research teams and whether a participatory model is useful toward expediting SC research capacity; Greater depth of knowledge on access to and quality of SC services for women with advanced breast cancer using administrative data

Co- Investigators

Frederick Burge, MD, FCFP, MSc                                                                                  Top

Positions: Professor, Department of Family Medicine, Dalhousie University; and
Co-Principal Investigator, NELS ICE

Expertise: Family medicine, primary care, palliative and end of life care, survey and linked administrative data methods

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Perspectives on SC by next of kin of women dying of advanced breast cancer; Insights into the redesign of community based primary care;
New grant proposal to CIHR for community based primary care

Judith Fisher, PhD

Positions: Post Doctoral Fellow, Drug Use Management and Policy Research, College of Pharmacy, Dalhousie University

Expertise: Systematic literature review, appropriate
use of medications

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Medication use for the management of pain and other symptoms among persons with advanced cancer; Framework for medications guideline development for SC, focusing on women with advanced breast cancer

David Haardt, PhD                                                                                                               Top

Positions: Assistant Professor, School of Health Administration, Dalhousie University

Expertise: Cost-benefit analysis, older people’s health and employment

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Greater understanding of how different SC components, such as caregiver time and pharmaceuticals, contribute to the costs of end-of-life care for cancer patients in Nova Scotia

Janice Howes PhD

Positions: Psychosocial Oncology Clinical Leader and Chair, Supportive Care Site Team, Cancer Care Nova Scotia

Expertise: Clinical psychology, Psychosocial oncology

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Refinement of distress screening by cancer patient navigators; Improving SC for women with advanced breast cancer

Melanie Keats, PhD                                                                                                            Top

Positions:Assistant Professor, School of Health and Human Performance, Dalhousie University

Expertise: Behavioural medicine, exercise psychology, physical activity, oncology, survivorship, quality of life

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Exploring the SC role of physical activity for women with advanced breast cancer

Jennifer Payne, PhD

Positions: Assistant Professor, Departments of Diagnostic Radiology and Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University; and Senior Epidemiologist, Capital District Health Authority

Expertise: Epidemiologic methods, chronic disease surveillance, indicators of care, administrative data analysis, health services research

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Screening for need for SC;
Data analysis and knowledge translation related to SC for chronic disease co-morbidities for women with advanced breast cancer

Geoff Porter, MD FRCSC, FACS                                                                                       Top

Positions: Professor of Surgery, Ramia Chair in Surgical Oncology, Dalhousie University; and Surgical Oncologist, QEII Health Sciences Centre

Expertise: Surgical oncology, health services research, outcomes research, quality indicators

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Improved understanding of factors influencing access to and quality of SC services for women with advanced breast cancer; exploring opportunities to build a NET ACCESS-like team in breast cancer

Danny Rayson, MD, FRCPC, FACP

Positions: Professor, Division of Medical Oncology, Dalhousie University; and Medical Oncologist, Nova Scotia Cancer Centre

Expertise: Clinical trials, breast cancer, health services research, wait times, cancer genetics, translational research

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Clinical trial development with focus on SC for advanced breast cancer (e.g., pain and symptom control, management of side effects from systemic therapies); understanding of factors (e.g., co-morbidities) that influence quality SC for women with advanced breast cancer

Tallal Younis, MBBCh, FRCP (UK)                                                                                  Top

Positions:Assistant Professor, Division of Medical Oncology, and Clinical Research Scholar, Dalhousie University; and Medical Oncologist, Nova Scotia Cancer Centre

Expertise:Economic/cost analysis, health services research,  outcomes research, breast cancer, clinical trials

Anticipated Findings/New Knowledge: Examining costs of various forms of SC, including medications for women with advanced breast cancer