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Research

With a vision to honour the human face of health care, Saint Elizabeth Health Care is dedicated to generating pioneering insights and knowledge to profoundly understand and responsibly address client, community and health system needs.

Our research activities fall under three key areas: Knowledge Creation, Knowledge Utilization, and Knowledge Dissemination/Exchange.

KNOWLEDGE CREATION

Care and Service Excellence

Through our research initiatives, SEHC works with other organizations to identify highly effective clinical practices. The following is a sampling of recent studies we have been involved in with our research partners:

  • Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) For The Treatment Of Chronic Pressure Wounds (2009 – 2011) - A 12-week, prospective, open-label, randomized, controlled clinical trial comparing the efficacy, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) to standard wound care for the treatment of chronic pressure wounds of the pelvic region. Funded by St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and in partnership with Programs for Assessment of Technology in Health (PATH) Research Institute.
     
  • The Impact of a Tailored Intervention on the Nursing Assessment and Management of Foot Ulcers for People with Diabetes in Community Nursing Practice (2007-present) – The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of a leadership intervention on implementing recommendations from a clinical practice guideline for nursing assessments and management of foot ulcers for people with diabetes in community nursing practice. Funded by the Canadian Nurses Foundation (CNF) and in partnership with Wendy Gifford, PhD cand., and the University of Ottawa.
     
  • Community Randomized Control Trial of the Effectiveness of Two Compression Bandaging Technologies (2005-present) – This study, conducted in partnership with Queen’s University, compares the effectiveness of two high compression technologies (four-layer bandage vs. short-stretch bandage) delivered in the community on ulcer healing, recurrence rates, quality of life and cost-effectiveness. Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).
     
  • The Comparative Acceptability, Safety, Effects and Expense of Specialized, Integrated and Interdisciplinary Community Rehabilitation for Stroke Survivors and their Caregivers (2005-present) – The purpose of this research is to study ways of providing home care services to people who have been hospitalized for a stroke so that they can recover at home more effectively. We are also interested in assessing the need for home care services for stroke rehabilitation. In partnership with McMaster University and with funding from the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (CHSRF), Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC), Community Care Access Centre of Halton, McMaster University, and System Linked Research Unit on Health and Social Services Utilization.
     
  • Keeping the Home in Home Care: Care to Know Centre Postdoctoral Award (2009 – present) – In a first-of-its-kind partnership with the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation, via the Capacity for Applied and Developmental Research and Evaluation in Health Services and Nursing (CADRE) program, Care to Know Centre welcomed Dr. Paul Holyoke to Saint Elizabeth Health Care in summer 2009. Dr. Holyoke will be investigating a client and family-centred approach to keeping the “home” in home care: meeting people’s expectations and improving their experiences of care delivered in their own living and social space. Nancy Lefebre, Clinical Chief Executive and Senior Vice President, Knowledge and Practice will act as supervisor, and Nicole Beben, Executive Director, Care to Know Centre will work closely with Dr. Holyoke to promote and exchange the results with others who will benefit from the findings. Funded by the Care to Know Centre’s Postdoctoral Award program and CHSRF.

    The Care to Know Centre is interested in learning about projects related to client and family engaged care for future postdoctoral opportunities. We’d love to hear from you. 
     

  • ACT Research Grants Program (ongoing) – The Applied Client-focused Team (ACT) Research Grants Program provides seed funding to support initiatives that impact the experiences and needs of the health client at the point of contact with the health system. Larger funding agencies often require primary investigators to demonstrate preliminary findings/data, which can make it more difficult and challenging for new, innovative ideas to get off the ground. The ACT Research Grants Program was designed specifically to ensure that funded projects have the potential to be leveraged for greater funding in the future thus providing greater learning for the home and community care sector. During our first annual grants competition, applicants came from across Canada. Research teams included partners ranging from universities and colleges, to CCACs and home care providers. Funded by the Care to Know Centre.

    To learn more about the application process and research grant recipients, visit www.caretoknow.org/actgrantsprogram.html

People and Workforce

At SEHC, we are continually seeking ways to enhance our work environment so that our staff can provide the best possible care to clients and families. Some our research activities in this area include:

  • ALIVE Community Nursing Leadership (2007-present) – SEHC is working in partnership with VON Canada, the Ontario Community Support Association (OCSA), and VHA Home Healthcare on a community nursing project to create a model of transformational leadership that is specific to the needs of nursing leaders in the home health care sector. With funding from the MOHLTC.
     
  • Top 30 Rising Stars (2007-present) – The purpose of this project is to create and sustain nursing leadership throughout the health care system through effective and innovative succession planning strategies. The end result will be a program based on best practices and a supporting toolkit that can be used and replicated across the health care system. With funding from the MOHLTC and in partnership with Women’s College Hospital and Toronto Public Health.


     

  • A Healthy Workplace Best Practice Initiative (2005-2007) – With funding from Health Canada, SEHC worked collaboratively with West Park Healthcare Centre, VON Canada, the Niagara Health System, and the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) to pilot the implementation and evaluation of the RNAO Healthy Work Environments Best Practice Guideline: Developing and Sustaining Nursing Leadership.
     
  • Measuring Community Nursing Workload: Responding with Innovation (2005-2006) – This groundbreaking study used palm-pilot software to collect data on factors influencing workload during community nursing visits. The fi ndings were used to design and integrate new ways of providing care to improve the practice environment. Project partners included Queen’s University, a distinguished advisory committee of health leaders and researchers, and funding from The Change Foundation.
     
  • Transforming Preceptorship/Mentorship for Home Health Care Nurses (2005-2006) – This initiative was developed to address the need to enhance the readiness and integration of new nurses and nurses new to home health care; to maximize the talent, knowledge and wisdom of our experienced nurses; to support and further develop leadership opportunities through a mentorship program; to address the unique needs of students; and, ultimately, to improve retention and career satisfaction of new and experienced nurses. With funding from the MOHLTC.

Innovation

SEHC embraces and demonstrates our responsibility to lead through the introduction and evaluation of innovative solutions in service delivery. Some examples include:

  • Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) Initiative (2008-2009) – With funding from the Nursing Secretariat, MOHLTC, SEHC nurses will use Motion Computing’s C5 clinical tablet to access information, knowledge, resources, and clinical decision support tools when and where needed – in their cars, in client homes and at the bed-side.
     
  • Outcomes...In the Palm of Your Hand: Improving the Quality and Continuity of Patient Care (2004-2008) – SEHC nurses took part in a study conducted by Dr. Diane Doran at the University of Toronto looking at the use of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) by home health care nurses for access to information and resources. With funding from the MOHLTC, Communication and Information Technology Ontario (CITO), and the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation.

KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION

As an evolving knowledge organization, SEHC is committed to ensuring that a strong evidence base underpins our decision making and health care practices. Below are some of our research activities related to putting knowledge into practice.

  • Knowledge to Practice: Implementing and evaluating strategies for promoting the use of evidence informed clinical and management decision making in the community health care environment (2008-2010) – The aim of this study is to work with researchers at the University of Ottawa to evaluate the impact of a multifaceted leadership intervention for nurse managers and clinicians on evidence-informed decision-making (EIDM) and health care outcomes in a home health care organization. Funding provided by the Nursing Research Fund.
     
  • Linking Best Practice Guidelines (BPGs) Use and Healthy Outcomes for Better Information and Care (HOBIC) Outcomes in the Community (2008-2010) – The objectives of this research is to address the relationship between BPG use and HOBIC outcomes in the community; this includes factors associated with use of best practices such as client, nurse and organizational inputs, creating knowledge regarding environmental complexity factors in this setting, collecting data on the utilization and workload of nurses (dose, mix and continuity of care), and the impact of nursing BPG-related interventions on client outcomes. With funding from the MOHLTC and in partnership with the University of Toronto.
     
  • Healthy Work Environments, Best Practice Guidelines, Pilot Site Organization (2007-2008) – SEHC is one of ten pilot site organizations in Ontario working with the RNAO to implement and evaluate two healthy work environments best practice guidelines: Professionalism in Nursing and Collaborative Practice among Nursing Teams.
     
  • Nursing Best Practice Guidelines Spotlight Organization (2003-present) – In January 2004, SEHC was selected as one of seven Best Practice Spotlight Organizations in the province of Ontario. Working collaboratively with the RNAO, the objectives of our partnership are to demonstrate creative strategies for the successful implementation of nursing BPGs, to evaluate implementation and outcome measures through audits and formal research, to disseminate knowledge, and to use our newly-created knowledge in future implementation strategies.

KNOWLEDGE DISSEMINATION / EXCHANGE

SEHC believes strongly in extending the reach and impact of our research through ongoing knowledge dissemination and exchange activities, both within and beyond community health care. Some of the ways we accomplish this include:

  • Community of Practice for Seniors with Responsive Behaviour – As a member of the Seniors Health Research Transfer Network (SHRTN), we are facilitating and participating in a dynamic knowledge exchange with policy makers, researchers and community members, to promote client and staff safety through education on methods for de-escalating and managing aggressive behaviour in cognitively-impaired seniors. Through our involvement in this partnership, SEHC is promoting the sharing of best practices and knowledge with front line staff.
     
  • The Care to Know Centre – The mission of the Care to Know Centre is to be a catalyst for change in the generation, exchange and use of evidence-informed practice and decision-making to improve the lives and health care experience of Canadians. To learn more, visit www.caretoknow.org.
     
  • Publications and presentations – Saint Elizabeth Health Care presents our research findings at numerous conferences and through journal publications.