Research News

	Non-invasive brain stimulation shows promise in reducing psychological distress in advanced illness April 8, 2024 - A small clinical trial at The Ottawa Hospital and Bruyère has shown for the first time that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) holds promise as a treatment for psychological distress in people with advanced illness.
	The quest for a good death November 9, 2023 - Dr. Colleen Webber is receiving the Clinical and Applied Health Researcher in Training Award from The Ottawa Hospital for her rigorous and empathetic palliative care research
	Cannabis for cancer-related symptoms: actively recruiting patients for clinical trial December 6, 2021 - This new study will research if cannabis oils are effective in treating symptoms related to your cancer or cancer treatment.
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	New online calculator can help predict death and need for end-of-life care for frail older adults July 5, 2021 - A new risk calculator can help predict how long an older adult will live, and support end-of-life planning. The method used to develop the tool is published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).
	The Ottawa Hospital awarded six CIHR grants worth $2.6 million September 7, 2020 - Could a common diabetes drug help prevent ovarian cancer? Can a tailored screening program help prevent eye disease in immigrants? Is sepsis different in females versus males, and if so, can this help us develop better treatments? These are just a fe
	A COVID-19 palliative care pandemic plan: An essential tool March 31, 2020 - Palliative care physicians have created a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) palliative care plan as an essential tool to provide care and help manage scare resources during the pandemic. The plan, which focuses on 8 critical elements -- "stuff
	Pilot project allows Ottawa paramedics to provide palliative care at home February 19, 2020 - A pilot project led by emergency medicine researchers at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa, in partnership with the Ottawa Paramedic Service, will give eligible palliative care patients the option of being treated at their home for pai
	Medical Assistance in Dying is not driven by socioeconomic vulnerability or poor access to palliative care February 12, 2020 - A new study of people who received medical assistance in dying (MAiD) in Ontario found that about three quarters were followed by palliative care at the time of their request for MAiD, and recipients were younger, wealthier, more likely to be married
	New scientist profile: Dr. James Downar wants more people to benefit from palliative care August 7, 2019 - Dr. James Downar has many ideas about how to improve end of life care, and in Ottawa he’s found enthusiastic colleagues and an integrated palliative care system well suited to the task.
	Start discussions on end-of-life care earlier, study suggests May 15, 2019 - A study led by Dr. Kwadwo Kyeremanteng found that many patients with terminal cancer who visited the Emergency Department in 2012 within two weeks of dying in hospital did not have an advanced care plan.
	Do-not-resuscitate (DNR) and do-not-hospitalize (DNH) orders not enough to prevent potentially avoidable hospital visits: study April 15, 2019 - Do-not-resuscitate (DNR) and do-not-hospitalize (DNH) orders in long-term care homes (nursing homes) across Ontario led to reductions in rates of hospitalizations and hospital deaths, but did not eliminate these potentially inappropriate transfers, a
	Research project aims to improve end-of-life care in the community May 25, 2018 - Most people prefer to spend their last days of life at home surrounded by family and loved ones. For many, having the support they need starts with a discussion about what to expect. This often doesn’t happen. Part of the challenge is talking abou
	Recent immigrants receive different end-of-life care than long-term residents December 13, 2017 - New research co-authored by Drs. Peter Tanuseputro and Doug Manuel found that recent immigrants are more likely to die in the intensive care unit compared to other residents. The researchers studied the records of nearly 1 million Ontarians who died

Researchers

Name	Scientific appointment	Diseases, conditions and populations of interest	Research and clinical approaches
Austin, Michael MD, FRCPC	Clinician Investigator (Clinical Epidemiology)	Asthma, Cardiac arrest, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Diabetes, Pain, Population health, Stroke	Clinical decision rules, Clinical trials, Cluster randomized trials, Cohort studies, Critical care, Emergency medicine, Palliative care, Risk assessment
Bruni, Adrianna MSc MD CCFP-PC	Clinician Investigator (Chronic Disease)	Kidney disease, Liver disease	Palliative care
Dennis, Kristopher MD FRCPC PhD	Clinician Investigator (Cancer Therapeutics)	Cancer, Colorectal cancer, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, Gastric cancer, Liver cancer, Pain, Pancreatic cancer	Behaviour, Biomarkers, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Cohort studies, Health professional behaviour change, Health services research, Palliative care, Pragmatic trials, Qualitative methods, Quality Improvement, Systematic reviews
O'Shea, Leah MD	Clinician Investigator (Clinical Epidemiology)		Palliative care, Quality Improvement
Poulin, Patricia C. Psych.	Associate Scientist (Clinical Epidemiology)	Addiction, Anxiety, Cancer, Chronic pain, Depression, Health equity, Musculoskeletal conditions, Pain	Anesthesiology, Behaviour, Biomarkers, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Emergency medicine, Epidemiology, Health professional behaviour change, Health services research, Knowledge translation and implementation research, Palliative care, Patient decision aids, Patient safety, Peri-operative medicine, Pragmatic trials, Psychology, Qualitative methods, Quality Improvement, Systematic reviews
Ramsay, Timothy PhD	Senior Scientist (Clinical Epidemiology)	Addiction, Alzheimer's, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Anxiety, Ataxia, Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Autism, Bipolar, Brain and neuromuscular disease, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Colorectal cancer, Concussion, Cystic fibrosis, Dementia, Depression, Dystonia, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, HIV, Immigrant and refugee health, Influenza, Kidney disease, Lung cancer, Macular degeneration, Men's health, Multiple sclerosis, Muscular dystrophy, Myasthenia gravis, Obesity, Ovarian cancer, Parkinson's, Pulmonary hypertension, Septic shock, Spinal cord injury	Artificial intelligence and data science, Behaviour, Biomaterials, Biostatistics, Cell therapy, Clinical decision rules, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Cohort studies, Critical care, Drug development, Emergency medicine, Epidemiology, Health professional behaviour change, Health promotion, Health research methods, Health services research, Health technology, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Palliative care, Patient decision aids, Pharmacology, Pharmacy, Prevention, Psychology, Psychometrics, Public health, Qualitative methods, Quality Improvement, Regenerative medicine, Rehabilitation, Risk assessment, Shared decision making, Surgery, Surveys, Systematic reviews, Transfusions, Translational research, Transplantation, Viral therapy

Related Resources

Supportive and Palliative Care Program of The Ottawa Hospital Cancer Program

University of Ottawa Department of Palliative Medicine