Healthy Aging CORE Research Spotlight: June 2024

Research Spotlight: Brain Canada Foundation

The Brain Canada Foundation is the national convenor and enabler of the Canadian brain research community, including providing grants for research related to the brain. Strokes, brain injuries, ALS, and Parkinson's disease are a few examples of brain conditions the foundation supports research on. Through the Canada Brain Research Fund (CBRF), an innovative arrangement between the Government of Canada and Brain Canada Foundation, they have provided over 600 research grants for brain research. You can find out more about ongoing brain research by searching their directory of funded projects. You can also learn more about how the brain works through their Playing with Marbles podcast.

New Research on CORE

• [Report] AgeTech, Ethics and Equity: Towards a Cultural Shift in AgeTech Ethical Responsibility (SFU STAR)
• [Learning Modules] Dementia Resources for Eating, Activity, and Meaningful Inclusion (DREAM) Learning Modules (Research Institute For Aging)

New Journal Articles

Open Access Articles: Articles that are free and accessible to the general public.

Elgamal, R., La Rose, T., Detlor, B., Julien, H., & Serenko, A. (2024). A Community Partnership Approach to Digital Literacy Training for Older Adults Between Public Libraries and Seniors’ Organizations. The Canadian Journal of Information and Library Science, 47(1), 3-17. https://doi.org/10.5206/cjils-rcsib.v47i1.16593

This case study explores a partnership between public library systems, a volunteer seniors’ organization, and a seniors’ centre to enhance digital literacy among older adults. A key finding from the study is that socialization opportunities and relationship-building are important components of successful digital literacy programs. Older adults also preferred programs that were experiential, provided different levels of training (e.g., basic vs. advanced), were scheduled at convenient times, and made adaptations based on the older adults' feedback.

Hosford, K., Pitman, B., & Winters, M. (2024). Facilitators and barriers to the implementation of community-based transportation services for older adults: evidence from six case studies. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 24, 101062. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trip.2024.101062

This article explores facilitators and barriers to the implementation of community-based transportation services for older adults based on evidence from six case studies from British Columbia. Facilitators and barriers to implementation centred on five themes: the availability of the service, the important role of drivers, tailoring the service to meet older adults’ needs, the strengths of inter-organizational and -sectoral partnerships, and the intermittent and inefficient nature of funding for transportation services in the sector. 

Conferences: Call for Abstracts

Gerontological Society of America (GSA)

GSA 2024 is taking place November 13-16 in Seattle. The Late Breaking poster and paper abstract submission window will be open from July 19 to August 29, 2024.  These Late Breaking Abstracts provide an ideal platform for sharing research findings that were not available by the general abstract submission deadline in March. Find out more here.