Studies
| Study Title: | What does usual MS rehabilitation look like in Canada? |
| Rationale: | In order to strengthen existing MS rehabilitation services in Canada, we must know where we are starting. This study will develop an approach to describing usual MS rehabilitation provided in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, home care, and return-to-work services. |
| Study Description: | Rehabilitation services improve health, functioning, and well-being of people with MS. We want Canadians with MS to get the best rehabilitation care possible. To achieve this, we must first be able to describe what “usual” MS rehabilitation looks like in Canada. Being able to describe our starting point enables us to plan what changes are needed to advance rehabilitative care. Unfortunately, there is no standard way to describe usual care so we will need to create one through this project. To create a way to measure usual MS rehabilitation in Canada, we will: (1) Conduct interviews with people with MS and rehabilitation providers to map their experiences and learn about the features and variability of MS rehabilitation across 6 settings (i.e., acute care hospital, rehabilitation hospital, private clinics, nursing home, home care, return-to-work). (2) Work with an expert panel of researchers, clinicians and people affected by MS to develop vignettes and a survey about the "what" and "why" of MS rehabilitation. The survey will be completed by rehabilitation providers across Canada to understand what happens in a MS rehabilitation episode of care. (3) We will use the results of the interviews and surveys to build and test a way of measuring usual MS rehabilitation Canada. This research will help launch a novel program of research to advance MS rehabilitation treatment and care in Canada and beyond. |
| Recruitment Dates: | 2023-08-09 to 2024-06-30 |
| Who can participate: | People with MS who are 18 years of age and older; have received rehabilitation services in Canada in the past 3 months in a hospital, clinic, nursing home, at work, or at home. |
| Trial Institution: | Queen's University |
| Trial Investigator: | Marcia Finlayson |
| Contact Information: |
msrehab@queensu.ca |
| Trial Funding: | MS Canada |