Study Team

Rebecca Ganann is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing, Co-Scientific Director of the Aging, Community and Health Research Unit and Co-Lead (Acting) of the McMaster Collaborative for Health & Aging (Ontario SPOR SUPPORT Unit’s Centre on Aging) at McMaster University. Rebecca’s primary research interests include advancing the science of patient/citizen engagement and co-design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative, integrated care delivery models for community-dwelling older adults. Dr. Ganann is a Registered Nurse and health services and policy researcher with expertise in patient-oriented research, mixed methods, interventional research, evidence-informed decision making, and implementation science.

Rebecca Ganann is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing, Co-Scientific Director of the Aging, Community and Health Research Unit and Co-Lead (Acting) of the McMaster Collaborative for Health & Aging (Ontario SPOR SUPPORT Unit’s Centre on Aging) at McMaster University. Rebecca’s primary research interests include advancing the science of patient/citizen engagement and co-design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative, integrated care delivery models for community-dwelling older adults. Dr. Ganann is a Registered Nurse and health services and policy researcher with expertise in patient-oriented research, mixed methods, interventional research, evidence-informed decision making, and implementation science.

Sarah Neil-Sztramko’s research interests involve methodology of public health intervention development and evaluation; understanding which knowledge translation strategies are effective at increasing the general publics’ and health professionals’ awareness; community-based implementation science. Sarah has expertise in health promotion and qualitative and mixed methods and seeks advance her work on interprofessional practice.

Sarah Neil-Sztramko’s research interests involve methodology of public health intervention development and evaluation; understanding which knowledge translation strategies are effective at increasing the general publics’ and health professionals’ awareness; community-based implementation science. Sarah has expertise in health promotion and qualitative and mixed methods and seeks advance her work on interprofessional practice.

Stuart Phillips is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Skeletal Muscle Health in Aging. He is a Professor in Kinesiology, and Graduate Faculty in the School of Medicine at McMaster University. He is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (FCAHS) and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). His research is focused on the impact of nutrition and exercise on the mechanisms of human skeletal muscle protein turnover. He is also keenly interested in diet- and exercise-induced changes in body composition particularly in older persons. His research is funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the National Science and Engineering Council of Canada, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, the US NIH, the USDA, and several industry partners. Dr. Phillips was the inaugural recipient of the Enzo Cafarelli Graduate Mentor Award in 2017. He was named to Clarivate’s Highly Cited Award in 2018-2021 as one of the top 1% of all cited researchers in physiology and nutrition. He has more than 50,000 citations and an h-index of 121; https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=VLu9hqgAAAAJ&hl=en.

Stuart Phillips is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Skeletal Muscle Health in Aging. He is a Professor in Kinesiology, and Graduate Faculty in the School of Medicine at McMaster University. He is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (FCAHS) and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). His research is focused on the impact of nutrition and exercise on the mechanisms of human skeletal muscle protein turnover. He is also keenly interested in diet- and exercise-induced changes in body composition particularly in older persons. His research is funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the National Science and Engineering Council of Canada, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, the US NIH, the USDA, and several industry partners. Dr. Phillips was the inaugural recipient of the Enzo Cafarelli Graduate Mentor Award in 2017. He was named to Clarivate’s Highly Cited Award in 2018-2021 as one of the top 1% of all cited researchers in physiology and nutrition. He has more than 50,000 citations and an h-index of 121; https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=VLu9hqgAAAAJ&hl=en.

Trained as a population geographer, Bruce Newbold’s research interests focus on population issues as they relate to immigration, migration, health, population mobility, transportation, and aging. Bringing a variety of methods to bear on population questions, current (funded) research includes mobility and aging, differences in transportation behaviours by generation, and an analysis of how Canadian attitudes toward immigration has changed with the COVID-19 pandemic. He has expertise in community programming to address health inequities to the program and strengthen academic-community partnerships.

Trained as a population geographer, Bruce Newbold’s research interests focus on population issues as they relate to immigration, migration, health, population mobility, transportation, and aging. Bringing a variety of methods to bear on population questions, current (funded) research includes mobility and aging, differences in transportation behaviours by generation, and an analysis of how Canadian attitudes toward immigration has changed with the COVID-19 pandemic. He has expertise in community programming to address health inequities to the program and strengthen academic-community partnerships.

Elizabeth Alvarez is an experienced family/public health physician and Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact (HEI) at McMaster University. After completing her medical degree and family medicine residency at the University of Toledo in Ohio, she earned a master’s degree in public health through the Northwest Ohio Consortium for Public Health, and a PhD in Health Policy at McMaster University. She also holds a certificate in cognitive behavioural therapy (CMCBT). Her research uses policy analysis and qualitative and mixed methods for applied knowledge translation, spanning the role of context in evidence informed decision making, public health topics, sustainable health behaviour change across the lifespan, and multidisciplinary care.

Elizabeth Alvarez is an experienced family/public health physician and Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact (HEI) at McMaster University. After completing her medical degree and family medicine residency at the University of Toledo in Ohio, she earned a master’s degree in public health through the Northwest Ohio Consortium for Public Health, and a PhD in Health Policy at McMaster University. She also holds a certificate in cognitive behavioural therapy (CMCBT). Her research uses policy analysis and qualitative and mixed methods for applied knowledge translation, spanning the role of context in evidence informed decision making, public health topics, sustainable health behaviour change across the lifespan, and multidisciplinary care.

Ayse Kuspinar’s research focuses on health outcomes, aging and mobility, and the development and evaluation of interventions to optimize mobility in older adults. She is interested in developing strategies to prevent functional decline and improve quality of life in Canadian seniors. Her research is supported by CIHR, MIRA, Brain Canada Foundation, Alzheimer’s Association, and Parkinson Canada.

Ayse Kuspinar’s research focuses on health outcomes, aging and mobility, and the development and evaluation of interventions to optimize mobility in older adults. She is interested in developing strategies to prevent functional decline and improve quality of life in Canadian seniors. Her research is supported by CIHR, MIRA, Brain Canada Foundation, Alzheimer’s Association, and Parkinson Canada.