Bridging the divide: supporting and mentoring trainees to conceptualize, plan, and integrate engagement of people with lived experience in health research.

Health researchers are encouraged by governments, funders, and journals to conduct research in partnership with people with lived experience. However, conducting research with authentic engagement and partnership with those who are experts by experience, but may not have research methods training, requires resources and specialized skills. The McMaster Collaborative for Health and Aging developed a fellowship program for trainees that builds their capacity to conduct research in partnership with older adults with relevant lived experience.

Evaluating the impact of engaging older adults and service providers as research partners in the co-design of a community mobility-promoting program: a mixed methods developmental evaluation study.

Background: Increasingly researchers are partnering with citizens and communities in research; less is known about research impacts of this engagement. EMBOLDEN is an evidence-informed, mobility-promoting intervention for older adults co-designed by a 26-person Strategic Guiding Council (SGC) of health/social service providers and older adult citizens. This study evaluated research partners' perceptions of engagement strategies, the engagement context, strengths, areas for improvement, as well as the impacts of the guiding council on older-adult identified priority areas.

Effectiveness of system navigation programs linking primary care with community-based health and social services: a systematic review.

Background: Fragmented delivery of health and social services can impact access to high-quality, person-centred care. The goal of system navigation is to reduce barriers to healthcare access and improve the quality of care. However, the effectiveness of system navigation remains largely unknown.

Implementation of the Community Assets Supporting Transitions (CAST) transitional care intervention for older adults with multimorbidity and depressive symptoms: A qualitative descriptive study.

Background: Older adults with multimorbidity experience frequent care transitions, particularly from hospital to home, which are often poorly coordinated and fragmented. We conducted a pragmatic randomized controlled trial to test the implementation and effectiveness of Community Assets Supporting Transitions (CAST), an evidence-informed nurse-led intervention to support older adults with multimorbidity and depressive symptoms with the aim of improving health outcomes and enhancing transitions from hospital to home. This trial was conducted in three sites, representing suburban/rural and urban communities, within two health regions in Ontario, Canada.