Overview
Research Involves:
Enhancing the quality of life of older adults with multiple chronic conditions, and of their family caregivers, and reducing demand for health services. This research will lead to improved practices and policy development for providing timely, appropriate and quality health-care services for older adults, and will thereby promote optimal aging at home.
Promoting Optimal Aging At Home:
One third of older adults in Canada have three or more chronic conditions. These adults take an average of five or more prescription medications, have higher rates of health care use and costs and are at particularly high risk for falls, hospitalization and death. Dr. Markle-Reid is developing and evaluating innovative interventions to reduce the burden and impact of chronic disease on older adults and their family caregivers.
Markle-Reid’s focus is on frail older home-care clients, stroke survivors who use home care, and older adults with Type 2 diabetes—all of whom have multiple chronic conditions. She is also developing strategies to enhance the uptake and spread of evidence-driven fall prevention techniqies for older adults among community-based providers. Markle-Reid’s research will improve knowledge of the prevalence, determinants and costs of multiple chronic conditions. It will also provide knowledge of new and innovative strategies designed to enhance health outcomes and improve access to health services for older adults and their family caregivers, increasing the body of research on aging and quality of life.
