Recrutement de participants aux études

Principal Investigators
Dr. Joy MacDermid, PT PhD
Dr. Pavlos Bobos, PT PhD

Co- Investigators
Ms. Dimitra Vasiliki Pouliopoulou, PT PhD. (cand)
Ms. Katrina Munro, MPT Ph.D.

What is the purpose of this study?
This study is a graduate student project at Western University. The purpose of this study is to identify hand osteoarthritis patients' needs and preferences in the content and delivery of joint protection strategies to inform the development of a joint protection program for hand osteoarthritis. This knowledge is expected to benefit future patients by educating them in management strategies to reduce pain and improve hand function, and clinicians in providing better care for their patients with hand arthritis. You are being invited to participate in this study because you are a patient with hand osteoarthritis living in Canada, and this survey may help us identify your needs and preferences in terms of the content that will be included in the joint protection program, and the delivery forms that will be available.

Study Procedures
This study is an Online Survey. Your participation will include an online survey that takes about 10 minutes to complete. This will occur once. At the end of the survey, you will be asked whether you wish to participate in a follow-up interview. If you wish to do so, you will be asked to provide you contact information (email address, postal address, or telephone number) according to your preferred way of communication if you feel comfortable, so that the research team can reach out to you to provide more information about the follow-up study.

Participation to the Online Survey:
Participating in this study is voluntary. You do not waive any of your legal rights by giving consent for the survey. Consent is obtained by clicking on the survey. This Survey is completely anonymous and therefore we cannot remove submitted surveys from data collection and analysis. If you want to withdraw from the study, you must do so before you submit the survey or else all responses will be recorded. You may refuse to participate or refuse to answer any questions from the study at any time with no effect to your future care. If you have concerns or would like to withdraw you can contact the research co-ordinator, Katrina Munro or the student investigator, Dimitra Pouliopoulou.

Potential risk or discomforts associated with this study:
If participants feel uncomfortable at any time during the survey they may stop the survey or choose not to respond to the questions.

Potential benefits of participating in this study:
There are no direct benefits to you from completing this study. However, these study results will help inform the creation of educational videos for patients with hand arthritis.

Will my results be kept confidential?
Your individual results will be held in strict confidence. No person, other than the study team, will have access to your study related records without your permission. A copy of this letter will be able for you if you want. The only information that would be collected is your demographics and your responses to the survey questions. If you are interested in participating in a follow-up study to further inform the development of the Joint Protection Program, you will be asked to fill in your contact information if you feel comfortable. Although we ask about optional future contact, all your contact information will be tagged as identifiers in REDCap effectively de-identifying the survey. Data store of REDCap’s platform is stored on secured hospital servers. Representatives of Western University Health Sciences Research Ethics Board or/and representatives of Lawson Quality Assurance Education Program may require access to your study-related records or follow-up with you to monitor the conduct of this research. In accordance to Lawson policy, your information and study data will be retained by the study investigators for 15 years.

How many people will be in this study?
We will enroll about 462 patients for this survey.

Is there any compensation if I participate?
There is no monetary reimbursement for participation in this study.

Publication
If the results of the study are published, your name will not be used. If you would like to receive a copy of any potential study results, you can contact the Principle Investigator, Dr. Joy MacDermid or Research Assistants, Katrina Munro or Dimitra Pouliopoulou.

Whom may you contact to find out more about this study?
You will be given a copy of this letter. If you have questions about taking part in this study, you can directly contact:

Dr. Joy MacDermid, Principle Investigator, can be contacted at 519-646-6000 ext 64636
Katrina Munro, Study Research Assistant, can be contacted at 519-646-6100 ext 64544
Dimitra Pouliopoulou, Student Investigator, can be contacted at 519-646-6100 ext 64544

If you have any other questions about your rights as a research participant or about the conduct of the study, you may contact: St Joseph’s Health Care London Patient Relations Consultant at 519-646-6100 ext. 64727

Principal investigators: Debbie Feldman, PhD, Université de Montréal, Sasha Bernatsky, MD PhD, Université McGill, Linda Woodhouse, PhD, University of Alberta 

Project description and objectives: Our project, funded by the Canadian Initiative for Outcomes in Rheumatology Care (CIORA) of the Canadian Rheumatology Association focuses on the identification process by physiotherapists of newly affected patients with  inflammatory arthritis and the consequences of rapid referral of these patients to rheumatology care. The purpose of the focus groups is to explore how to facilitate appropriate referrals in rheumatology and optimize the care of a patient with inflammatory arthritis. The focus group will be composed of 4-8 patients and the main goal is to help optimize patient care in inflammatory arthritis. 

If you are interested in further details about this research, please contact Tatiana Rodriguez, Tatiana.orozco.rodriguez@gmail.com. 

Read the Invitation

Investigators: Drs. Eng Kuan Moo, Andrew Speirs, and Sangeeta Murugkar

Research Host Institution: Carleton University

Recruitment Notice & Purpose of Study: We are looking for two volunteers located in Ottawa, who live with some form of  osteoarthritis and are currently undergoing any forms of treatment, to be consumer collaborators. The insights provided by the consumer collaborators in this study will inform the researchers on the functional benefits of specific treatment methods, which can be dependent on the dosage and treatment duration. This information can guide the development of laboratory efficacy tests of different treatment methods, and can accelerate the process of identifying clinical, patient-specific treatment methods that ultimately benefit those living with osteoarthritis. In the long term, findings of this study may guide future clinical protocols of intra-articular injection and physiotherapy for patients living with osteoarthritis.

Participation Details: The consumer collaborators will meet with the Principal Investigators (PIs) twice a year over a virtual platform for two hours, in which the PI(s) will provide research updates and the consumer collaborators will provide valuable perspectives on their experience of intra-articular injections and physiotherapy, which are directly applicable to the in vitro therapeutic treatment protocol planned for this study. 

Background information: Osteoarthritis is thought to initiate at a thin layer of specialized tissue surrounding the cartilage cells, which acts as a ‘filter’ for cells. However, we know very little regarding the ‘filtering’ properties of this tissue region, and how molecules, beneficial or harmful, pass through this filter to/from the cells. We will address this knowledge gap by creating an osteoarthritis model in the lab and investigating the biophysical property changes to this specialized tissue layer through advanced imaging methods. We will also apply drugs and physiotherapy treatments to the laboratory osteoarthritis model. We expect to receive strong evidence on how osteoarthritis develops and how treatments can slow/stop osteoarthritis.

Eligibility criteria: Patients with osteoarthritis currently undergoing any forms of treatment, residing in Ottawa, Ontario. 

Confidentiality protocols: Not applicable

Compensation Offered: No (if meeting in person, transportation and parking fees will be covered)

Study Investigators: Dr. Andy Kin On Wong and Sarah Costa

Research Host Institution: University Health Network (UHN) 

Eligibility Criteria: We are seeking specific patient partners 50 years of age and older who have knee osteoarthritis and at least one of the following:

• osteoporosis,

• have experienced a fragility (minimal trauma) fracture,

• diabetes, pre-diabetes, or metabolic syndrome,

• currently have, or have a history of deep vein thrombosis or peripheral artery disease. 

Background Information: As someone living with knee osteoarthritis, your perspective and insight are invaluable in guiding our research efforts. We believe that your involvement from the very beginning of our projects is crucial in ensuring that our research studies address the concerns and interests of individuals like yourself who are affected by arthritis.

Participation Details: In this role, you will actively contribute to shaping the research process by providing valuable insight into the types of information and outcomes that individuals with arthritis feel strongly about, or are eager to learn about. Your input will guide the design of new research goals, selection of research methods, including the analysis of diverse data sets such as imaging (CT, MRI, x-ray, DXA), hormonal profiles (estrogen and progesterone), and various surveys relating to symptoms and overall quality of life factors.

Furthermore, as a patient partner, you will contribute to the dissemination of research outcomes by participating in the planning of publications. You may also have the opportunity to present abstracts at conferences alongside other investigators, amplifying the impact of our research within the scientific community and beyond.

Participation in this research opportunity can be virtual or in person, and we ask for a commitment of several 0.5 to 1-hour meetings throughout the year (2-5), and then as needed depending on how involved you wish to be in the research process. The engagement will start whenever possible and end after completing dissemination activities with the opportunity to continue for other research studies. Your geographic location should not matter but we have a preference for individuals who may be able to attend some local conference meetings within Ontario.

Confidentiality Protocols & Compensation: Rest assured; all patient information will be kept strictly confidential. You will be paid for your time to attend meetings and any travel-related expenses for in-person meetings as applicable. 

Start Date: Whenever you are available.
End Date: After publication with the potential to stay on for future projects.

Contact Information: If you are interested in becoming a patient partner or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at (416) 340-4800 x 7922 or via email at sarah.costa@uhn.ca.