Health and Aging - Research Centres and Labs

The Health and Aging field of study has several large research centres and laboratories that provide students with unique and innovative research opportunities. These include 3 Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) funded regional and national centres and laboratories:

CFI-Funded Research Centres:

CFI-Funded Laboratories:

Aging and Community Health Research Lab

Other key laboratories include the Occupation in Later Life Laboratory, Neuromuscular Integration Research Laboratory, Clinical Exercise Physiology Assessment Laboratory, Aging and Communication Laboratoryand the Physical Function and Aging Laboratory.

There are 20 inter-disciplinary faculty members in the Health and Aging field, along with an abundance of clinical and academic research laboratories and resources. Graduate students enrolled in this field are provided with opportunities to work collaboratively with seniors “in situ” in their own living environments. The field provides an unparalleled bio-psycho-social framework within which students can investigate issues unique to an aging population, and it offers a one-of-a-kind opportunity for students to build their knowledge and research skills. The MSc and PhD degree tracks in the Health and Aging field of study provide students with critical knowledge and the skills to prepare for, or enhance, their careers in working with older individuals.

Research faculty in the Health and Aging field study the complexities of aging (including across the lifespan and from prevention to end of life) and provide students with learning opportunities that examine both individual and population-level factors related to the health and well-being of older individuals. Topics include, but are not limited to, demographic and population trends; normal and abnormal aging; physiology of aging; common age-related conditions and diseases; the concept of frailty and the complex interaction of disease, disability, and function with advancing age; geriatric rehabilitation; social determinants of health and aging; evolving models of care; and contextual factors such as the environment, health system design, and health system capacity. Students are challenged to think critically about the health system and policy needs driven by an aging population.

Responding to the health needs of an aging population is one of the most significant challenges facing health care systems world-wide and policy-makers locally, nationally, and internationally. Demographic trends indicate a rapidly growing aging population, in particular individuals 75 years of age and older, the fastest growing sub-group