Why is it important to engage community partners in research?

By collaborating with and engaging community and multisectoral partners, we help to address community needs and priorities by generating relevant, timely, and useful knowledge. Working in this way advances both science and practice in public and population health.

Chronic Disease Prevention Survey

Chronic Disease Prevention Survey

The Chronic Disease Prevention Survey measures the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of policy influencers (decision makers in government, schools, media, and other large organizations) and the [...]

Benchmarking Food Environments

Benchmarking Food Environments

Good food and nutrition are essential to promoting the health of children and youth. Healthy eating promotes child growth and development, learning and even the prevention of diet-related chronic [...]

Evaluation of Innovative Preschool Play Spaces

Evaluation of Innovative Preschool Play Spaces

Why is play in early childhood important? Early childhood free play experiences can influence a child’s developmental, mental and physical health, impacting them for the rest of their [...]

Idea Readiness Tool

Idea Readiness Tool

School communities are great incubators of new ideas, but launching a new idea is not always easy. The Idea Readiness Tool (IRT) can be used to help launch a new idea in a school community.

Policy Readiness Tool

Policy Readiness Tool

The Policy Readiness Tool (PRT) is a self-administered tool that can be used to assess a community’s or organization’s readiness for policy change. The PRT includes a brief checklist that can be [...]

Diffusion of Healthy Public Policies

Diffusion of Healthy Public Policies

Governments and other decision-making bodies rarely make policy decisions in isolation. Instead, they often learn from each other to develop and implement policies that are best suited for their [...]

POWER UP!

POWER UP!

Policy Opportunity Windows – Engaging Research Uptake in Practice (POWER UP!) was a team of researchers, practitioners, and policy makers who worked together to share knowledge and evidence [...]

Community Health and the Built Environment

Community Health and the Built Environment

To better understand how a community environment helps or hinders people’s healthy choices, we worked in collaboration with four communities in Alberta: Bonnyville North Central [...]

Collaborative Projects and Publications

Collaborative Projects (Selected)

Collaborative Publications (Selected)

  • Nykiforuk, C.I.J. (2021). Engaging patients in research using photovoice methodology. CMAJ, Epub 2021 July 12. DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.210963 https://www.cmaj.ca/content/193/27/E1050
  • Nykiforuk, C.I.J., Glenn, N.M., Hosler, I., Crowe, H., Reynard, D., Molner, B., Candlish, J., & Lowe, S. (2021). Understanding urban accessibility: A community-engaged pilot study of entrance features. Social Science & Medicine, 273:113775. Epub 2021 March 1:1-10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.113775
  • Glenn, N.M., Allen Scott, L., Hokanson, T., Gustafson, K., Stoops, M., Day, B., & Nykiforuk, C.I.J. (2021). Community strategies to reduce the impact of financial strain and promote financial well-being: a comprehensive rapid review. Global Health Promotion, 28(1):42-40. Epub 2021 February 18. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757975920984182
    Special issue on Health Promotion Perspectives on the COVID-19 Pandemic, accessible at: https://journals.sagepub.com/page/ped/collections/covid-19
  • Atkary, M.L., Caron-Roy, S., Sajobi, T., O’Hara, H., Leblanc, P., Dunn, S., McCormack, G., Timmins, D., Ball, K., Downs, S., Minaker, L.M.,Nykiforuk, C.I.J., Godley, J., Milaney, K., Lashewicz, B., Fournier, B., Elliott, C., Raine, K.R., Prowse, R., Olstad, D.L. (2020). Impact of a farmers’ market nutrition coupon program on diet quality and psychosocial well-being among low-income adults: protocol for a randomized control trial and a longitudinal qualitative investigation. BMJ Open, 10:e035143. doi: 1136/bmjopen-2019-035143 https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/10/5/e035143.full
  • Glenn, N.M., Kongats, K., Cowie, H., Guimond, J.K., Nykiforuk, C.I.J. (2020). Promoting children’s play in Calgary, Alberta: a case study of collective impact and municipal leadership. Cities and Health. https://doi.org/10.1080/23748834.2020.1779994
  • Nykiforuk, C.I.J., Rawson, D., McGetrick, J.A., Belon, A.P. (2019). Canadian policy perspectives on promoting physical activity across age-friendly communities: lessons for advocacy and action. Ageing and Society, 39(2): 307-339. Epub 2017 Sep 11. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X17000939
  • Nieuwendyk, L.M., Belon, A.P., Vallianatos, H., Raine, K.D., Schopflocher, D., Spence, J.C., Plotnikoff, R.C., Nykiforuk, C.I. (2016). How perceptions of community environment influence health behaviours: using the Analysis Grid for Environments Linked to Obesity framework as a mechanism for exploration. Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada: Research, Policy and Practice, 36(9): 175-184. Epub 2016 Sep 22. DOI: 24095/hpcdp.36.9.01
  • Lytvyak, E., Olstad, D.L., Schopflocher, D.P., Plotnikoff, R.C., Storey, K.E., Nykiforuk, C.I.J., Raine, K.D. (2016). Impact of a 3-year multi-centre community-based intervention on risk factors for chronic disease and obesity among free-living adults: the Healthy Alberta Communities study. BMC Public Health, 16(1): 344. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-3021-1
  • Sopcak, N., Aguilar, C., Nykiforuk, C.I.J., O’Brien, M.A., Aubrey-Bassler, K., Cullen, R.M., Heatherington, M., Grunfeld, E., Manca, D.P. (2017). Patients’ perspectives on BETTER prevention and screening: qualitative findings from Newfoundland & Labrador. British Journal for General Practice (BJGP) Open. BJBP-2017-0061. Epub 2017 Aug 8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgpopen17X101037
  • Sopcak, N., Aguilar, C., O’Brien, M.A., Nykiforuk, C., Aubrey-Bassler, K., Cullen, R., Grunfeld, E., Manca, D.P. (2016). Implementation of the BETTER 2 program: a qualitative study exploring barriers and facilitators of a novel way to improve chronic disease prevention and screening in primary care. Implementation Science, 11:158. Epub 2016 Dec. DOI: 10.1186/s13012-016-0525-0
  • Manca, D.P., Campbell-Scherer, D., Aubrey-Bassler, K., Kandola, K., Aguilar, C., Baxter, J., Meaney, C., Salvalaggio, G., Carroll, J.C., Faria, V., Nykiforuk, C., Grunfeld, E. (2015). Developing clinical decision tools to implement chronic disease prevention and screening in primary care: the BETTER 2 program (building on existing tools to improve chronic disease prevention and screening in primary care). Implementation Science, 10(1):107. DOI:1186/s13012-015-0299-9. PMID: 26238338
  • Raine, K.D., Sosa Hernandez, C., Nykiforuk, C.I.J., Reed, S., Montemurro, G., Lytvyak, E., MacLellan-Wright, M-F. (2014). Measuring the progress of capacity building in the Alberta Policy Coalition for Cancer Prevention. Health Promotion Practice, 15(4): 496-505. Epub 2013 Dec 13. DOI: 1177/1524839913511627 PMID: 24334541
  • Montemurro, G., Raine, K., Nykiforuk, C.I.J., Mayan, M. (2014). Exploring the process of capacity-building among community-based health promotion workers in Alberta, Canada. Health Promotion International, 29(3): 463-73. Epub 2013 Feb 27. DOI: 1093/heapro/dat008
    PMID: 23445941