Funding of $8.3 million given to brain projects

TORONTO – Twenty-six new projects are receiving an investment of more than $8.3 million from the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI) to accelerate solutions that can help improve the quality of life and care for older adults with dementia and cognitive health issues.

Among the funded projects:

• A home-based appliance that organizes and accurately dispenses multiple medications for older adults with chronic illnesses.
• A social network that provides peace of mind to families, by enabling them to search for qualified, reliable caregivers who can provide in-home care designed to mitigate physical and cognitive decline for their loved ones.
• A brain health assessment tool that can help older adults answer the question: “Is my memory normal or should I see my doctor?”

The projects are part of three new CABHI programs: the Industry Innovation Partnership Program, the Researcher-Clinician Partnership Program, and the Knowledge Mobilization Partnership Program.

Led by researchers, clinicians and companies worldwide, the projects promote public and private collaborations among several industry and healthcare organizations. These organizations are working together to test solutions and/or support dissemination and adoption of innovations in the seniors care sector – helping to drive economic development in Ontario, Canada and beyond.

“CABHI is a key facilitator of collaborations among innovators, healthcare providers, private and public sector partners, government and consumers,” said Dr. William Reichman (pictured), president and CEO, Baycrest Health Sciences and CABHI.

“Through CABHI, we are continually testing and scientifically validating brain health technologies and care practices both on our campus and offsite with partner organizations, leading to quicker adoption and uptake in the market. We will continue to do this critical work, thanks to the generous support from all our government partners.”

According to the World Health Organization approximately 47.5 million people worldwide have dementia and 7.7 million new cases are diagnosed each year.

Enter CABHI, led by Baycrest Health Sciences. In 2015, CABHI was established to accelerate innovative solutions in the seniors care sector that can help to improve the quality of life and care for older adults living with dementia or experiencing cognitive challenges.

The Centre’s programs support health care professionals, researchers and companies worldwide to develop, test and bring innovative solutions to the seniors care sector at an accelerated pace. In doing so, CABHI fosters a culture of innovation in the seniors care sector across Canada, and increases the capacity for testing and adoption of new and innovative solutions that will transform health care for older adults.

“CABHI funding will enable us to test Karie, an automated medication delivery device, in a real healthcare setting. This solution aims to improve the quality of life of older adults by enabling them to manage their multiple medications independently, while delivering important updates to family members, caregivers, or physicians should doses be regularly missed,” said Spencer Waugh, CEO of Ace-Age.

“The support of CABHI in brokering this relationship and providing the funding for this testing will help us to commercialize our solution in the Canadian market, and generate the evidence to prove that Karie will improve quality of life for seniors.”

Funding for CABHI is provided by the Government of Canada through the Public Health Agency of Canada, the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science, and the Baycrest Foundation.

“This funding from CABHI will help us disseminate our solution for individualized medication management for long-term care residents living with dementia more broadly across the province, allowing for greater adoption and resulting in increased safety and quality of care for residents taking multiple medications,” said Candace Chartier, chief executive officer and project lead at Ontario Long Term Care Association.