“Future research needs to focus not only on the biological markers of autism but also include data about functioning, participation, and environmental barriers and facilitators.”
Dr. Olaf Kraus de Camargo// Developmental Pediatrician
MacART is laying the foundation for creating a systematic way of linking scientific research on autism at McMaster University to clinical practice at McMaster Children’s Hospital.
The physical proximity of McMaster Children’s Hospital, Hamilton Health Sciences, and McMaster University has a number of characteristics that provides the rare opportunity for collaborative research. Taking advantage of existing university and clinical infrastructure and cross-appointments for clinicians at the university, autism experts from these organizations are coming together to integrate autism research into clinical practice.
The focus of MacART members’ research is in the areas of basic science, clinical practice, clinical research, epidemiology and statistical modelling, knowledge translation and exchange, and social science research. By promoting the collaboration of stakeholders across disciplines, MacART is reducing barriers to implementing research in clinical practice, with the goal of advancing autism care through meaningful research.
MacART members are now supervising more than 50 research trainees at the undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate levels, and are engaged in the mentoring of junior and intermediate faculty members.
In the future, we intend to establish research and clinical training programs for students in McMaster’s undergraduate medical, health sciences, and psychology programs, and for residents and fellows in Pediatrics and Psychiatry.
By training and mentoring emerging researchers and practitioners, we will help to solidify their understanding of and commitment to using basic science to inform their clinical practice, and to use their clinical experience to help formulate research questions. It is our belief that involving these learners in MacART educational activities will promote their use of practices that advance autism care through meaningful research.
Community
“Our scientists are working collaboratively with local clinicians to generate the evidence needed to improve autism services. This symposium is a great example of McMaster’s community engagement efforts.”
Dr. Patrick Deane // Former President & Vice-Chancellor // McMaster University
The community engagement component of MacART strives to work with stakeholders and involve them as partners in every step of the research process. By doing so, the questions that drive research begin to change. They become more meaningful because they address the real day-to-day challenges faced by children and their families, and the clinicians supporting them.
MacART aims to increase participation and involvement of members of the McMaster and Hamilton communities in the research process. With community members driving the research, new and relevant knowledge can be produced to bridge the research-to-practice gap in autism and advance autism care through meaningful research.
Policy
“People whose lives are connected to the challenge of autism can share knowledge – from clinicians to educators to parents – and what an amazing opportunity that is. We have a real opportunity to translate challenges into research, and research into practice that will help families living with Autism.”
Rob MacIsaac // President & CEO // Hamilton Health Sciences
Policies should be created using the best available evidence that make positive impacts on the lives of Autistic individuals, along with their families.
MacART’s founder, Dr. Stelios Georgiades, serves on both federal and provincial advisory committees about Autism supports/service funding. Along with the wide-ranging expertise of its many autism experts, MacART is set to act as a highly credible source of evidence-based information to influence and inform public policy about the provision and funding of autism diagnosis, services, and family supports.
MacART will continue to find ways to collaborate with policymakers to both learn more about the policymaking process, and to contribute our expertise and knowledge to inform policymaking, in order to advance Autism care through meaningful research.
“Future research needs to focus not only on the biological markers of autism but also include data about functioning, participation, and environmental barriers and facilitators.”
Dr. Olaf Kraus de Camargo// Developmental Pediatrician
MacART is laying the foundation for creating a systematic way of linking scientific research on autism at McMaster University to clinical practice at McMaster Children’s Hospital.
The physical proximity of McMaster Children’s Hospital, Hamilton Health Sciences, and McMaster University has a number of characteristics that provides the rare opportunity for collaborative research. Taking advantage of existing university and clinical infrastructure and cross-appointments for clinicians at the university, autism experts from these organizations are coming together to integrate autism research into clinical practice.
The focus of MacART members’ research is in the areas of basic science, clinical practice, clinical research, epidemiology and statistical modelling, knowledge translation and exchange, and social science research. By promoting the collaboration of stakeholders across disciplines, MacART is reducing barriers to implementing research in clinical practice, with the goal of advancing autism care through meaningful research.
MacART members are now supervising more than 50 research trainees at the undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate levels, and are engaged in the mentoring of junior and intermediate faculty members.
In the future, we intend to establish research and clinical training programs for students in McMaster’s undergraduate medical, health sciences, and psychology programs, and for residents and fellows in Pediatrics and Psychiatry.
By training and mentoring emerging researchers and practitioners, we will help to solidify their understanding of and commitment to using basic science to inform their clinical practice, and to use their clinical experience to help formulate research questions. It is our belief that involving these learners in MacART educational activities will promote their use of practices that advance autism care through meaningful research.
Community
“Our scientists are working collaboratively with local clinicians to generate the evidence needed to improve autism services. This symposium is a great example of McMaster’s community engagement efforts.”
Dr. Patrick Deane // Former President & Vice-Chancellor // McMaster University
The community engagement component of MacART strives to work with stakeholders and involve them as partners in every step of the research process. By doing so, the questions that drive research begin to change. They become more meaningful because they address the real day-to-day challenges faced by children and their families, and the clinicians supporting them.
MacART aims to increase participation and involvement of members of the McMaster and Hamilton communities in the research process. With community members driving the research, new and relevant knowledge can be produced to bridge the research-to-practice gap in autism and advance autism care through meaningful research.
Policy
“People whose lives are connected to the challenge of autism can share knowledge – from clinicians to educators to parents – and what an amazing opportunity that is. We have a real opportunity to translate challenges into research, and research into practice that will help families living with Autism.”
Rob MacIsaac // President & CEO // Hamilton Health Sciences
Policies should be created using the best available evidence that make positive impacts on the lives of Autistic individuals, along with their families.
MacART’s founder, Dr. Stelios Georgiades, serves on both federal and provincial advisory committees about Autism supports/service funding. Along with the wide-ranging expertise of its many autism experts, MacART is set to act as a highly credible source of evidence-based information to influence and inform public policy about the provision and funding of autism diagnosis, services, and family supports.
MacART will continue to find ways to collaborate with policymakers to both learn more about the policymaking process, and to contribute our expertise and knowledge to inform policymaking, in order to advance Autism care through meaningful research.
On April 2nd we celebrate World Autism Acceptance Day. This day is not just about raising awareness, but also about fostering acceptance and promoting inclusion for the more than 75 million Autistic people worldwide. In Canada, 1 in 50 children and youth between the ages of 1 to 17 are Autistic, according to the Public
On March 27, 2024, McMaster Child Health Research Day (MCHRD) was held at CIBC Hall at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. This annual event is a knowledge translation forum that was developed in collaboration with academic and community partners across Hamilton. The day brought together academic learners and research staff supervised by faculty in McMaster
We are pleased to announce the release of the 2022-2023 MacART Progress Report. This comprehensive report illustrates the breadth of initiatives that our members have contributed toward over the last two years. It highlights the hard work, dedication, and collaborative efforts of the team and the significant impact of our members’ work on advancing autism
The Kids Brain Health Network (KBHN) recently hosted their 14th annual conference in Ottawa, Ontario. This year’s theme was “Celebrating 14 years of helping kids live their best lives” and aimed to bring together attendees interested in neurodevelopmental disabilities. From October 21st to 24th, attendees participated in engaging discussions, learned from top experts in the
We are pleased to introduce you to the three successful recipients of the 2023 Martha and Vincent Wagar Intellectual Disability and Autism Research Fund graduate student award! About the research fund: The Martha and Vincent Wagar Intellectual Disability and Autism Research Fund provides graduate students in the Faculty of Health Sciences the opportunity to pursue leading-edge research,
We invite autistic adults (18+ years) and caregivers of autistic children of any age to participate in the 2023 Pandemic Canadian Autism Needs Assessment Survey. This is a survey to better understand the evolving impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on you and the services and supports you access. Purpose of the survey Participation This is an
October is Autism Awareness Month in Canada! This month, and every month, Canadians must improve our understanding and awareness of how to better support Autistic people, families, and caregivers. Beyond this, we must do our part to encourage Autism acceptance across Canada. In recognition of Autism Awareness Month, the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, provided a
The PARC Study co-investigative team is pleased to announce that registrations are open for our first PARC Speaker Series virtual Zoom talk! It will be hosted by Dr. Elizabeth Kelley, a PARC co-investigator working with the Kingston, Ontario site. This talk is free and open to the public, meaning that anyone regardless of whether they are currently
Autism research has increasingly called researchers to employ longitudinal trajectory methods (i.e., collecting data at three or more timepoints) to understand different developmental pathways of Autistic people across the lifespan. This area of exploration has been a core focus for many among the MacART team. According to MacART member Dr. Stephen Gentles, trajectory studies involve
We are excited to share the incredible news that at the 2023 Canadian Autism Leadership Summit, the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health announced $214,883 in funding for a project to create and distribute a national needs assessment survey for Autistic adults! This research project is led by MacART member Dr. Mackenzie Salt in collaboration with the Autism Alliance
