{"id":94833,"date":"2024-08-07T14:20:50","date_gmt":"2024-08-07T18:20:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=94833"},"modified":"2024-08-08T15:41:33","modified_gmt":"2024-08-08T19:41:33","slug":"crc-spotlight-brock-researcher-identifies-barriers-to-young-peoples-well-being","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2024\/08\/crc-spotlight-brock-researcher-identifies-barriers-to-young-peoples-well-being\/","title":{"rendered":"CRC Spotlight: Brock researcher identifies barriers to young people\u2019s well-being"},"content":{"rendered":"

The federal government\u2019s\u00a0<\/em>Canada Research Chairs<\/em><\/a>\u00a0program invests up to $311 million per year to attract and retain some of the world\u2019s most accomplished and promising minds. Chairholders are recognized to be national and international experts in the fields of engineering and the natural sciences, health sciences, humanities and social sciences. Brock University has\u00a0<\/em>12 active Canada Research Chairs<\/em><\/a>. This\u00a0<\/em>monthly series<\/em><\/a>\u00a0profiles the work, and lives, of Brock\u2019s Chairholders.<\/em><\/p>\n

When Karen Patte reflects on the twists and turns that led her to becoming Canada Research Chair in Child Health Equity and Inclusion<\/a>, she notes a maxim common to many in the academic world.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey say a lot of research is \u2018me-search,\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cI initially pursued graduate studies in areas that I had experienced in my own life as an adolescent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Patte\u2019s work explores socio-economic factors that detract from, or support, youth physical and mental health.<\/p>\n

The Associate Professor of Health Sciences grew up in a household that prioritized nutrition and physical activity. As a teenager, Patte became both interested in, and anxious about, weight-related topics, driven in part by what she describes as a \u201cwell-intended but harmful\u201d school health curriculum.<\/p>\n

During her graduate studies at York University, Patte researched genetic and brain processes involved in conditions such as eating disorders, obesity and addictive behaviours. As her theoretical work progressed, she started noticing trends that disturbed her.<\/p>\n

She was surprised by the level of weight stigma she witnessed in the field. She also learned about links to bullying, mental health and socioeconomic factors, largely from the painful stories of research participants.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople shared experiences with me that they hadn\u2019t told anyone before \u2014 even their closest family \u2014 because they wanted to help others,\u201d says Patte. \u201cI felt I needed to do more applied health research to have an impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

Patte took a three-year break from her PhD studies to seek treatment for her own mental health.<\/p>\n

During that time, she also pursued training in mental health and addictions counselling and worked as a counsellor, primarily at St. Michael\u2019s Hospital in Toronto.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost of the clients I saw talked about the trauma and adversity they experienced early in their lives and how that led to addiction, mental illness and homelessness,\u201d she says. \u201cI knew I needed to focus on younger populations as a way of preventing later problems.\u201d<\/p>\n

Patte explains that her time as a counsellor also emphasized the importance of engaging people as partners in research about them.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of treatments for substance use problems that had been shown to be effective in controlled research trials didn\u2019t work in practice,\u201d says Patte. \u201cOften they were not acceptable to the populations they were intended to help or didn\u2019t get at their key priorities and challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n

Patte completed her PhD program and became a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Waterloo under the direction of Professor of Health Sciences Scott Leatherdale, with whom she would come to\u00a0co-lead the long-running national COMPASS study<\/a>. The study annually collects health survey data from more than 100,000 students at more than 200 secondary schools in Ontario, Alberta, Quebec, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is funding the study until 2027.<\/p>\n

The project studies how individual, social and environmental factors, including policies and programs at schools and at the national level, interact to affect youth health and behaviours, such as mental health, substance use, sleep<\/a>, physical activity, diet, screen use and bullying.<\/p>\n

Among her many research activities, she co-leads a national youth engagement program<\/a> to amplify youth voice in the research process and decision-making.<\/p>\n

Patte is using her Canada Research Chair<\/a> to set up a national, Brock-based collaborative centre to advance child health equity research.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have learned a lot from my Brock colleagues who approach health from diverse disciplines,\u201d says Patte. \u201cThis context really nurtured me in the mixed methods work I do now and helped to develop my focus on health equity and the lifelong impacts of adverse childhood experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n

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