KBHN Researcher Wins Mitacs Award for Closing Gap in Support Services Available to Canadian Families Experiencing Aggression in the Home

First-of-their-kind initiatives help families facing pandemic-driven increases in dangerous behaviours involving children with neurodevelopmental disabilities

Vancouver, BC — November 23, 2022 — More children living with neurodevelopmental disabilities started or escalated aggressive behaviours at home during the pandemic, according to a survey assessing the needs of families who accessed support programs during that particularly difficult time— when Queen’s University-based and Kids Brain Health Network (KBHN) researcher, Maude Champagne discovered this unmet need, she decided to take action.

Now, her effort to fill a gap in Canadian support services is bringing three innovations to the caregiver community: Canada’s first-ever nonviolent resistance (NVR) therapy program, the first National Consortium on Aggression Toward Family/Caregivers in Childhood and Adolescence (AFCCA), and a brand new AFCCA Family Support Program.

This groundbreaking work has earned Champagne the Mitacs Award for Outstanding Innovation—PhD. In a ceremony at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa on November 22, the award was presented by Mitacs—a national organization that fosters growth by solving business, health, and social challenges with research solutions from academic institutions.

Champagne — a PhD candidate working under the supervision of Professor James Reynolds, Chief Scientific Officer at KBHN, a national network that is putting science to work for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities — is being recognized for revealing this pattern of unmet needs for families and caregivers, and playing an instrumental role in bringing stakeholders together to devise solutions. As a psychotherapist and mother of five children, four of whom have a neurodevelopmental disability, Champagne is uniquely positioned to understand the daily challenges facing the caregiver community.

“We knew at the start of the pandemic that caregivers were burnt out, so we thought we’d do a survey about services to make sure their needs were being met, and as part of that we asked how they were managing during COVID,” said Champagne, who interviewed families throughout the fall of 2020. “To our surprise, the most notable finding was that they were willing to open up about aggression towards family members, and how it was aggravated by lockdowns,” she said.

When she couldn’t find applicable resources in Canada, Champagne looked abroad and discovered NVR, an innovative form of systemic family therapy that is widely used in the U.K. to manage aggressive, violent, controlling and self-destructive behaviour in young people. Champagne and Reynolds negotiated a collaboration agreement with leading practitioners of NVR in the U.K., and quickly rolled out a pilot program by the fall of 2021 that enrolled a small group of families in the 13-week intervention.

Dr James Reynolds, Chief Scientific Officer, Kids Brain Health Network, said, “This recognition of Maude’s work also demonstrates the ongoing value and impact of collaboration between academia, community organizations, and families that is central to the mission of KBHN. It reaffirms the commitment of the Network to bring organizations and researchers together to identify, validate and spread these types of programs that will have this enormous impact and benefit for kids and families.”

Champagne also forged a collaboration between KBHN and Adopt4Life, an Ontario association for adoptive parents and caregivers, to fund and host a national consortium on AFCCA. The consultation brought together experts from across Canada, including people with lived experience, researchers, policy makers, and representatives from provincial and federal government agencies, that resulted in the generation of a comprehensive report and set of recommendations for further research and action to address the unmet needs and challenges of families experiencing aggression in the home.

Based on the findings contained in this report, which revealed escalating mental health issues, barriers to belonging at school and in community, strained family relationships and, in some cases, having to live separately from their families, Champagne is now working with Adopt4Life to build Ontario’s first AFCCA Family Support Program from the ground up with funding from the Ontario Ministry of Children Community and Social Services. Parent and caregivers in Ontario who need help can now access resources by registering on Adopt4Life’s existing Parent2Parent Support Network.

“We’re trying to improve the quality of life of both the caregiver and the child, for everyone in the family to be safe both physically and emotionally,” said Champagne, who hopes to see all three initiatives continue to grow.

With the support from this consortium of organizations including KBHN, rapid deployment of these interventions was made possible.

“KBHN’s focus on listening to communities’ and families’ needs has continued to inspire my work. I feel like we share the same values of empowering and hearing the needs of families. KBHN is working really hard to bring equity to this work, and we’re all learning together,” Champagne said.

The Mitacs Award for Outstanding Innovation—PhD is presented to a doctoral graduate student who has made a significant achievement in research and development innovation during their Mitacs-funded research.

Champagne is one of eight Mitacs award winners nationally, chosen from thousands of researchers who take part in the organization’s programs each year. The remaining seven recipients were recognized for outstanding innovation, commercialization or exceptional leadership in other areas of research.

Congratulating the winners, Mitacs CEO John Hepburn said, “These prestigious awards, now in their 12th year, celebrate the tremendous achievement of top Mitacs talent and recognize the infinite potential for innovation made possible when capable leaders work together.” Hepburn added, “Mitacs is honoured to play a role in helping to advance critical research, and foster economic growth, across Canada.”

About Kids Brain Health Network (KBHN)

KBHN is a national network that develops and harnesses scientific advances in technologies, interventions and supports with the goal of helping children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and their families live the best lives. The science of children’s brain health is making advancements and KBHN is bridging the gaps between these scientific advances and implementing solutions that directly address the needs of children and families. In delivering on its mission, KBHN is advancing federal responsibilities and priorities aimed at building a healthier future for all kids. More information is available at: https://kidsbrainhealth.ca/

About Mitacs

Mitacs is a not-for-profit organization that fosters growth and innovation in Canada by solving business challenges with research solutions from academic institutions. It is funded by the Government of Canada and the Government of British Columbia, along with the Government of Alberta, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan and the Government of Yukon. For information about Mitacs and its programs, visit mitacs.ca/newsroom.