Sarina Isenberg
MA, PhD
Investigator
Chair in Mixed Methods Palliative Care Research
Bruyère Health Research Institute
Assistant Professor
Department of Medicine and School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa
Assistant Professor
Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto
Adjunct Professor
Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Affiliate Investigator
Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Adjunct Scientist
Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES)
About:
Sarina Isenberg’s, PhD, mixed methods research focuses on examining access to palliative care for marginalized and non-cancer populations, and testing ways to improve access and quality of care. She often conducts cohort studies using large health administrative datasets, economic evaluations using administrative and Electronic Medical Records (EMR) data, systematic reviews and meta-syntheses, qualitative and mixed methods studies, participatory design and patient and caregiver engagement, and arts-based knowledge translation.
Isenberg has been a co-principal and a co-investigator on 49 research projects (totaling $51.8 million) supported by national and international funding agencies. She has published over 76 peer-reviewed publications in leading health services and palliative medicine journals, including the Canadian Medical Association Journal, Journal of the American Medical Association, British Medical Journal, Medical Care, Palliative Medicine, and the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.
Her research achievements have been recognized with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Rising Star Early Career Award in Health Services and Policy Research (2022), the University of Ottawa Faculty of Medicine Early Career Researcher of the Year Award – Public Health and Epidemiology (2022), the University of Ottawa Department of Medicine PhD Scientist Award (2022), the University of Toronto Department of Family and Community Medicine Award of Excellence in Research – New Investigator (2020), and the American Association of Hospice Palliative Medicine Research Scholars Program (2020).
Isenberg has a PhD in Social and Behavioural Sciences from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a Masters of Arts in English Literature from Queen’s University, and a Bachelors of Arts in English Literature from McGill University. Prior to pursuing her PhD, she worked as a management consultant for Deloitte’s National Health Services Team in Toronto.
Research Interests:
Access to palliative care for marginalized and non-cancer populations, hospital-to-home transitions near end of life, mixed methods, qualitative methods, patient and caregiver engagement, arts-based knowledge translation.
Select Publications:
Quinn K, Stukel TA, Campos E, Graham C, Kavalieratos D, Mak S, Steinberg L, Tanuseputro P, Tuna M, Isenberg SR. (2022). Regional collaborative home-based palliative care and health care outcomes among adults with heart failure. CMAJ.
Vincent D, Peixoto C, Kyeremanteng K, Quinn K, Lalumiere G, Kurahashi A, Gilbert N, Isenberg SR. (2022). Virtual home-based palliative care during COVID-19: A qualitative exploration of the patient, caregiver and healthcare provider experience. Palliative Medicine.
Isenberg SR, Meaney C, May P, Quinn K, Qureshi D, Saunders S, Tanuseputro P, Seow H, Smith TJ, Husain A, Lawlor PG, Fowler R, Lachance J, McGrail K, Hsu AT. (2021). The association between varying levels of palliative care involvement on costs during terminal hospitalizations in Canada from 2012 to 2015. BMC Health Services Research.
Isenberg SR, Killackey, T, Saunders S, Scott M, Ernecoff N, Bush ST, Varenbut J, Lovrics E, Stern MA, Hsu AT, Bernstein M, Zimmermann C, Wentlandt K, Mahtani R. (2021). “Going home [is] just a feel-good idea with no structure”: A qualitative exploration of patient and family caregiver expectations and experiences of transitioning from hospital to home in palliative care. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.
Isenberg SR, Tanuseputro P, Spruin S, Seow H, Goldman R, Hsu AT. (2020). Cost-effectiveness of investment in end-of-life home care to enable death in community settings. Medical Care.
Contact:
sisenberg@bruyere.org
Learn more at the Isenberg Lab