Erin McCabe, PhD, MScPT, BSc

Area of Study / Keywords

Patient-reported outcome measures implementation science psychometrics child and adolescent mental health physical therapy

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About

Background

I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Alberta. My focuses on patient-reported outcome measures in child and adolescent mental health services and rehabilitation. My post-doc was supported by a 2022 CIHR Health System Impact Fellowship. I graduated with an MScPT from the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Alberta in 2008, and worked clinically in a variety of settings before returning to the U of A to complete my PhD in 2021. During my PhD, I developed and validated a patient-reported experience measure for the therapeutic relationship in physiotherapy.

Credentials

Education

2021     PhD in Rehabilitation Science, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta

2008     Masters of Science, Physical Therapy, University of Alberta

2005     Bachelor of Science, Biological Sciences with Physical Sciences Minor with Distinction, University of Alberta, First Class Standing

Training

2024     National Cohort Training Program, Health System Impact Fellow, Canadian Institutes of Health Research

2024     The Fundamentals of OCAP®, First Nations Information Governance Centre

2024     Family Engagement in Research Training Program, CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research

2022     Certificate in Implementation, Scale and Spread, Centre for Implementation

2022     Value-Based Health Care, University College London, United Kingdom

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Research

My research focuses on measuring health outcomes from the patient’s perspective and how to implement patient-reported outcome and experience measures into the health system. I also have an interest in improving equitable access to rehabilitation through health systems and policy research. 

Patient-reported outcome measures are standardized questionnaires that assess health status and well-being from the child’s and their caregivers’ perspectives. Data from PROMs can be used at the individual patient level to inform care planning and monitor treatment progress. In the aggregate, PROMs provide data that enables tracking of patient outcomes across services, improves care coordination, provides deeper insights into patient needs, and contributes to a learning health system with potential to deepen our understanding of the most effective treatments and service models for children. Despite these benefits, adoption of PROMs in  health services is limited, partly because their implementation is complex, requiring organizational, technological and individual behaviour change. I use implementation science and patient engagement approaches to understand how to effectively integrate PROMs into the health system.

I also study the development and validation of PROMs in pediatric populations, and I am interested in equity in patient-reported outcomes measurement, as well as the intersection of patient-reported outcomes and access to rehabilitation services.   

I am currently recruiting highly-motivated graduate students with an interest in patient-reported outcome measures, implementation science and/or patient-engagement in research, to join my lab. If you are interested, please email me with your CV and a short statement (~300 words) outlining your research interests and how they intersect with mine.

I am currently recruiting for summer undergraduate research opportunities for a project focused on patient-reported outcomes in child and adolescent mental health. 

Erin McCabe, Michele Dyson, Deborah McNeil, Whitney Hindmarch, Iliana Ortega, Paul D. Arnold, Gina Dimitropoulos, Ryan Clements, Maria J. Santana, Jennifer D. Zwicker

Health Research Policy and Systems. 2024 July; 10.1186/s12961-024-01174-y

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Erin McCabe, Sarah Rabi, Sumedh Bele, Jennifer D. Zwicker, Maria J. Santana

Journal of Patient-Reported Outcomes. 2023 March; 10.1186/s41687-023-00563-1

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Kalpana Thapa Bajgain, Mungunzul Amarbayan, Krystle Wittevrongel, Erin McCabe, Syeda Farwa Naqvi, Karen Tang, Fariba Aghajafari, Jennifer D. Zwicker, Maria Santana

Journal of Patient-Reported Outcomes. 2023 February; 10.1186/s41687-023-00556-0

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Brandon Krebs, Andrew Nataraj, Erin McCabe, Shannon Clark, Zahin Sufiyan, Shelby S. Yamamoto, Osmar Zaïane, Douglas P. Gross

European Spine Journal. 2023 February; 10.1007/s00586-023-07552-4

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Michelle J. Kleiner, Elizabeth Anne Kinsella, Maxi Miciak, Gail Teachman, Erin McCabe, David Walton

Physiotherapy Theory and Practice. 2023 January; 10.1080/09593985.2021.1999354

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Erin McCabe, Amarbayan MM, Rabi S, Mendoza J, Naqvi SF, Thapa Bajgain K, Zwicker JD, Maria Jose Santana

Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy. 2022 November; 10.1111/hex.13650

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Erin McCabe, Mary Roduta Roberts, Maxi Miciak, Haowei Sun, Douglas P. Gross

European Journal of Physiotherapy. 2021 December; 10.1080/21679169.2021.2005138

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Erin McCabe, Maxi Miciak, Mary Roduta Roberts, Haowei Sun, Douglas P. Gross

Physiotherapy theory and practice. 2021 October; 10.1080/09593985.2021.1987604

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K Mulder, Erin McCabe, Karen Strike, JoAnn Nilson

Haemophilia : the official journal of the World Federation of Hemophilia. 2021 April; 10.1111/hae.14327

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European Journal of Physiotherapy. 2021 January; 10.1080/21679169.2020.1868572

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Housing and Society. 2021 January; 10.1080/08882746.2021.1881745

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Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health. 2020 February; 10.7870/cjcmh-2019-015

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Health Expectations. 2018 December; 10.1111/hex.12827

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McCabe E, Gross DP, Bulut O

Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation. 2018 June; 10.1007/s11136-018-1898-0

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