Contact
Interim Dean & Professor, School of Public Health
- jeffreyj@ualberta.ca
- Phone
- (780) 492-9266
- Address
-
2-040G Li Ka Shing Centre For Research
8602 112 St NWEdmonton ABT6G 2E1
Overview
About
I am a pharmacist by training and a health outcomes researcher. My interest is in diabetes management, at both the population and health system levels, including diabetes surveillance and the assessment of the quality and efficiency of health care for type 2 diabetes. I direct the Alliance for Canadian Health Outcomes Research in Diabetes (ACHORD) based in Alberta Diabetes Institute at the University of Alberta. Through the ACHORD Group, I have led health outcomes research through epidemiologic, pharmacoepidemiologic, health-related quality of life and economic evaluations. My colleagues and I are particularly interested in the evaluation of policies and alternative care delivery strategies to improve the quality and efficiency of care in diabetes. Our research has been influential in the development of clinical practice guidelines and health policies related to diabetes care, locally, nationally and internationally. I also lead a productive line of research and application of health-related quality of life measurement, including various applications in controlled trials, population health, and health care system evaluation (e.g., PROMs programs).
I have a long history of working with national and provincial agencies, both government and non-government, in areas of diabetes and public health policy and research. I was the co-chair of the Scientific Working Group for the National Diabetes Surveillance System (NDSS) from 2005 to 2009, where I advised the Public Health Agency of Canada on the future direction for the NDSS. I worked closely with Alberta Health in a variety of roles. I have served as a member of the Expert Committee on Drugs and Therapeutics, advising the Minister of Health on the Alberta Drug Benefit List from 2005 until 2015. I was also actively involved in the implementation of the Alberta Diabetes Strategy, where from 2007 to 2012, I led the Alberta Diabetes Surveillance System (ADSS), and from 2008-2015 I lead the the Alberta’s Caring for Diabetes (ABCD) project evaluating strategies to improve the quality and outcomes of primary care for people with type 2 diabetes. From 2012 to 2014 I served as the inaugural Scientific Director for Diabetes, Obesity and Nutrition, Strategic Clinical Network, Alberta Health Services.
In addition, I have served as a reviewer for a number of scientific journals, and research funding agencies, including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions (formerly the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research), and the Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA). I was a member of the Institute Advisory Board for the CIHR Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes from 2006 to 2012. I served on CDA National Research Council, as the chair of Committee III, responsible for funding of population health, health services, clinical/lifestyle intervention and diabetes education research. I have been a member of the EuroQol Group since 1996 and serve on the Board of Directors of the EuroQol Research Foundation. I am also a founding member of the Diabetes & Cancer Research Consortium, which was recently recognized as an official Working Group of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.
Degrees
PhD, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, 1996
MSc, College of Pharmacy, University of Saskatchewan, 1994
BSP (with Distinction), College of Pharmacy, University of Saskatchewan, 1988
Awards
University of Alberta Centennial Professor, 2012-2019
Alberta Pharmacy Centennial Award of Distinction, Alberta College of Pharmacists/Pharmacists Association of Alberta, 2011
University of Alberta Killam Annual Professorship, 2010
Senior Health Scholar Award, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research, 2009
CDA Young Scientist Award, Canadian Diabetes Association, 2008
Canada Research Chair, Government of Canada, 2007
Keywords
diabetes
epidemiology
health economics
health outcomes
health services
HRQL and population healthpharmacoeconomics
pharmacoepidemiology
Courses
SPH 530 - This is Public Health
This course is an introduction to: how the field of public health has evolved, views of health and wellness, determinants of health, social justice and health inequities, systems thinking, core public health functions, community-based strategies and interventions to improve public health, intercultural competence, Indigenous ways of knowing, and the role of evidence in public health planning and evaluation. The course uses a problem-based learning (PBL) approach to respond to a specific public health crisis in real time. PBL is based on the complex problems encountered in the real world as a stimulus for learning and for integrating and organizing learned information and concepts in public health in ways that will ensure recall and application to future public health problems. The course also introduces Canadian experiences related to Indigenous history, treaties, and Indigenous values and creates an environment where students can reflect on their position as individual public health practitioners and their collective role in advancing reconciliation in public health. SPH 530 is the required first course for the degree of Master of Public Health in General Public Health.
SPH 541A - Public Health Practice & Professional Skills I
Building on foundational concepts, knowledge, and skills introduced in pre and corequisite courses and continuing with problem-based learning, students work in teams to address challenging public health scenarios. The course emphasizes qualities and skills for effective team work essential in public health practice, including critical thinking, self-awareness, reflection and reflexivity, collaboration, and deliberation. Implications of normative, Indigenous and anti-oppressive approaches to effective teamwork are introduced to shape principles to guide effective practice. Students practice skills required for conceptualizing and assessing public health problems and planning interventions, including systems thinking, using evidence, assessing stakeholders and community members, anticipating and transforming conflict, applying ethical principles, and communicating effectively. SPH 541 is a required course for the degree of Master of Public Health in General Public Health. Prerequisites: SPH 530, SPH 536. Corequisites: SPH 535, SPH 537, SPH 562, SPH 563, or consent of instructor.
SPH 541B - Public Health Practice & Professional Skills I
Building on foundational concepts, knowledge, and skills introduced in pre and corequisite courses and continuing with problem-based learning, students work in teams to address challenging public health scenarios. The course emphasizes qualities and skills for effective team work essential in public health practice, including critical thinking, self-awareness, reflection and reflexivity, collaboration, and deliberation. Implications of normative, Indigenous and anti-oppressive approaches to effective teamwork are introduced to shape principles to guide effective practice. Students practice skills required for conceptualizing and assessing public health problems and planning interventions, including systems thinking, using evidence, assessing stakeholders and community members, anticipating and transforming conflict, applying ethical principles, and communicating effectively. SPH 541 is a required course for the degree of Master of Public Health in General Public Health. Prerequisites: SPH 530, SPH 536. Corequisites: SPH 535, SPH 537, SPH 562, SPH 563, or consent of instructor.
SPH 604 - Advanced Theory and Research Methods in Public Health
In depth exploration of current topics in public health research including: epidemiology, health service delivery, health policy, sociobehavioural approaches, occupational and environmental health. All PhD students are required to complete this course. Note: Credit may not be obtained for both PHS 604 and SPH 604.
Scholarly Activities
Research - Alberta PROMs and EQ5D Research & Support Unit - APERSU
APERSU (Alberta PROMs and EQ-5D Research and Support Unit) is an intermediary office that connects the EuroQol Foundation with non-commercial users of EQ-5D instruments and other patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) in the province of Alberta, Canada.
APERSU offers many services including registering and licensing the use of EQ-5D instruments, as well as supporting research and use of EQ-5D and other patient reported outcome measures in Alberta.
APERSU was developed in partnership with Alberta Health Services (AHS), Health Quality Council of Alberta (HQCA), and the EuroQol Foundation, and is hosted at the School of Public Health, University of Alberta.
APERSUResearch - Alliance for Canadian Health Outcomes Research in Diabetes (ACHORD)
The Alliance for Canadian Health Outcomes Research in Diabetes (ACHORD) is an emerging team in diabetes research, in Canada and internationally. ACHORD Investigators and collaborators have been involved individually and in collaboration in various sectors of health research, namely the clinical, health services and population health sectors.
ACHORDResearch - Evaluation of CACP by General Practitioners and Pharmacists in Alberta
The purpose of this collaborative research program is to evaluate the implementation of two complementary chronic disease management (CDM) initiatives in Alberta. The first initiative was a new health service code (03.04J) introduced 2009 to compensate family physicians for developing a comprehensive annual care plan (CACP) for their patients with chronic disease multimorbidity. CACP are intended to assist in the coordination and overall management of good patient care by improving patient self-management education. The second initiative in 2013 was a new reimbursement model for enhanced pharmacy services, aimed at patients with similar patterns of chronic disease and multimorbidity. Under this new model, community pharmacies can be reimbursed for providing standard medication management assessments (SMMA) or the development of CACP, similar to the family physician model. While introduced separately, each initiative is intended to support CDM by improving the quality of primary health care provided to people with chronic conditions, while containing costs. However, it is not known how the implementation of has affected the development of CACPs, and whether the effects have altered patterns of health care and outcomes for patients, or indeed, whether the patients themselves have perceived any change in the quality of the care they receive.
Featured Publications
Xie F, Pullenayegum E, Gaebel K, Bansback N, Bryan S, Ohinmaa A, Poissant L, Johnson JA
Medical Care. 2016 January; 54
Johnson JA, Lier DA, Soprovich A, Qiu W, Al Sayah F, Majumdar SR
Am J Prev Med. 2016 January; 51 (1):e13-e20
Ye M, Robson P, Eurich D, Vena J, Xu JY, Johnson JA
Prev Med. 106
Johnson JA, Sayah FA, Rees S, Qiu W, Chik C, Chue P, Florence P, Jacquier J, Lysak P, Opgenorth A, Katon W, Majumdar SR.
Diabetes Care. 37 (12):3220-3226
Crick K, Al Sayah F, Ohinmaa A, Johnson JA
Quality of Life Research. 27 (6):1625-1633