Empowering Aging Adults to Live Autonomous Lives Through Community-Based Research

Elicia Chamoun has an Honours BA in Anthropology and currently works as a Research Analyst at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute (KITE) in Toronto, Ontario. She is a part of the DATE Lab (Dementia, Aging, Technology and Engagement) where she researches how technology can empower the aging population to become independent and autonomous.

I remember sitting in AN101 back when I was a first-year student at Laurier and realizing that I needed to switch my major to anthropology. AN101 convinced me that anthropology was the discipline that would align best with my interests in human culture and behavior and help me attain my long-term career goals of making an impact in the community. I had the opportunity to take a variety of different anthropology courses on topics related to the environment, law, religion, economics, and business. The courses available in the Anthropology Program at Laurier are unique and allow students to think critically, ethically, and holistically while looking at the globe through an anthropological lens.

Fast forward to the final year of the program. We were required to take AN410 Ethnographic Methods in Anthropology which allowed us to conduct our own qualitative research project in the community. This course provided me with the necessary skills to design a community-based research project from the ground up. After conducting participant observation and interviews with the residents of Waterloo, I wrote an ethnographic report where I presented my findings about the importance of community and space during my fieldwork.

After graduating in 2016, I started working at Community Care Durham, a local non-profit agency that focuses on providing support to older adults in order to enable them to age in place. This community organization provides social service programs such as meals-on-wheels, transportation to medical appointments, and adult day programs for people with dementia. These programs allowed older adults to stay out of institutions such as long-term-care homes by providing the necessary programs to remain independent. They also give caregivers some relief by providing support to their loved ones. With my anthropology background, I was well-equipped when I received a full-time job as a service coordinator which involved providing client and volunteer management for the organization’s many clienteles. My role as a service coordinator allowed me to advocate for older clients with cognitive impairments, mobility issues, and financial inequalities in my community while assessing their needs on a daily basis. Anthropology prepared me for this work by teaching me about the importance of community and providing me skills to advocate for those who need to be heard. 

In my current role as a researcher at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, my anthropology background has prepared me to objectively analyze data, to work directly in the community in diverse settings, and to work collaboratively with clinicians, clients, participants, caregivers and other researchers. I am able to contribute a social science perspective to our research team which often involves using my effective presentation and communication skills. Aside from data collection and analysis, the research team I am part of works with stakeholders in the community such as Seniors’ Centers, Community Care agencies, and clinics that support people with mild cognitive impairment. Through our projects, we demonstrate the capabilities of people with dementia, and show that they are able to learn new things by introducing them to technology. Our lab focuses on using technology to provide social engagement, and as a tool for self-management purposes. 

I decided to get involved in community-based research in order to address issues I was hearing about from clients, caregivers, and clinicians, namely, that health services are becoming less accessible to people, and to understand why older adults are so isolated in their communities. Community empowerment is one of the many things I have learned about in anthropology. I have been able to apply the anthropological toolbox I acquired during my degree to community-based issues such as aging. I strongly believe that community health advocacy and anthropology share similar qualities and characteristics. For example, anthropology has given me the desire to create a sustainable impact in my community and the ability to problem-solve in order to make positive change.

I strongly believe the needs I witness while working in the community and conducting community-based research can be addressed by analyzing health policy and reducing social isolation through program planning and evaluation. This in turn will relieve the gaps and systemic barriers to healthcare and social support. I am close to completing a Certificate on Aging and Gerontology at Ryerson University. The learning I have done for this certificate effectively complements what I learned in my anthropology courses at Laurier. In the future, I hope to pursue a professional graduate program in public policy in order to take my applied anthropology skills further and use them in the field of public health on a larger scale. In this way I hope to continue along my career path of supporting healthy communities and social development all the while continuing to use my anthropological toolbox.

May 19, 2020