Health Care Access Research and Developmental Disabilities (H-CARDD)

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Learn how we are supporting wellness and mental health for people with developmental disabilities and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic. Visit hcarddcovid.com/info to learn more

Who are we?

Our team of scientists, clinicians, service providers, policy makers and people with developmental disabilities work together to improve the health and health care of adults with developmental disabilities. We have been studying the health and health care of over 66,000 adults with developmental disabilities in Ontario since 2010.

Health Care Toolkits

We developed two toolkits to assist clinicians and primary care and emergency care providers to improve their practices with patients with developmental disabilities. These toolkits include clinician tip sheets, patient handouts‎, information on local resources, and step by step instructions on how to implement changes. Download a copy or contact us at hcardd@camh.ca for more information.

In the health care resources section of this website you will find more tools and information for people with developmental disabilities and caregivers, as well as clinicians and service providers. These tools can help communicating important information in a health care setting. They also include information about health and developmental disabilities, and provide best practice tips for health care providers.

New & Featured

See how we have been addressing the mental health and health of adults with developmental disabilities and their families during COVID-19 pandemic on our COVID resource page.

August 2022: New publication: Mental health and COVID-19: The impact of a virtual course for family caregivers of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities

July 2022: New publication: ‘More together than apart’: The evaluation of a virtual course to improve mental health and well-being of adults with intellectual disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic

May 2022: New publication: Premature mortality in a population-based cohort of autistic adults in Canada

April 2022: New publication: "This Is About My Health”: Partnering with Patients and Families to Share Knowledge and Tools about Healthcare Communication for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

March 2022: New publication: Intellectual/developmental disabilities among people incarcerated in federal correctional facilities in Ontario, Canada: Examining prevalence, health and correctional characteristics

February 2022: New publication: Improving capacity to care for patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities: The value of an experiential learning model for family medicine residents

February 2022: New publication: The mental health and well‐being of adults with intellectual disability during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A narrative review

January 2022: New publication: Intensive Use of Forensic Inpatient Services by People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Ontario, Canada: Prevalence and Associated Characteristics

January 2022: New publication: The Nuts and Bolts of Health Care: Evaluating an initiative to build direct support professional capacity to support the health care of individuals with intellectual disabilities

October 2021: New publication: Virtual health care for adult patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A scoping review

March 2021: New publication: The wellbeing and mental health care experiences of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities during COVID-19

June 2020: New publication: The prevalence and health status of people with developmental disabilities in provincial prisons in Ontario, Canada: A retrospective cohort study