Jessica

McAnulty

Given social worker student Jessica McAnulty's research interests, coming to Lakehead just made sense.

Having been surrounded by older adults while growing up, McAnulty developed a passion for gerontology from an early age. Lakehead offered a master's with a specialization in the subject as well as a number of impressive research opportunities under well-established professionals in the field.

As her supervisor had a SSHRC grant in one of her key areas of interest, palliative care in long-term care facilities, McAnulty was invited to come on as a Graduate Student Trainee. This meant that she received a scholarship to work on her program, was invited to participate and present at team meetings, and attended several conferences to relay the accomplishments of the national project. She was also provided with a laptop to assist with data collection, data analysis, and knowledge translation. "During this traineeship, I was accepted within a group of national and international researchers as more than 'a student' and was treated like I was a part of the team."

McAnulty was also able to assume a placement at the Centre for Education and Research on Aging & Health (CERAH) on the Age Friendly Thunder Bay Committee. Here, she worked with a number of different community organizations who aspired to have Thunder Bay recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO). This placement offered McAnulty the chance to gain considerable experience in community development, during which she even made a deputation to City Council.

While these opportunities provided McNaulty with a chance to put the topics and concepts she learned in class into practice, they also served to broaden her horizons, enrich her education, and significantly add to her thesis on palliative care programs in long-term care homes.

"I believe that I had many research experiences throughout my studies that I would not have had elsewhere."