Lucyna M. Lach, Associate Professor

Lucyna Lach is an Associate Professor in the School of Social Work, McGill University and an Associate Member of the Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology/Neurosurgery in the Faculty of Medicine, McGill University. She has a special interest in health-related quality of life and parenting of children with chronic health conditions and disabilities. Dr. Lach is principal investigator for the Quebec subsample of the pan-Canadian study on Outcome Trajectories in Children with Epilepsy, a study examining determinants of health related quality of life in this population. She is also co-principal investigator of the CIHR Team in PARENTING MATTERS! The Biopsychosocial Context Of Parenting Children With Neurodevelopmental Disorders In Canada, providing leadership and training to four concurrent projects that will contribute to developing and disseminating knowledge in this area of study. Working closely with parents, clinical and institutional leaders, and policy makers, Dr. Lach hopes to increase awareness of what constitutes parenting, what makes a difference to how parents parent their child, and what difference parenting makes to child outcomes.

Dr. Lach is currently the Director of the Bachelor of Social Work Program. She teaches direct practice and theory courses at both undergraduate and graduate levels. She has reviewed grants for the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Fond de Recherche sur la Société et la Culture, and numerous peer-reviewed journals. Prior to joining the faculty at McGill University in 2001, she spent 17 years as a social worker at the Hospital For Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario where she worked in the Division of Neurology.

Dr. Lucyna Lach began her professional career as a front line social worker working with families and children with Cystic Fibrosis and neuro-developmental diagnoses at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.
In the mid 1990s, Dr. Lach became involved in a multidisciplinary project with a neurophysiologist and a nurse practitioner from her clinical setting. They set out to produce the first prospective longitudinal study on the cognitive and psychosocial outcomes of children undergoing epilepsy surgery. This project launched her academic career.
Dr. Lach returned to the University of Toronto in 1995 to complete a PhD, which she earned in 2004. When a position came up at McGill in 2001, she was hired while completing her dissertation, teaching applied courses such as Family Assessment, School Social Services and Health and Social Work, and maintaining her responsibilities as co-investigator in funded research.
To students, she hopes to be a motivator and challenge them to define their distinctive traits as social workers and to appreciate the scholarship behind their practice. She would like to encourage them to engage in research like she did, to document what they know and do, and to feel proud of the contribution that they make to interdisciplinary teams.

Education

Ph.D. (University of Toronto) 2004

M.S.W (University of Toronto) 1986

B.A. (University of Toronto) 1984

Employment

2001-present Assistant Professor

McGill University, Faculty of Arts, School of Social Work               

2004-present Associate Member

McGill University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Child Behaviour Development Program
McGill University, Faculty of Medicine, Department Neurology and Neurosurgery

1999-2000 Sessional Lecturer

University of Toronto, Faculty of Social Work

1988-2001 Social Worker

Hospital For Sick Children, Division of Neurology

1986-1988 Social Worker

Hospital For Sick Children, Chest Division

Areas of interest

• Children with chronic health conditions and disabilities and their families
• Multi-method research
• Caregiver health
• Quality of life

Description of current research

Lucyna is part of the Centre for Research on Children and Families as well as the Centre de Recherche Interdisciplinaire en Réadaptation du Montréal Métropolitain. She is currently working on several projects related to children with disabilities and chronic health conditions, and their caregivers. Among these, she is building a profile of children with disabilities who are part of the child welfare system, and is collaborating on projects that involve development and testing of models that address determinants of quality of life in youth with epilepsy and cerebral palsy. In addition, she is part of a team that is documenting and testing a model about the health of caregivers of youth with disabilities using the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth in Canada. Her research is interdisciplinary and favours a multi-method approach. It involves both the children, their families and surrounding environment.

Recent grants

Lach, L.M., Smith, M.L., Elliot, I. Giecko, T., Olds, J., Snyder, T., McCleary, L., Whiting, S., Lowe, A., & Nimigon, J. (2010) Patient-Reported Outcome of Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery: Social Inclusion or Exclusion as Young Adults? Epilepsia, in press

Ronen, G., Streiner, D.L., Verhey, L.J., Lach, L.M., Boyle, M.H., Cunningham, C.E., & Rosenbaum, P.L. (2010). Disease characteristics and psychosocial factors: Explaining the expression of quality of life in childhood epilepsy. Epilepsy & Behavior, accepted.

Nicholas, D.B., Patershuk, C., Donna Koller, D., Bruce-Barrett, C., Lach, L.M., Zlotnik-Shaul, R., & Matlow, A., (2010). Pandemic Planning in Pediatric Care: A Website Policy Review and National Survey Data. Health Policy, accepted.

Hum, K., Smith, M.L., Lach, L.M., & Elliott, I.M. (2010). Self perceptions of social function two years after pediatric epilepsy surgery. Epilepsy & Behavior, in press.

Nicholas, D., Young, N., Lach, L.M., King, G., Reisman, J., Schippel, E., Scott, M., & Sawatzky, B. (2010). Contrasting internet and face-to-face focus groups for children with chronic health conditions: Outcomes and participant experiences. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, accepted.

Lach, L.M., Kohen, D.E., Garner, R.E., Brehaut, J.C., Miller, A.R., Klassen, A.F., & Rosenbaum, P.L. (2009). The health and psychosocial functioning of caregivers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Disability & Rehabilitation, 31(8), 607-618.

Shikako-Thomas, K., Lach, L., Majnemer, A., Nimigon, J., Cameron, K., & Shevell, M. (2009). Quality of life from the perspective of adolescents with cerebral palsy: "I just think I'm a normal kid, I just happen to have a disability". Quality of Life Research, 18, 825-832.

Verhey, L.H., Kulik, D.M., Ronen, G.M., Rosenbaum, P.L., Lach, L.M.,; Streiner, D.L. (2009). Quality of life in childhood epilepsy: What is the level of agreement between youth and their parents? Epilepsy & Behaviour,14(2), 407-410.

Lach, L.M. Social challenges among children and adolescents with intractable epilepsy. In: J.W. Wheless, L.J. Willmore, & R.A. Brumback (Eds.), Advanced Therapy in Epilepsy, accepted. Hamilton, Ont: BC Decker, Inc. in press.

Brehaut, J.C., Kohen, D.E., Garner, R.E., Miller, A.R., Lach, L.M., Klassen, A.F., & Rosenbaum, P.L. Poorer health among caregivers of children with health problems: evidence from a national population-based study. American Journal of Public Health, accepted April 7, 2008.

Thomas, D.K., Majnemer, A., Law, M., & Lach, L.M. Determinants of participation in leisure activities among children and adolescents with Cerebral Palsy: A systematic review. Physical & Occupational Therapy in Pediatrics, accepted.

Lach, L.M., Kohen, D.E., Garner, R.E., Miller, A.R., Brehaut, J.C., & Klassen A.F. et al. (2008). Health and psychosocial functioning of caregivers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders: Results from the Canadian Longitudinal Study of Children and Youth. Disability & Rehabilitation, accepted January 23, 2008.

Elliott, I., Lach, L..M., & Smith, M.L. (2008) Psychosocial outcomes in children two years after epilepsy surgery: Has anything changed? Epilepsia, 49(4), 634-641.

Kohen, D.E., Brehaut, J.C., Garner, R.E., Miller, A.R., Lach, L.M., Klassen, A.F., & Rosenbaum, P.A. (2007). Conceptualizing childhood health problems using survey data: A comparison of key indicators. BMC Pediatrics, 7(40).Article available here.

Smith, M.L., Elliott, I.M., & Lach, L.M. (2006). Memory outcome after pediatric epilepsy surgery: Objective and subjective perspectives. Child Neuropsychology, 12, 151-164.

Nicholas, D., Globerman, J., Antle, B., McNeil, T., & Lach, L . (2006). Processes of Meta-Study: A Study of Psychosocial Adaptation to Childhood Chronic Health Conditions. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 5(1).

Lach, L.M., Ronen, G.M., Rosenbaum, P.L., Cunningham, C., Boyle, M.H., Bowman, S., & Streiner, D.L. (2006).  Health-related quality of life in youth with epilepsy :  Theoretical model for clinicians and researchers.  Part I:  The role of epilepsy and co-morbidity.  Quality of Life Research, in press.

Elliott, I.M., Lach L.M., Smith M.L. (2005). 'I just want to be normal': A qualitative study exploring how children and adolescents view the impact of intractable epilepsy on their quality of life.  Epilepsy & Behavior, 7(4), 664-678.

Nicholas, D., Globerman, J., Antle, B., McNeil, T., & Lach, L. (2005).  Processes of Meta-Study:  A Study of Psychosocial Adaptation to Childhood Chronic Health Conditions.  International Journal of Qualitative Methods, in press.

Oxman-Martinez, J., Hanley, J., Lach, L.M., Khanlou, N., Weerasinghe, S., & Agnew, V. (2005).  Intersection of Canadian policy parameters affecting women with precarious immigration status:  A baseline for understanding barriers to health.  Journal of Immigrant Health, 7(4), 247-258.

Kadis, D.S., Stollstorff, M., Elliott, I., Lach, L.M. & Smith, M.L. (2004).   Cognitive and psychological predictors of everyday memory in children with intractable epilepsy.  Epilepsy and Behaviour, 5, 37-43.

Lach, L.M. (2004).  Social experiences of children and adolescents diagnosed with intractable epilepsy:  Maternal representations.  Dissertation Abstracts International, 65 (05), (UMI No. AAT NQ91844).

Smith, M.L., Elliott, I.M., & Lach, L.M. (2004). Cognitive, psychosocial and family outcomes one year after epilepsy surgery.  Epilepsia, 45(6), 1-11.

Smith, M.L., Elliott, I.M., & Lach, L.M. (2002). Cognitive skills in children with intractable epilepsy:  Comparison of surgical and non-surgical candidates.  Epilepsia. 43(6), 631-637.