Isabelle Dumont

Dr. Isabelle Dumont joined McGill University as an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work and in the Department of Oncology in the Fall 2009. She also works as a researcher in psychosocial oncology at the Segal Cancer Center of the Jewish General Hospital (JGH). Prior to joining McGill and the JGH, Dr. Dumont obtained a B.A. in psychology and a M.A. and PhD in social work at Université Laval in Quebec City. After obtaining her PhD in 2006, she spent a year and a half in New York City as a postdoctoral research fellow at the renowned Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), where she conducted research on therapeutic interventions designed for families having to cope with cancer. Providing care to a close one is a role that most of us will have to play at one point in our life. Dr. Dumont's PhD dissertation was based on a longitudinal study of non professional caregivers who provided care for a family member. More specifically, she used a mixed method approach to study the aspects of caregiving that are most likely to have an influence on the grieving process. Her interviews with family caregivers convinced her that more research needed to be done on their psychosocial needs and on interventions devoted to the couple or the family as a unit. In her postdoctoral training, she mainly worked on the Family Focus Grief Therapy, a brief therapy, designed by David Kissane, MD, which aims at improving family adjustment during palliative care and the associated bereavement. She undertook an observational study of family therapy sessions that involved a microdissection of therapists' interventions, particularly the types of questioning used (based on Karl Tomm's framework) and their therapeutic effect on the family. As she worked on the FFGT at MSKCC, Dr. Dumont enrolled for a year-long theoretical and clinical training in couple and family therapy at the Ackerman Institute for the Family. When she moved to Montreal in 2008, she began the three year Family and Couple Therapy Training Program at the JGH. Convinced that the best clinical interventions are evidence-based and that the best research stems from an acute understanding of the reality of clinical work on the ground, Dr. Dumont continues to see couples and families at the JGH and at the Collectif de psychothérapie populaire de la Rive-Sud.

Education Family and Couple Therapy Training Program, Montreal Jewish General Hospital, 2008-2010

Postdoctoral Training, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, 2006-2008.

Foundations in Family Therapy and Live Clinical Training, Ackerman Institute for the Family, New York City, 2007-8.

PhD, School of Social Work, Université Laval, 2006

M.A, School of Social Work, Université Laval, 2001

B.A., Department of Psychology, Université Laval, 1997

• Employment 2009-present Assistant Professor School of Social Work, McGill University

Department of Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University

2009 – present Couple and Family Therapist Collectif de psychothérapie populaire de la Rive-Sud

2004- present Affiliated Researcher

Louise Granofsky Psychosocial oncology research team (LG-POP), Jewish General Hospital (Segal Center)

Équipe de recherche en soins palliatifs et en oncologie psychosociale de la Maison Michel-Sarrazin/Centre de recherche clinique et évaluative en oncologie (Hôtel-Dieu de Québec/Université Laval)

2006 Course Instructor

School of Social Work, Université Laval

2002 Clinical Intern Maison Michel-Sarrazin, Québec City (Palliative Care Center)

2004- present Affiliated Researcher

Louise Granofsky Psychosocial oncology research team (LG-POP), Jewish General Hospital (Segal Center) Équipe de recherche en soins palliatifs et en oncologie psychosociale de la Maison Michel-Sarrazin/Centre de recherche clinique et évaluative en oncologie (Hôtel-Dieu de Québec/Université Laval)

Areas of interest

• Psychosocial Oncology
• Palliative Care
• Couple And Family Therapy
• Bereavement Description of Current Research

Description of current research

Dr. Isabelle Dumont is currently working on a research project involving 1) the validation and adaptation of a screening tool, the Family Relationships Index (FRI), for psychosocial risk in families of advanced cancer patients in order to guide health professionals in the referral process and 2) a needs assessment describing the perspectives of families on their needs in terms of psychosocial interventions within cancer care and the resources available in a specialized cancer center in Montreal. She will also work on a project in collaboration with Dr. Louise Picard (Université Laval). This project aims to elaborate, validate and implement a screening tool for couple living with cancer and at risk of experiencing distress. • Grants – Fellowships 2007-09 Postdoctoral Fellowship, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) 2007-09 Postdoctoral Fellowship, Chaire en soins palliatifs de l'Université Laval 2007-09 Postdoctoral Fellowship, Centre de recherche de l'Hôtel-Dieu de Québec 2001-2005 PhD Fellowship, Fonds de Recherche en Santé du Québec (FRSQ)

Dumont, I, Dumont, S., Gagnon, P., Looking After a Dying Cancer Patient : Prospective Study on the Family Primary Caregivers' Psychological Distress and Related Factors Before and After the Death. (in preparation)

Dumont, I., Kissane, D. (2009). Techniques for framing Questions in Conducting Family Meetings in Palliative Care. Palliative & Supportive Care. 7:163-170.

Dumont, I, Dumont, S., Mongeau, S. (2008). End-of-Life Care and the Grieving Process: Family Caregivers Who Have Experienced the Loss of a Terminal Phase Cancer Patient. Journal of Qualitative Health Research. 18(8), 1049-1061.

Dumont, I., Dumont, S. & Turgeon, J. (2005). Continuity of Care for Advanced Cancer Patients. Journal of Palliative Care. 21(1), 49-58.

Dumont, I. (2005). L'être humain : un constant devenir jusqu'à la fin. Discussion de questions éthiques. Les Cahiers de soins palliatifs. 6 (2), 11-20.

Dumont, I. Dumont, S. (2005). L'accompagnement de la personne en fin de vie et le deuil. Les Cahiers de soins palliatifs. 6(1), 55-65.

Dumont, I. (2005). La détresse psychologique vécue par les proches aidants et les répercussions sur le processus de deuil. Actes du 15e Congrès du Réseau Québécois de Soins Palliatifs (RQSP), mai 2005, CD-ROM

Dumont, I. (2004). La solidarité autour de la mort : pour un engagement véritable envers les soins en fin de vie. Les Cahiers du 27 juin, 2(1), 34-39.

Dumont, I., Le Bourdais, M., Morin, S. (2000). L'influence des facteurs sociodémographiques sur la sensibilité à l'égard de la pauvreté. Revue canadienne de service social, 17(2), 293-306.