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Timothy H. Wideman

Academic title(s): 

Associate Professor

Timothy H. Wideman
Contact Information
Address: 

Office: H-303b, Hosmer House, 3630 prom. Sir-William-Osler

Mailing address: 3654 prom Sir-William-Osler, Montreal, QC, Canada, H3G 1Y5

Lab location: Constance Lethbridge Rehabilitation Centre

Email address: 
timothyhoward.wideman [at] mcgill.ca
Position: 
Associate Professor; Chercheur régulier, C.R.I.R. (Centre de recherche interdisciplinaire en Réadaptation) du Montréal métropolitain www.crir.ca
Office: 
H-303b
Degree(s): 

B.Sc. (PT), McGill University; PhD Experimental Psychology, McGill University; Postdoctoral Fellowship, Johns Hopkins University

 

Teaching areas: 

Integrated Pain Management (PHTH 622)

 

Current research: 

The overarching goal of Dr. Wideman’s research is to improve care for people living with pain. He approaches this goal by advancing research related to the following three themes:

 

Theme 1: Understanding and targeting biopsychosocial risk factors for prolonged pain and disability.

This line of work aims to explore how different risk and resilience factors influence the recovery trajectory of patients with musculoskeletal pain. Dr. Wideman’s past work has focused on psychological risk factors, such as pain catastrophizing, fear and resilience. His more recent work has focused on sensitized responses to physical activity engagement, such as increased levels of pain intensity or negative, pain-related thoughts that are specifically provoked by pain-related physical activities.

Sample work related to Theme 1:

  • Wideman TH, Asmundson G, Smeets R, Zautra A, Simmonds M, Sullivan M, Haythornthwaite J, Edwards R. Re-thinking the fear avoidance model: Toward a multi-dimensional framework of pain-related disability. Pain, 2013; 154 (11): 2262-2265. DOI: 10.1016/j.pain.2013.06.005.
  • Wideman TH, Finan P, Edwards R, Quartana, P, Buenaver L, Haythornthwaite J, Smith M. Increased sensitivity to physical activity among individuals with knee osteoarthritis: Relation to pain outcomes, psychological factors and responses to quantitative sensory testing. Pain, 2014; 155 (4): 703-711. DOI: 10.1016/j.pain.2013.12.028.
  • Woznowski-Vu A*, Uddin Z*, Flegg D*, Aternali A, Wickens R, Sullivan M, Sweet S, Skou S, Wideman TH. Comparing novel and existing measures of sensitivity to physical activity among people with chronic musculoskeletal pain: the importance of tailoring activity to pain. Clinical journal of pain, 2019; 35 (8): 656-667. DOI: 10.1097/AJP.0000000000000732.

 

Theme 2: Improving entry-level pain education for health professionals through large-scale knowledge translation initiatives

Dr. Wideman’s research in this area has primarily focused on advancing a national knowledge translation project to improve how physical therapists are trained to manage pain across Canada. Current research priorities focus on developing and implementing a standardized assessment of pain management competency and on exploring strategies for improving how pain education is approached within entry-level training programs.

Sample work related to Theme 2:

  • Wideman TH, Miller J*, Bostick G, Thomas A, Bussières A. Advancing pain education in Canadian physiotherapy programs: Results of a consensus-generating workshop. Physiotherapy Canada, 2018; 70 (1): 24-33. DOI: 10.3138/ptc.2016-57.
  • Wideman TH, Miller J*, Bostick G, Thomas A, Bussières A, Wickens R. The current state of pain education within Canadian physiotherapy programs: a national survey of pain educators. Disability and rehabilitation, 2020; 42 (9): 1332-1338. DOI: 10.1080/09638288.2018.1519044.

 

Theme 3: Developing person-centred approaches to pain assessment and management that help validate and support people living with pain.

Dr. Wideman’s research in this area has focused on developing new ways of conceptualizing and approaching pain assessment that better address subjective experiences related to pain, such as suffering. Working with a team of international researchers, he recently published the Multi-modal Assessment of Pain (MAP) model, which aims to provide a pragmatic framework for further integrating subjectivity within assessment and clinical care. Dr. Wideman is currently working with team members to advance new projects in this area that focus on better defining what “person centred pain management” means to health providers and people living with pain as well how to best assess and address health provider stigma associated with persistent pain.

Sample work related to Theme 3:

  • Wideman TH, Edwards R, Walton D, Martel M, Hudon A, Seminowicz D. The multi-modal assessment model of pain: A novel framework for further integrating the subjective pain experience within research and practice. Clinical journal of pain, 2019; 35 (3): 212-221. DOI: 10.1097/AJP.0000000000000670.
  • Wideman TH, Boom A*, Dell’Elce J*, Bergeron K*, Fugere J*, Lu X*, Bostick G, Lambert H. Change narratives that elude quantification: A mixed-methods analysis of how people with chronic pain perceive the impact of pain rehabilitation. Pain research and management, 2016; Article ID 9570581. DOI:10.1155/2016/9570581.

 

Supervision: Dr. Wideman is currently accepting graduate students and post-doctoral fellows and prioritizing applicants related to Themes 2 and 3 (described above)

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