Research Awards

The Barbara Hanes Memorial Award was established in honour of her work as an Occupational Therapy Director at the Arthritis Society, Ontario Division, and her contributions as a teacher and a contributing author to the rheumatology textbook Physical Therapy in Arthritis. This award recognizes the best scientific abstract submitted by an occupational therapist.

2025 Barbara Hanes Memorial Award Karine Toupin-April, PhD The recipient of the 2025 AHPA Barbara Hanes Memorial Award is Karine Toupin-April, PhD for her abstract entitled "How Are Determinants of Health Inequities Related to Decision-Making in Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Care? a Narrative Synthesis". Dr. Toupin-April is an Associate Professor in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences and with the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Ottawa and is affiliated with the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute. Her research in pediatric and adult rheumatology includes developing PROMs, clinical practice guidelines, patient decision support interventions and self-management tools. She is Chair of the AHPA Research Committee. View Past Award Winners

The Carolyn Thomas Award was established in honour of Carolyn Thomas, a founding member of AHPA who supported research. It is given to the first author of the year’s best scientific abstract.  The recipient of this award will also be presented with an opportunity to present their work as a Plenary presentation at the annual Canadian Rheumatology Association Annual Scientific Meeting.

2025 Carolyn Thomas Award Susan Bartlett The recipient of the 2025 AHPA Carolyn Thomas Award is Susan Bartlett PhD for her work entitled "Distinct Symptom Clusters Predict Initial Response to Methotrexate in Adults with New Rheumatoid Arthritis: a Longitudinal Analysis of the Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort". Dr. Bartlett is a clinical psychologist and Professor of Medicine at McGill University in the Divisions of Clinical Epidemiology, Rheumatology, and Respiratory Medicine. She is co-founder of the McGill Centre for Health Measurement, a senior researcher with the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Arthritis Research Canada, and the Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort. Her research focuses on patient-centred research, measurement development, treatment adherence, and psychosocial factors that impact treatment outcomes. She is Chair of the AHPA Research Committee, the Association of Rheumatology Professionals Board, the NIH PROMIS Board of Directors. View Past Award Winners

The Trainee Abstract Award was established to recognize research being done by allied health in summer studentships, graduate programs or post-doctoral fellowships. This award is given for the best scientific abstract submitted by a trainee. 

2025 Best Trainee Abstract Award Mahta Rafieinia The recipient of the 2025 AHPA Trainee Award is Mahta Rafieinia for her abstract entitled "A Scoping Review of Approaches to Treat Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Symptoms to Inform the Expanded Version of the JIA Option Map". Mahta Rafieinia is a doctoral candidate in Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Ottawa, conducting research on juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) under the supervision of Professor Karine Toupin-April, to help children and youth with JIA manage their symptoms. Originally from Iran, Mahta moved to Canada in 2022. With a background in occupational therapy, she has extensive experience working with children and youth, focusing on functional development, mobility, and adaptive interventions.  View Past Award Winners

The ACPAC SIG Abstract Award is given for the best abstract submitted by an ACPAC SIG member.

2025 ACPAC SIG Abstract Award Julie Herrington The recipient of the 2025 ACPAC SIG Abstract Award is Julie Herrington for her abstract entitled "Development of National Clinical Practice Guidelines for Transition in Rheumatology". The recipient of the 2025 ACPAC SIG Abstract Award is Julie Herrington for her abstract entitled "Development of National Clinical Practice Guidelines for Transition in Rheumatology". Julie Herrington is an ACPAC clinician with the pediatric and young adult rheumatology teams at McMaster Children’s Hospital and an Assistant Clinical Professor (Adjunct) with the School of Rehabilitation Science at McMaster University.  She is a recent Masters graduate and the current ACPAC SIG Chair. She has focused her research on the role of Advanced Practice Physiotherapists in the healthcare system, as well as transition care for young adults as they move from pediatric to adult health care systems.  She has been part of an incredibly dedicated group of health professionals working on the transition clinical practice guidelines for the last several years with the goal of improving the quality of transition care in Canada.  View Past Award Winners