Research Profile – Research on Wheels

Mobile lab studies mental health, addiction and violence issues in Ontario communities.

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Mental health and substance use problems often occur together, and are strongly associated with violence. A lot is not known about why they emerge and how they can be prevented or treated in different communities. A mobile research laboratory is helping find the answers.

The mobile lab is part of the Researching Health in Ontario Communities (RHOC) program and was spearheaded by a multidisciplinary team of researchers from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). It is a 34-foot trailer which contains a lab with computers and equipment, and an interview area for community participants.

This lab-on-wheels will travel to a wide range of communities including those in rural, Northern, urban, and First Nations settings, according to lead researcher Dr. Samantha Wells, a CAMH scientist and associate professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Western Ontario.

“Researchers will not only identify factors linked to these complex issues, but also capture people’s real experiences accessing and receiving help when they have mental health problems,” Dr. Wells says. Understanding these issues will help clarify where deficiencies are in the system.

Improving services in ways meaningful to individual communities could lead to earlier treatment for people with mental illness and prevent existing problems from growing worse. The intent is to elucidate both individual and community-level factors that contribute to these problems.

To date, researchers have collected data in six communities from more than 1,000 people (a mix of people from the general population and those with mental health and addiction problems) to examine a range of issues related to mental health, substance use and violence.

The lab stays in each community for three to five months, but is staffed by people from the community who are trained to do the research, and who contribute valuable insights into the community. It will visit up to 20 communities over the next several years.

The researchers are collecting details on rates of mood and anxiety disorders; levels and sources of stress; experiences of partner and non-partner violence; alcohol and other drug use; disabilities and the burden they cause; and service utilization. In addition to conducting interviews, the researchers are collecting biological samples – hair, to examine cortisol (a biological marker of stress), and saliva, to examine genetic vulnerabilities to mental health and substance use problems.

Although data collection and analyses are ongoing, the research team already has some important findings. For one, they found associations between cortisol and substance abuse.

Cortisol, a hormone produced by the body in response to stress, is associated with cardiovascular disease, and reduced immune function. Analyses of hair samples revealed significant correlations between cortisol and harmful drinking patterns as well as tobacco use.

In-depth interviews of individuals with mental health and/or substance use problems revealed important details about their experiences in seeking and receiving care. Researchers found that major barriers to care include transportation issues and costs, and the perception that some health care workers were unsympathetic.

“Participants commonly felt that their mental health problems originated in childhood and that substance abuse was a coping mechanism used to deal with childhood trauma,” says Dr. Wells. However, participants reported that many health care professionals, including family doctors, psychiatrists and hospital staff, often do not address these underlying causes.

Research on conflict in intimate relationships among young adults found that aggression and violence were often linked to mental health or substance use problems in one or both partners.

“That means programs addressing mental health and substance use problems among young adults may consequently reduce the risk of partner violence. As well, addressing aggression and violence in relationships early in life may be an important factor in alleviating mental health and substance abuse problems,” says Dr. Wells.

The mobile lab project will add to our scientific knowledge of mental health and addiction diseases, which cost Canadians an estimated $6.3 billion each year in direct costs, and an additional $8.1 billion in indirect costs.

“Researchers will not only identify factors linked to these complex issues, but also capture people’s real experiences accessing and receiving help when they have mental health problems.”
– Dr. Samantha Wells, University of Western Ontario