Curious about CanFASD’s impact over the last year? Our 2023-2024 Annual Report offers a glimpse into CanFASD’s remarkable achievements.
Canada FASD Conference
The first-ever Canada FASD Conference took place in Saskatoon in November 2023. The sold-out event brought together over 500 attendees to share what they know about FASD. These included researchers, caregivers, individuals with FASD, policymakers and professionals. The conference’s unique program connected those with lived experience of FASD with researchers and practitioners in the field. The program covered a wealth of topics that intersect with FASD, including justice, diagnosis, and prevention.
Research in Action
From 2023-2024 CanFASD had 37 published articles and 117 presentations and interviews. We have also published 59 research projects, 18 technical reports, 8 book chapters and 30 trainees. The prevention team published the annual annotated bibliography of articles published on prevention in 2023, and CanFASD also released their top articles of 2023. Dr. McLaughlin and Dr. Pei continue to lead the work on the COMPASS project and are putting the final touches on the design of the tool which remains strongly aligned with Toward Healthy Outcomes. Dr. McLachlan led a project focused on increasing capacity to identify and support individuals with FASD in British Columbia.
Indigenous Relations
Our newest Research Lead has provided guidance with respect to cultural awareness, cultural humility and working together with communities. Dr Tremblay has infused a cultural safety perspective into a project exploring substance use treatment in FASD populations. They will have the opportunity to action these values through funding recently awarded from the University of Calgary One Child Every Child Strategic Catalyst Grant. Over the next three years, this funding will allow them to co-create, together with community partners, a Canadian FASD Indigenous Framework for assessment, diagnosis, and support that is strength- based and centres Indigenous knowledges and cultures.
Thank You
We are grateful for the ongoing commitment and support of all our partners, which enables us to facilitate meaningful research and evidence-based program and policy development. Since our inception, we have worked closely with our provinces and territories, building a niche of expertise related to prevention, interventions, and diagnostics.
Related Content
Found this blogpost interesting? We’d recommend checking out the following resources:
- Become a member of CanFASD – get real-time updates on the latest research projects the CanFASD team are working on.
- Donate to the FASD Lived Experience Leadership Fund – support people with lived experience to participate in research.
- Identifying Best Practices for FASD – online training designed for professionals working in the substance use, mental health, housing, employment, justice, and other service delivery fields.