Kelly O’Brien, PhD, BScPT, BSc

Simonik A, Vader K, Ellis D, Kesbian D, Leung P, Jachyra P, Chan Carusone S, O’Brien KK. Are you ready? Exploring readiness to engage in exercise among people living with HIV and multi-morbidity in Toronto, Canada: a qualitative study. BMJ Open 2016;6:e010029 doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2015-010029. http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e010029.full

O’Brien KK, Solomon P, Bergin C, O’Dea S, Iku N, Stratford P, Bayoumi AM. Reliability and validity of a new HIV-specific questionnaire with adults living with HIV in Canada and Ireland: the HIV Disability Questionnaire (HDQ). Health and Quality of Life Outcomes. 2015. 13:124. http://www.hqlo.com/content/13/1/124

O’Brien KK, Ibanez-Carrasco F, Solomon P, Harding R, Cattaneo J, Chegwidden W, Gahagan J, Baxter L, Worthington C, Gayle P, Merritt B, Baltzer-Turje R, Iku N, Zack E. Advancing research and practice in HIV and rehabilitation: a framework of research priorities in HIV, disability and rehabilitation. BMC Infectious Diseases. 2014, 14:3851  doi:10.1186/s12879-014-0724-8. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2334/14/724

O’Brien KK, Solomon P, Bayoumi AM. Measuring Disability Experienced by Adults Living with HIV: Assessing Construct Validity of the HIV Disability Questionnaire using Confirmatory Factor Analysis. BMJ Open. September 1, 2014. BMJ Open  2014;4:e005456  doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2014-005456    http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/4/8/e005456.full?keytype=ref&ijkey=AYbGCcRZ5qaxaIw

O’Brien KK, Solomon P, Trentham B, MacLachlan D, MacDermid J, Tynan AM, Baxter L, Casey A, Chegwidden W, Robinson G, Tran T, Wu J, Zack E. Evidence-informed recommendations for rehabilitation with older adults living with HIV: a knowledge synthesis. BMJ Open. May  2014;4:e04692. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2013-004692. Available at: http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/4/5/e004692.full.

O’Brien KK, Davis AM, Gardner S, Bayoumi AM, Rueda S, Hart T, Cooper C, Solomon P, Rourke S, Hanna S, and the OHTN Cohort Study Team. Relationships between dimensions of disability experienced by adults living with HIV: A structural equation model analysis.  AIDS and Behavior. 2014 18:357–367. DOI: 10.1007/s10461-012-0363-2

Levac D, Colquhoun H, O’Brien KK. Scoping studies: advancing the methodology. Implementation Science. 2010, 5:69. http://www.implementationscience.com/content/5/1/69 *Highly Accessed*

O’Brien KK, Bayoumi AM, Strike C, Young N, King K, Davis AM. How do existing HIV-specific instruments measure up? Evaluating the ability of instruments to describe disability experienced by adults living with HIV.   Health and Quality of Life Outcomes. 2010. 8:88. http://www.hqlo.com/content/8/1/88

O'Brien K, Nixon S, Tynan A-M, Glazier R. Aerobic exercise interventions for adults living with HIV/AIDS. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2010, Issue 8. Art. No.: CD001796. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001796.pub3

O’Brien K, Wilkins A, Zack E, Solomon P. Scoping the field: Identifying key research priorities in HIV and rehabilitation. AIDS and Behavior. April 2010, 14:2. 448-58. DOI 10.1007/s10461-009-9528-z http://springerlink.com/content/n28462l513635112/fulltext.pdf

O’Brien K, Davis AM, Strike C, Young N, Bayoumi AM.  Putting episodic disability into context: Factors that influence disability experienced by adults living with HIV.  Journal of the International AIDS Society. November 2009, 12:30.  doi:10.1186/1758-2652-12-30. http://www.jiasociety.org/content/12/1/30.  **Highly accessed**

O’Brien K, Strike C, Davis AM, Young N, Bayoumi AM. Using exploratory focus groups to establish a sampling strategy to investigate disability experienced by adults living with HIV. Current HIV Research. Volume 7, Number 6, November 2009. 626-633

O’Brien K, Bayoumi AM, Strike C, Young N, Davis AM.  Exploring disability from the perspective of adults living with HIV/AIDS: Development of a conceptual framework. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes. 2008; 6:76. http://www.hqlo.com/content/6/1/76

O’Brien K, Tynan MA, Nixon S, Glazier RH. Effects of Progressive Resistive Exercise in Adults Living with HIV/AIDS:  Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials. AIDS Care. July 2008: 20(6): 631-653.

O’Brien K. Factor Analysis: An Overview in the Field of Measurement.  Physiotherapy Canada. 2007; 59: 142-55.

Kelly O’Brien’s research is focused on disability and rehabilitation in the context of HIV/AIDS and chronic disease.  Specific research interests include: measuring and modeling episodic disability from the perspective of adults living with HIV (Episodic Disability Framework), developing and assessing the properties of a new HIV Disability Questionnaire (HDQ), and examining the effects of exercise interventions for people living with HIV.  Methodological areas of interest include: measurement, structural equation modeling, qualitative methods, scoping studies, survey research, and systematic reviews.

Kelly is a founding member of the Canada-UK HIV and Rehabilitation Research Collaborative (CUHRRC) (http://cuhrrc.hivandrehab.ca/), member of the Ontario HIV Treatment Network Cohort Study (OCS) Scientific Steering Committee, and past Board member of the Canadian Working Group on HIV and Rehabilitation (CWGHR) (www.hivandrehab.ca).

Current Research

HIV, Health and Rehabilitation Survey (HHRS) – An online web-based survey to develop a profile of disability, rehabilitation services use and comorbidities among adults living with HIV in Canada.  Data collection is complete and analysis is ongoing. (Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research, HIV/AIDS Research Initiative.)

Translating Exercise into the HIV Community (YMCA Community-Based Exercise Study) – An intervention-based study where the primary aim is to evaluate a community-based exercise (CBE) intervention for adults living with HIV within the community. The secondary aim is to assess the measurement properties of the HIV Disability Questionnaire (HDQ) with adults living with HIV.  Pilot work is complete.  Recruitment and data collection will begin Spring 2016. (Funding:  Canadian Institutes of Health Research, HIV/AIDS Community-Based Research Program.)

Kelly teaches in the MScPT Research Curriculum in the Department of Physical Therapy.  She is co-coordinator of Unit 6 (Research and Program Evaluation for Physical Therapy Practice I) and coordinates and teaches the MScPT research curriculum in Year 1 (Unit 1 and 2) including evidence-based practice, measurement, critical appraisal, systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines.  She also guest lectures in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME) on measurement and Rehabilitation Sciences Institute (RSI) on qualitative methods.

Assistant Professor - Department of Physical Therapy, University of Toronto

Assistant Professor - Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME), University of Toronto

Assistant Professor - Rehabilitation Sciences Institute (RSI), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Assistant Clinical Professor – School of Rehabilitation Science, McMaster University