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Citizen Science is a social movement that brings members of the public together to participate in research projects. As a Citizen Scientist for this project, for example, you will join forces with health scientists in British Columbia by providing information about your experience of living with long COVID.

The purpose of Citizen Science is to learn from people like you so we can all learn more about the burden of living with long COVID. Researchers will use this information to generate future research questions that will ultimately help you and others like you.

The Citizen Science team

Linda Li

(Co-Lead)

Dr. Linda Li is Professor and Harold Robinson/Arthritis Society Chair at the Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, and Senior Scientist at Arthritis Research Canada. She holds a Canada Research Chair in Patient-oriented Knowledge Translation. Dr. Li’s research centers on improving the care for people with arthritis and supporting patient self-care. Her work focuses on the integration of online, mobile, and wearable tools in health care. Dr. Li’s work in knowledge translation and implementation science has led to a new line of studies on the benefits of engaging patients and the public in the research process. Her work has been recognized by a Distinguished Scholar Award from the U.S. Association of Rheumatology Professionals.

Kimberlyn McGrail

(Co-Lead)

Dr. Kimberlyn McGrail is a professor in the UBC School of Population and Public Health and Centre for Health Services and Policy Research, director of research for UBC Health, and scientific director of Population Data BC and Health Data Research Network Canada. Her research interests are quantitative policy evaluation and all aspects of population data science. Kim is deputy editor of the International Journal of Population Data Science, 2016 recipient of the Cortlandt JG Mackenzie Prize for Excellence in Teaching, and 2017 recipient of a UBC award for Excellence in Clinical or Applied Research. She is currently a member of the Global Partnership for AI as part of the Data Governance Working Group. She is also part of the Expert Advisory Group for the pan-Canadian Health Data Strategy.

Sian Hoe Cheong

(Patient Partner)

Sian Hoe Cheong is a COVID survivor and a patient partner with the long COVID Patient Experience Project. He works in project planning & planning. When not at work, he likes to travel, enjoy the outdoor activities (from soccer, volleyball to being a beach bum), watch movies and enjoy all variety cuisine offered in the city. (324)

Lorraine Graves

(Patient Partner)

Lorraine Graves turned her passion for medicine into a career as a science and medicine reporter. She’s worked for Global, CTV and CBC news and hosted her own show “Breakthrough” on the CBC network. She thrives on learning for a living and interacting with diverse community members. In March 2020, Lorraine contracted COVID-19 and is currently living with long COVID.
Today, participating in research projects, as a subject or an advisor, gives her a chance to keep learning and to feel involved in the world, even if from the sidelines.

Tony Lanier

(Patient Partner)

Tony Lanier is a resident of Vancouver BC. Professionally, Tony has developed customer care solutions for several corporations in 5 countries and now works with his partner’s healthcare practices. Tony is active on two boards, O’DeLa Arts, with a mandate to support Canadian Indigenous choreographer Olivia C. Davies in creation, production, community-engaged projects, creative collaboration, and commissions, as well as Brothers of the Desert, with a purpose to change the dynamics that produce isolation, disconnection, and inequities among Black gay men in the Coachella Valley.

Kim Maybee

(Patient Partner)

Kim Maybee is a mother of two who splits her time between Vancouver and Nanaimo. Her passion in life is helping people. She’s lived that passion in many ways; first through a long career working in the mental health field and also through volunteer advocacy efforts to help reduce the stigma of the unseen in the world, including people experiencing chronic pain, mental illness or homelessness. As someone living with long COVID, she wants to use her voice to reduce stigma around COVID and its aftereffects.

Mark O’Brien

(Patient Partner)

Mark O'Brien is a patient volunteer with the Patients as Partners initiative of the Patient Voices Network. He is a high school teacher in Toronto. As a sufferer of long-haul COVID, it has affected both his physical and mental health. At one point, symptoms were such that it required a medical leave from work.

Gord Woodward

(Patient Partner)

Gord Woodward is a patient partner who had COVID in December 2020 and still has symptoms today. A communications specialist and business consultant, he has spent decades working for health and safety organizations to promote prevention of illness and injury.

Alison Hoens

(Knowledge Broker)

Alison Hoens is a clinical professor and physical therapy knowledge broker. She has worked with many teams of patients, researchers, and health care providers to create tools that help get the right information to the right people in ways that they find most helpful.

Lori Last

(KT/Communications Coordinator)

Lori Last is a communications consultant with a passion for telling the stories of the people who make our health care system work and those they serve. She has held senior leadership roles with Michael Smith Health Research BC and the Provincial Health Services Authority. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree and a certificate in business communications from Simon Fraser University.

Stephanie Therrien

(Research Coordinator)

Stephanie Therrien is a research coordinator at Arthritis Research Canada. She earned two Bachelor of Arts degrees, one in Psychology and one in Criminology, from Simon Fraser University, along with a minor in Counselling and Human Development.

Karen Tran

(Researcher)

Dr. Karen Tran is a general internal medicine specialist at Vancouver General Hospital and BC Women's Hospital. She is a clinical assistant professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Her primary clinical and research interest is in hypertension, digital health technology and women's health. She is the research scholar for internal medicine at the Post-COVID-19 Interdisciplinary Clinical Care Network.

Alyson Wong

(Researcher)

Dr. Alyson Wong is a respirologist at St. Paul’s Hospital and clinical assistant professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Her primary clinical and research interest is in Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD). Her research focuses on the economic burden of ILD and the integration of health economics into clinical research. She also leads respiratory research for the Post-COVID-19 Interdisciplinary Clinical Care Network.