Sodexo funds three major research projects for the University of Ottawa LIFE Research Institute

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Man holding pencil over papers in meeting with another

Critical research projects in the areas of peri-maternal nutrition, technological advances for the elderly, and health care trends for First Nations people with disabilities 

Sodexo and the University of Ottawa LIFE Research Institute are proud to announce the launch of three major research projects aimed at improving the lives of Canadians.

Sodexo, a world leader in delivering food services, facilities management and over 100 quality of life services, has identified the areas of peri-maternal nutrition, technological advances for the elderly and health care trends for First Nations people with disabilities as the projects set to receive more than $217,000 for the first year of this three-year collaboration with uOttawa.

The projects include:

  • By drawing on a novel social nutrition approach, the hope is to decrease maternal and infant health inequalities. A collaborative interdisciplinary partnership will focus on psychosocial and institutional determinants of prenatal nutrition of vulnerable pregnant women in order to improve interventions on their health and well-being. 
  • A focus on the advances in technologies designed to help older people and their home experience. Using innovative research methods, researchers will study how technology would affect older people’s experience at home – a subject that remains vastly understudied. 
  • Lastly, understanding health and well-being from an Indigenous disability perspective. An interdisciplinary team of First Nations leaders and researchers specialized in disability practices working with First Nations communities will study the perspectives of people living with disabilities on reserves to better understand their perspectives on health and wellbeing. The study will also evaluate First Nations understandings of disability. 

“Health and wellbeing are at the heart of Sodexo’s services and part of our mission requires us to stick close to scientific research and analysis. It’s the reason why we’ve developed a solid relationship and partnered formally with the University of Ottawa's LIFE Research Institute,” mentions Thomas Jelley, Vice-President, Sodexo Institute for Quality of Life “There is no doubt that the research projects we are supporting can contribute to improving the wellbeing and the quality of life of people in Canada and beyond.”

“We are proud to count on Sodexo’s support for our research projects – not only for its financial contribution, but also for the confidence it has shown by giving our researchers  the opportunity to define the research themes that they believe will advance knowledge across the country,” says Linda Garcia, Professor and Founding Director of the LIFE Research Institute. 

To ensure the best possible future for our healthcare systems, businesses and academia must work together, and that is exactly why Sodexo and the uOttawa LIFE Research Institute are thrilled to join forces under this partnership.

For more information: [email protected]