Roots, Robin
MSc Rehabilitation Science (UBC), BHSc Physical Therapy (McMaster University), BA (Trent University)
Biography
After completing her physiotherapy degree at McMaster as part of the Northern Studies Stream, Robin worked as a PT in private practice in Parksville before taking a sole charge position on Northern Vancouver Island for the Mt. Waddington Health region. Following 15 years of rural physiotherapy practice across the province, Robin returned to school to complete a research masters looking at barriers to and facilitators for rural rehabilitation practice which led into laying the foundation for the Northern and Rural Cohort clinical education program. Her teaching and research interests are in rural health service delivery and service- learning models that increase access to rehabilitation services for northern, rural, remote and Indigenous communities.
Research and Expertise
Robin's research focuses on increasing access to rehabilitation practices and services in rural regions, Indigenous health, primary health care, and interprofessional education and practice. She has developed a number of partnerships in northern BC to develop physiotherapy clinical service programs that support clinical education: including the Prince Rupert Interprofessional Student-led Model (PRISM) Clinic, the Prince George Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program, and Central Interior Native Health. She continues to support clinical placements in remote First Nations communities in an interprofessional primary care setting, using a blend of community visits, telehealth and remote supervision.
- Community
- Education
- First Nations
- Health
- Health and Well-being
- Northern Issues
- Rural Health Services
Selected Publications
Roots RK, Li LC. Recruitment and retention of occupational therapists and physiotherapists in rural regions: a meta-synthesis. BMC Health Services Research 2013, 13:59. Published online, 2013 Feb 12
Roots RK, Brown H, Bainbridge L, Li LC. Rural rehabilitation practice: perspectives from occupational therapists and physiotherapists in BC. Rural and Remote Health. 2014; 14:2506. Published online, 2014 Feb 17.
Gingerich, A, Van Volkenburg, K, Maurice, S, Simpson, C, Roots, RK. Urban ideals and rural realities: Physiotherapists navigating paradox in overlapping roles. Medical Education. 2021; 00: 1– 11.
Kaminska ME, Roots RK, Singh A. Feasibility of Intradialytic Cycling Program in a Remote Community Hemodialysis Unit: Mixed-Methods Analysis of Implementation. Canadian Journal of Kidney Health and Disease. November 2021. https://doi.org/10.1177/20543581211056233
Gingerich A, Simpson C, Roots R. et al. “Juggle the different hats we wear”: enacted strategies for negotiating boundaries in overlapping relationships. Adv in Health Sci Educ 2023. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-023-10282-3