Fearless Physical Activity – Getting and Keeping Ontarians with Congenital Heart Disease Active in Community Sport, Recreation and Physical Activity

The Canadian Congenital Heart Alliance, Canada’s national support network for people living with congenital heart disease, has received funding from the Ontario Sport and Recreation Communities Fund to offer “Fearless Physical Activity” workshops to children, teens and adults throughout Ontario. Fearless workshops will be offered in each season of the year in 2017, at locations in Ottawa, Toronto, London, Sudbury and Thunder Bay. The Healthy Active Living and Obesity Research Group (HALO) at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute will lead the evaluation component of the project, which will obtain feedback from participants and evaluate the impact of Fearless workshop participation on physical activity motivation and participation.

Graduate Student Internship:

Dr. Pat Longmuir, Scientist, is currently seeking an enthusiastic, committed, and hard-working graduate student interested in designing and leading the Fearless workshops. The student must be registered in a thesis-based degree program (PhD or MSc), have an interest in physical activity promotion and be able to travel to workshop locations (travel expenses covered by the project funding). The internship would require variable hours – likely full days on weekends when offering the workshops but otherwise minimal hours (2-3/week) for logistics and planning of the Fearless events.

Qualifications:

The preferred candidate will hold a BSc or MSc in Human Kinetics, Kinesiology, or a related discipline. The successful candidate should have a keen interest in physical activity, cardiac conditions, and pediatric exercise science. Candidates must also be able to work independently as well as part of a collaborative team. Students can be based in any of the Fearless workshop locations.

Start Date and Stipend:

The internship will start in January 2017. Funding will provide a stipend of $2000 per month for a commitment of either 6 or 12 months.

To Apply:

Interested candidates should submit a cover letter outlining your research interest, a current CV, unofficial transcripts and contact information for 3 academic references to Dr. Pat Longmuir, Scientist (plongmuir@cheo.on.ca).