Health Sciences Dean Jayne Garland has been recognized for her advances in the neural control of movement – particularly relevant to muscle fatigue and the recovery of standing balance and mobility after stroke – with a fellowship in the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.
Garland, MClSc’85, has held numerous leadership roles in education and research for the academic development of rehabilitation sciences in Canada, most recently as chair of the Physiotherapy Specialty Certification Board of Canada. She was instrumental in expanding physiotherapy education in British Columbia to include a northern and rural cohort to mitigate the disparity of access to physiotherapy services across the province.
Garland, who also earned a BSc in physical therapy from Queen’s University in 1981 and a PhD in neuroscience from McMaster University in 1989, returned to Western to take on the role of Dean of Health Sciences in 2016.
She is best known for her study of the motor control of force production, particularly under conditions of muscle fatigue, and for applying her work in muscle fatigue to several clinical populations including breast cancer, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and end-stage renal disease.
The Canadian Academy of Health Sciences informs policy and practice by mobilizing some of the country’s top scientific minds to provide independent and timely evidence-based assessments of critical health challenges affecting Canadians.