Nathalie Bier, Ph.D.

Education

• B.Sc. Occupational therapy, École de réadaptation, Université de Montréal (1999)
• M.Sc. Biomedical sciences, Université de Montréal (2002)
• Ph.D. Clinical Sciences – geriatrics, Université de Sherbrooke (2007)
• Postdoctoral fellowship, Cognitive sciences, Centre de recherche de l’Université Laval, Robert Giffard, (2010)

Current research projects

• Functional profile of normal elderly and those with cognitive impairments (mild cognitive impairments, dementia)
• Use of smart environments for evaluation of older adults’needs and aging in place
• Use of mobile technologies in dementia.

Selected publications

• Imbeault, H., Langlois, F., Bocti, C., Gagnon, L. and Bier, N. (2016) Can persons with Alzheimer’s disease improve their day-to-day functioning with a tablet computer? Neuropsychological Rehabilitation – Special issue on technology and rehabilitation. Jan 12:1-18. E-pub ahead of print. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09602011.2015.1133431.
• Bier, N., Paquette, G., Macoir, J. (2015). Smartphone for smart living: using new technologies to cope with everyday limitations in semantic dementia. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation – Special issue on technology and rehabilitation. Oct 19:1-21. E-pub ahead of print
• da Cunha Belchior, P., Holmes, M., Bier, N., Bottari, C., Mazer, B. Robert, Kaur, N. (2015). A scoping review of performance-based tools for assessing functional performance in individuals with mild cognitive impairment. Open Journal of Occupational Therapy, 3(3), article 3. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.15453/2168-6408.1173
• Levasseur, M., Pigot, H., Couture, M., Bier, N., Swaine, B., Therriault, P.-Y., Giroux, S. (2015). Identifying participation needs of people with acquired brain injury in the development of a collective community smart home. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology. 2015 Mar 31:1-9. [Epub ahead of print].
• Bier, N., Brambati, S., Macoir, J., Paquette, G., Schmitz, X., Belleville, S., Faucher, C., Joubert, S. (2015). Relying on procedural memory to enhance independence in daily living activities: smartphone use in a case of semantic dementia. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 25 (8), 913-935. doi: 10.1080/09602011.2014.997745
• Bier, N., Lorthios-Guilledroit, A. Nour, K., Parisien, M., Ellemberg, D., Laforest, S. (2015). Jog your mind: methodology and challenges of conducting evaluative research in partnership with community organizations. International Psychogeriatrics, 27(1), 79-94. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1041610214001306.
• Bier, N., Grenier, S., Brodeur, C., Gauthier, S., Gilbert, B., Hudon, C., Lepage, E., Ouellet, M.-C., Viscogliosi, C., Belleville, S. (2015). Measuring the impact of cognitive and psychosocial interventions in persons with mild cognitive impairment with a randomized single-blind controlled trial: rationale and design of the MEMO+ study. International Psychogeriatrics, 27 (3), 511-525. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1041610214001902

Research interests

• Impact of cognitive deficits on human activities in normal and pathological aging (brain regions and information processing)
• Cognitive rehabilitation in the continuum of cognitive aging to dementia (typical and atypical)
• Use of new technologies for assessment and intervention in healthy and pathological cognitive aging