Digital Commons Network^™

What Does A Pandemic Sound Like? The Emergence Of Covid Verbal Art, Karen E. Pennesi

Anthropology Publications

In times of social upheaval, people create and engage with verbal art for entertainment and a feeling of connection. While millions of people were forced to stay home to reduce the spread of COVID‑19 from March to July 2020, verbal artists posted recorded performances online and viewers had more time than usual to watch and share them. COVID verbal art refers to songs, poems, and comedy skits that mention social and physical distancing, quarantine and isolation, hygiene and cleaning practices, everyday experiences during the pandemic, as well as social and political critiques of policies and practices that explicitly mention COVID‑19 …

Guidance For Dental Treatment Of Patients With Disabilities During Covid-19 Pandemic, Eun Jung Kwak, Jieun Kim, Hiran Perinpanayagam, Kee Yeon Kum

Dentistry Publications

People with disabilities are challenged managing their oral hygiene and more often burdened with oral diseases. They often require immediate dental treatment for severe pain and greater precautions are needed to cope with COVID-19. The potential for COVID-19 infection can be relatively high in patients with disabilities due to concomitant systemic diseases, unique individual circumstances, relationship with caregivers and the living conditions of long-term care facilities, which make them vulnerable to the virus. For behavior management, dental treatment is often provided under general anesthesia with meticulous preoperative evaluation and the use of high-quality viral filters. In response to COVID-19, additional …

Social Media As A Predictor Of Depression Rates Among Male Versus Female Adolescents During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Kaylee A. Fishback

Undergraduate Honours Theses

Technology use has drastically and progressively increased as the COVID-19 pandemic has continued to unfold. Adolescents are now reliant on technology for their education, in addition to communication with friends and family (Pfefferbaum & North, 2020). With the recency of the pandemic, research on the effects of increased internet and social media use for adolescent mental health is decidedly underdeveloped. This study aimed to fill the research gap by examining how the frequency of male and female adolescents’ social media use is associated with depression rates during the pandemic by using a longitudinal design. Participants for this study included 351 …

The Quantity And Composition Of Household Food Waste During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Direct Measurement Study In Canada, Haley Everitt, Paul Van Der Werf, Jamie A. Seabrook, Alexander Wray, Jason A. Gilliland

Paediatrics Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic may have amplified the environmental, social, and economic implications of household food waste. A better understanding of household food wasting during the pandemic is needed to improve the management of waste and develop best practices for municipal waste management programs under crisis circumstances. A waste composition study was undertaken with 100 single-family households across the city of London, Ontario, Canada to determine the quantity and composition of household food waste disposed in June 2020, during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examines how household demographic, socioeconomic, and neighbourhood food environment characteristics influence household food …

Protecting Health Data In A Pandemic: A Systematic Adversarial Threat Analysis Of Contact Tracing Apps, Leah Krehling

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In this thesis centralized, decentralized, Bluetooth, and GPS based applications of digital contact tracing were reviewed and assessed. Using privacy principles created by a contingent of security and privacy experts from across Canada, a metric of assessing an application’s privacy was created. An attack tree was built to assess the security of the contact tracing applications. Eighteen attacks were theorized against contact tracing applications currently in use. An application’s vulnerability to the attacks was measured using a scoring system developed for this purpose. The results of the security scores were used to create a metric for assessing the security of …

Caring Revisited: A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis On The Association Of Caring With The Profession Of Nursing, Margot Boulton

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

There have been numerous theories put forward by nursing theorists on the importance of caring in nursing. Very few studies have looked at the impact that this association has on the practice of nursing. This study will add to the existing literature by using a Foucauldian discourse analysis to examine the material effects that the caring discourse has on nurses’ ability to advocate for safe working conditions during a public health emergency. Using the outbreak of COVID-19 in Ontario, Canada in the Spring of 2020 as a context, this study seeks to establish caring as a discourse and examine how …

Covid-19 In Sub-Saharan Africa: Impacts On Vulnerable Populations And Sustaining Home-Grown Solutions, Lauren J. Wallace, Elysée Nouvet, Robert Bortolussi, Joshua A. Arthur, Eugenia Amporfu, Eric Arthur, Kofi Bobi Barimah, Bernard Aristide Bitouga, Harriet Chemusto, Joseph Ikechebelu, Ngozi Joe-Ikechebelu, Mandy Kader Kondé, Jean Damascene Kabakambira, Gabriel Kyomba Kalombe, Diana M.S. Karanja, Eveline Thobias Konje, Sekou Kouyate, Gojjam Limeneh, Felicien Munday Mulopo, Mary Ndu, Eric Ochomo, Oriokot Francis, Oumy Thiongane, Jeremiah Seni, S. Mohammed Sheriff, Douglas Singini

Health Studies Publications

© 2020, The Canadian Public Health Association. This commentary draws on sub-Saharan African health researchers’ accounts of their countries’ responses to control the spread of COVID-19, including social and health impacts, home-grown solutions, and gaps in knowledge. Limited human and material resources for infection control and lack of understanding or appreciation by the government of the realities of vulnerable populations have contributed to failed interventions to curb transmission, and further deepened inequalities. Some governments have adapted or limited lockdowns due to the negative impacts on livelihoods and taken specific measures to minimize the impact on the most vulnerable citizens. However, …

Emergency Medicine Physician Burnout And Wellness In Canada Before Covid19: A National Survey, Rodrick Lim, Kristine Van Aarsen, Sara Gray, Louise Rang, Jada Fitzpatrick, Lisa Fischer

Paediatrics Publications

Introduction Emergency medicine (EM) is a high-risk specialty for burnout. COVID-19 has had and will continue to have important consequences on wellness and burnout for EM physicians in Canada. Baseline data are crucial to monitor the health of EM physicians in Canada, and evaluate any interventions designed to help during and after COVID-19.Objectives To describe the rates of burnout, depression, and suicidality in practicing EM physicians in Canada, just before the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods A modified snowball method was used for survey distribution. Participants completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory - Health Services Tool (MBI-HSS), a screening measure for depression (PHQ-9), and …

Call To Action: Sars-Cov-2 And Cerebrovascular Disorders (Cascade), Shahram Abootalebi, Benjamin M. Aertker, Mohammad Sobhan Andalibi, Negar Asdaghi, Ozlem Aykac, M. Reza Azarpazhooh, M. Cecilia Bahit, Kristian Barlinn, Hamidon Basri, Reza Bavarsad Shahripour, Anna Bersano, Jose Biller, Afshin Borhani-Haghighi, Robert D. Brown, Bruce Cv Campbell, Salvador Cruz-Flores, Deidre Anne De Silva, Mario Di Napoli, Afshin A. Divani, Randall C. Edgell, Johanna T. Fifi, Abdoreza Ghoreishi, Teruyuki Hirano, Keun Sik Hong, Chung Y. Hsu, Josephine F. Huang, Manabu Inoue, Amanda L. Jagolino, Moira Kapral, Hoo Fan Kee, Zafer Keser, Rakesh Khatri

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Publications

Background and purpose: The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2), now named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), may change the risk of stroke through an enhanced systemic inflammatory response, hypercoagulable state, and endothelial damage in the cerebrovascular system. Moreover, due to the current pandemic, some countries have prioritized health resources towards COVID-19 management, making it more challenging to appropriately care for other potentially disabling and fatal diseases such as stroke. The aim of this study is to identify and describe changes in stroke epidemiological trends before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: This is an international, multicenter, hospital-based …

Breath Regulation And Yogic Exercise An Online Therapy For Calm And Happiness (Breath) For Frontline Hospital And Long-Term Care Home Staff Managing The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Structured Summary Of A Study Protocol For A Feasibility Study For A Randomised Controlled Trial, Ka Sing Paris Lai, Christine Watt, Emily Ionson, Imants Baruss, Cheryl Forchuk, Javeed Sukhera, Amer M. Burhan, Akshya Vasudev

Paediatrics Publications

OBJECTIVES: Objective 1: To determine if it is feasible to conduct an RCT of online Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) for frontline hospital and long-term care home staff under the constraints imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and need for remote trial monitoring. Objective 2: To assess whether online versions of SKY and/or Health Enhancement Program (HEP) result in improvement in self-rated measures of insomnia, anxiety, depression, and resilience. TRIAL DESIGN: This is an open-label feasibility randomized controlled trial (RCT), comparing an online breath based yogic intervention SKY versus an online control mind-body intervention HEP in frontline hospital and long-term care home …

Virus Interruptus: An Arendtian Exploration Of Political World Building In Pandemic Times, Rita A. Gardiner Ph.D, Katy Fulfer

Education Publications

Building upon a series of blog posts and conversations, two feminist scholars explore how political community, trust, responsibility, and solidarity are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We explore the ways in which we can engage in political world-building during pandemic times through the work of Hannah Arendt. Following Arendt’s notion of the world as the space for human togetherness, we ask: how can we respond to COVID-19’s interruptions to the familiarity of daily life and our relationship to public space? By extending relational accounts of public health and organizational ethics, we critique a narrow view of solidarity that focuses on …

Machine Learning With Digital Signal Processing For Rapid And Accurate Alignment-Free Genome Analysis: From Methodological Design To A Covid-19 Case Study, Gurjit Singh Randhawa

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In the field of bioinformatics, taxonomic classification is the scientific practice of identifying, naming, and grouping of organisms based on their similarities and differences. The problem of taxonomic classification is of immense importance considering that nearly 86% of existing species on Earth and 91% of marine species remain unclassified. Due to the magnitude of the datasets, the need exists for an approach and software tool that is scalable enough to handle large datasets and can be used for rapid sequence comparison and analysis. We propose ML-DSP, a stand-alone alignment-free software tool that uses Machine Learning and Digital Signal Processing to …

Excess Mortality From Covid-19: A Commentary On The Italian Experience, Paolo Pasquariello, Saverio Stranges

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Publications

No abstract provided.

Employability In Covid-19, Melody Viczko Dr, Shannon Mckechnie

Education Publications

The impacts of the COVID-19 global pandemic on higher education could be seen in education in early 2020. Significant labour market disruptions places students among the group experiencing the heaviest burden from layoffs and work insecurity during this time. Higher education institutions also face financial uncertainty, bracing for shifts in enrolment and tuition revenue, particularly related to international student cohorts. The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on student employability are on the radar of policymakers, university faculty and administrators, employers, and students alike.

Diversification Of Research Methodological Approach During Model Enhancements In Health Information System Research, Uche Ikenyei

Africa Western Collaborations Day 2020 Abstracts

No abstract provided.

Covid-19 Hospital Response In Canada And Kenya: A Comparative Study Of Practices At Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, And University Hospital Network, Betty Wang

Africa Western Collaborations Day 2020 Abstracts

No abstract provided.

Introduction To The Casebook

Western Public Health Casebooks

No abstract provided.

Improving Supports For Diverse Women Entering Executive Roles, Karen E. Pennesi, Ibtesum Afrin, Fattimah Hamam, Badarinarayan Maharaj, Raisa Masud, Luis Meléndez, Natalia Parra, Ashley Piskor

Anthropology Publications

We report on research identifying supports and barriers for women of diverse backgrounds entering executive roles in Canadian organizations. Intersectionality explains how different social categories such as gender, age and ethnoracial identity are interrelated and affect the professional lives of women. Family supports and networking are key to women's success. The COVID-19 pandemic presents both problems and opportunities for working women. This research was conducted as a graduate student project in collaboration with the Women's Executive Network. We offer recommendations for how organizations can better support women entering leadership roles.

Using Probiotics To Flatten The Curve Of Coronavirus Disease Covid-2019 Pandemic., David Baud, Varvara Dimopoulou Agri, Glenn R Gibson, Gregor Reid, Eric Giannoni

Microbiology & Immunology Publications

No abstract provided.

Student Employability In Covid-19 Project Summary, Melody Viczko Dr., Shannon Mckechnie

Education Publications

The impacts of the COVID-19 global pandemic on higher education could be seen in education in early 2020. Significant labour market disruptions places students among the group experiencing the heaviest burden from layoffs and work insecurity during this time. Higher education institutions also face financial uncertainty, bracing for shifts in enrolment and tuition revenue, particularly related to international student cohorts. The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on student employability are on the radar of policymakers, university faculty and administrators, employers, and students alike.

Keep@Downsview: An Evolving Shared Print Project, Harriet Rykse

Western Libraries Publications

Keep@Downsview is a shared print partnership between six Canadian academic institutions. This article describes the evolution of the partnership from what began as simply an operationally focused collaboration for shared preservation space, in order to release collections space in on-campus libraries, to a partnership that is involved in the larger shared print discussions in North America and which has refocused its strategic directions enabling a more intentional evolution of the partnership.

Four strategic directions were identified prior to the outbreak of the pandemic. Since the onset of Covid-19 it has become apparent that several influencing factors related to the pandemic …

School Leaders’ Work During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Two-Pronged Approach, Katina Pollock

Education Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered the nature of school principals’ work. Today, principals are expected to be exceptional managers and excellent leaders in a time where the pace of change has increased exponentially. Preliminary data suggest that principals in Ontario, Canada are pivoting their work: They are engaging in a two-pronged approach to lead public schools during the pandemic crisis. They are extending their roles around (a) safe schooling and setting the context for future schooling while (b) simultaneously extending their role of instructional leader to digital instructional leader. This paper, informed by preliminary focus group data, poses thought-provoking questions …