Public Health Commons^™

Examining Public Health Risk Communication Via Social Media By Provincial And Local Health Authorities In Ontario During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Marc Resendes

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Risk communication campaigns are essential during public health crises to inform the public about ways to mitigate, alleviate and manage potential risks. The purpose of this study was to describe risk communication on social media by Ontarian health authorities amid COVID-19, in addition to examining the strategies that guided their social media use. This was completed through (a) a narrative review of risk communication literature; (b) a qualitative content analysis of select health authority Twitter messaging following three major COVID-19 milestones; and (c) key informant interviews with those coordinating social media responses to COVID-19. Information giving and news updates were …

Health Care Utilization By Immigrants With Multimorbidity: A Population Based Cross-Sectional Study Of The 2015-2016 Canadian Community Health Survey (Cchs), Chinmoy Talukder

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Immigrants face unique healthcare barriers, which can negatively impact their health and health service use. Those with multimorbidity face a particular challenge as multimorbidity is associated with increased need for healthcare. The purpose of this study was to compare healthcare utilization, as measured by number of visits to family physicians and specialists, between immigrants and Canadian-born populations with multimorbidity, stratified by sex and for specific chronic diseases. A cross-sectional analysis using 2015-2016 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) was conducted. After adjusting for relevant covariates, no statistically significant differences in visits to family physicians or specialists were observed between immigrants and …

Investigating The Statistical And Policy Frameworks Used To Gauge Potential Pharmacotherapy Recalls: A Scoping Review, Benson Law

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

Paramount attention is often afforded to pharmacotherapies being brought to market. The anticipation from companies, their shareholders, and the patients poised to benefit are met with stiff statistical and methodological requirements set forth by Health Canada’s Health Products and Food Branch (HPFB). Once a pharmacotherapy has been approved by the HPFB, however, the onus to monitor these drugs falls largely on the shoulders of Health Canada, the manufacturers, and to a lesser degree, the Drug Safety and Effectiveness Network (DSEN). This scoping review identified existing pharmacovigilance frameworks recommendations from SCOPUS, PubMed and EMBASE and compared the guidelines employed by Health …

Integrating Residents As Partners In Long-Term Care (Ltc) Research, Ruthie Zhuang

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

This research poster summarizes patient-engagement throughout the study "COVID-19: Implementation of virtual P.I.E.C.E.S for LTC resident care planning with family to build and sustain team collaboration and workforce resilience". It describes two implementation frameworks (CFIR and PRISM) as well as two patient-engagement tools (PEIRS and PPEET) in relation to the study. Lastly, it offers preliminary insights into the current landscape of patient-engagement in research.

The Impact Of A Dedicated Pediatric Ambulance On Interfacility Transport Dispatch Times: Findings From The Canadian Pediatric Transport Network Database, Tiffany Liu

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Introduction: This retrospective cohort study evaluates the impact of a dedicated ambulance on dispatch times of pediatric transports to the London Health Sciences Centre using the Canadian Pediatric Transport Network (CPTN) database.

Methods: After assessing the data quality of the CPTN database, we used multiple linear regressions to examine differences in dispatch times before and after June 2019, when a dedicated ambulance was introduced.

Results: We found that additional measures are needed to improve data quality in the CPTN database. A dedicated ambulance improved ambulance return times but not dispatch times.

Conclusion: Ongoing quality assessment is necessary to improve the …

The Contribution Of Memorial University Medical Graduates To The Family Physician Workforce In Newfoundland And Labrador, Emily M. Volpe

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Recruiting and retaining family physicians (FP) in rural communities has been an ongoing issue in Canada and other developed nations. The objective of this thesis was to analyze the long-term contribution that Memorial University medical graduate FP make to the physician workforce in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL). We found that 47% of our sample ever worked in NL, 15% ever worked in rural NL and 58% who ever worked in NL stayed for at least 10 years. Being from NL was a predictor of working in NL for at least 5 years and 10 years, respectively. Doing at least some …

Health Concerns Of Adolescents And Adults With Spina Bifida, Jessica A. Starowicz

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Transitional and Lifelong Care (TLC) program is a multidisciplinary clinical service providing comprehensive, coordinated care to adolescents and adults with spina bifida (SB). This study sought to identify the most common health concerns among this population at initial consultation and identify patient factors related to these concerns to ultimately improve health care delivery. A retrospective chart review was performed. Descriptive analyses were completed and associations between concerns and patient factors were determined using Spearman’s rho correlation coefficients. A multiple linear regression was performed to estimate the relationship between patient factors and total number of concerns reported. Ninety-four patient charts …

The Association Between Ethnicity And Caregiver Health, Adetola Aboyeji

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Background: Existing research shows that caregiving is associated with several adverse health outcomes. Despite the growing number of caregivers in Canada, little research has been conducted on caregivers' potential unique experiences and outcomes based on their ethnicity. The main objective of this study was to investigate whether ethnicity was associated with a caregiver’s health.

Methods: To address these research gaps, we used data from the 2012 Canadian General Social Survey (GSS) Caregiving and Care Receiving. Focusing on caregivers (n=9,552), we examined the association using three measures of health – self-reported overall health, self-reported mental health, and the Health Utility Index3 …

The Role Of Community Paramedicine Programming In Providing Lift Assists In Southwestern Ontario, Andrew Rosa

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Lift assist refers to calls for emergency medical services indicating that an individual has fallen, is unable to mobilize, receives no treatment on scene, and refuses transport to the hospital following paramedic response. As the aging population grows, there is a national increase in the lift assist call type, impacting paramedic services, patient health outcomes, and primary care providers. This qualitative focused ethnography study utilized semi-structured interviews with community paramedics (CPs) to describe the role of CPs in providing lift assists in Southwestern Ontario. Interview transcripts were inductively coded and analyzed to generate themes and broader categories to examine paramedic …

"Man Up": Male Survivors Of Intimate Partner Violence Through The Eyes Of Their Providers, Xavier S. Borsato

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a complex phenomenon that is often understood with women as the primary recipients of violence and men as the primary perpetrators. However, emerging literature on heterosexual relationships suggests that men also experience interpersonal violence, most often from their female partners. Drawing on research data gathered through semi-structured interviews with service providers (n = 4), this qualitative inquiry explores how gender, power, and the stigma associated with interpersonal violence impact men who have experienced abuse through the perspectives of the service providers who work with them. The findings from this study highlight how traditional constructions …

Analysis Of Health Care Costs Over A One-Year Period Following Anticoagulant Therapy Among Ontario Patients Diagnosed With Atrial Fibrillation, Michael Situ

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Atrial fibrillation patients are at high risk of ischemic strokes, which can be drastically reduced using oral anticoagulants (OACs). Warfarin has been the standard OAC for this population but its effectiveness rests on consistent monitoring with the potential for severe bleeding events. Newer OACs, like rivaroxaban and apixaban, address these drawbacks but have a comparatively higher upfront cost. Uncertainty remains over which OAC is cost-saving from a health care system perspective. Using a retrospective cohort study design and inverse probability weighting regression adjustment estimators, one-year health care costs among patients treated with warfarin, rivaroxaban, and apixaban were compared. Compared to …

Exploring The Mental Health Experiences Of African, Caribbean, And Black Youth In London, Ontario, Lily Yosieph

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This qualitative study explores the mental health experiences of African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) youth in London, Ontario, investigating how the factors of race, gender, culture, and place have shaped their perceptions and experiences of mental health. The data collection and analysis were conducted using a phenomenological approach and a critical lens informed by feminist, intersectionality, and critical race theories. These data illuminate the ways in which these young people’s attitudes toward mental health and help-seeking strategies are impacted by broader social constructs and community expectations, which they navigate and often resist in their everyday lives. Their insights can provide …

Impact Of Covid-19 On The Italian And American Healthcare Systems : A Comparative Assessment, Bita Pejam, Jennifer Lam

All Reports

This report aims to examine and assess the impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic on the healthcare systems of the United States of America and Italy; two of the most heavily affected nations. Using data from December 2019 to January 2021, several consultations, and policy reviews, we identify risks and notable areas of issue in each nations’ approach to combating the virus. We focus our report particularly on the health policies and the governmental structures in place that contributed to each nations’ initial method of alleviating the impact of COVID-19. Our report compares the two healthcare systems and proposes a …

Experiential Learning Final Report: Western Heads East X Mikono Yetu And Crhesi, Rebecca Jackson

SASAH 4th Year Capstone and Other Projects: Publications

Over the summer of 2020, I completed an internship with Western Heads East (WHE), a collaboration between Western University and African Partners. During this internship, I worked alongside two of my peers to design a website for the non-governmental organization “Mikono Yetu” to showcase the important work they are doing surrounding female empowerment and economic independence. During the Fall term of my final year at Western, I completed a placement with The Centre for Research on Health Equity and Social Inclusion (CRHESI). For this placement, I created an infographic that outlined the barriers migrant agricultural workers currently face to accessing …