Online session to spark health research collaborations

A virtual think tank on October 13 will discuss three local health research projects.

Researchers and students in all disciplines interested in discussing new ideas, solving problems, and making new connections are invited to WE-SPARK Think Tanks.

A session on Zoom scheduled for 1 to 3 p.m. Friday, October 13, will hear three presentations:

Measuring the cognitive workload and user experience of patients and healthcare professionals in telehealth
Francesco Biondi, PhD, Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Windsor

Given that telehealth plays a significant role in today's healthcare industry, Dr. Biondi is looking to find potential collaborators in the medical area who work in the field of ergonomics, human factors, and occupational safety to create a research proposal that investigates the human factors involved in telehealth. He is also seeking the opportunity to talk with hospital administrators and people working in industry.

Pharmacogenomics: Using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Technologies to Provide Personalized Treatment Solutions at Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare
Raj Atikukke, PhD, ITOS Oncology

Individual patients’ genetic profiles are used to guide treatment protocols for various diseases including cancer, mental illnesses, and geriatric medical issues. This approach has been shown to be more effective and with fewer adverse drug reactions (ADR) for some patients. Dr. Atikukke is partnering with HDGH to explore providing genomic solutions for better patient outcomes. He is looking to partner with healthcare professionals and researchers to discuss the most pressing questions that could be addressed using this approach. Please join this conversation if you are a: researcher who works in the field of genomics; a clinician or healthcare professional who is interested in genomics/personalised medicine; a student interested in working in database development and integration.

Falls and ED visits: Are we doing it right?
Munira Sultana, MBBS, MPH, PhD, Erie Shores HealthCare

Dr. Sultana is looking for partners to implement a Falls Prevention Program at their facility/home. The majority of the patients presenting falls/near falls come from the community/retirement homes. The return visit rate after falls is also high at Erie Shores Healthcare (ESHC). A falls prevention program adopted by community partners may help reduce ED visits at ESHC. A collaborative program may have a greater impact and can reduce the burden of falls on the patient and their family.  The desired audience includes: people having history of falls, family/caregivers of people having history of falls, nursing home staff, researchers interested in falls prevention in the community, organizations/companies interested in creating an app/device to be used by individuals to collect data on falls/near falls and connecting that information to hospitals.

Click here to register for the event.

WE-SPARK Health Institute is a partnership of Erie Shores HealthCare, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, St. Clair College, the University of Windsor, and Windsor Regional Hospital designed to take health outcomes to the next level through research.