Upcoming Event Focused on Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy Among Youth (Photo: Side Show Stock / iStock) A local group is trying to address COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among youth. The WE-SPARK Health Institute is getting set to host a student-led event to talk about the issue which will feature will feature a panel including a science expert, frontline worker and college and university students focused an answering any unanswered questions. University of Windsor professor Dora Cavallo-Medved will be taking part and says peer to peer advice can go a long way. "Having our students really being at the leading edge of this to share their stories, their experiences really allows them to take this leadership role and really speak to their peers about what those hesitancies are, and more importantly, how we can build confidence in the vaccines that are out there," says Cavallo-Medved. She says many students are on the fence about getting the shot. "Students, like everyone else, definitely have a lot of questions," she says. "They have…
Report highlights progress by WE-Spark Health Institute WE-Spark Health Institute has released its second quarterly report from its third year of operation, highlighting key metrics from August to October 2021. The report communicates outcomes and provides accountability to its members and the Windsor-Essex community. Highlights include: doubled the number of student volunteers, logging more than 400 hours and completing 16 projects; received approval on a Masters in Translational Health Research program, launching April 2022; launched a new app interface that connects the research community using a mobile device; hosted eight events, including a town hall meeting, think tanks, and knowledge translation workshops; added a dedicated equity, diversity, and inclusion section to its website, including an action plan; and facilitated four clinical assistant professorships and one professor of practice. Read the report here. Courtesy: https://www.uwindsor.ca/dailynews/2021-11-15/report-highlights-progress-we-spark-health-institute
Students lead campaign to address vaccine hesitancy Comic-style graphics address concerns around vaccines in a student-led social media campaign launched this month. Loretta Sbrocca, a Master of Education student, signed on to a project promoting confidence in vaccination against COVID-19 in hopes of making an impact. “I lost a family member to COVID-19, so this is how I can put my skills and knowledge and education to use and prevent others from feeling that pain,” she says. “Joining the Students Sparking Vaccine Confidence project was my chance to protect my community and bring reliable information to the underrepresented groups.” The project has brought together a multidisciplinary team of students from the University of Windsor and St. Clair College to address concerns among young people in Windsor-Essex about inoculation. The students have launched a social media campaign in the form of graphic representations of peer-to-peer conversations. Two of the comic-style strips have been published, with the series projected to continue…
Community quilt 'Made With Love' adorns Windsor City Hall lobby Patricia Savage, left, and Rebecca Rudman, co-founders of the Windsor Essex Sewing Force, speak about the community quilt created by the Windsor Essex Sewing Force and exhibited in the lobby of Windsor City Hall on Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021. PHOTO BY JULIE KOTSIS /Windsor Star Crafted from scraps of material left over from the production of 64,000 handmade masks and scrub caps, Windsor Essex Sewing Force’s community quilt is a legacy of collaboration. The 180 block quilt, unveiled Thursday morning during a ceremony at city hall, hangs on a custom-made display stand constructed by the Art Gallery of Windsor. It will be on view in the lobby of Windsor’s city hall for six weeks. Titled Made With Love: Windsor-Essex Community Responds to the Pandemic, the 30-foot-long by six-foot-high quilt is a reflection of how far the community has come since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020, said Mayor Drew Dilkens. Dilkens recalled the beginning of the pandemic, the fear in the…
Newsletter highlights achievement in science The Fall 2021 edition of Science Matters highlights science achievements, from people to research. Each season, the Faculty of Science creates a newsletter highlighting science achievements — from people to research. The latest edition features award-winning faculty and students, the inaugural research chairs, pertinent COVID research, and more. Read the Fall 2021 edition of Science Matters. Courtesy: https://www.uwindsor.ca/dailynews/2021-10-27/two-speakers-human-kinetics-agenda-friday
Two speakers on Human Kinetics agenda Friday The latest entry in the Human Kinetics Distinguished Speakers’ Series will feature two members of the UWindsor kinesiology department: Sara Scharoun Benson and Francesco Biondi. Dr. Scharoun Benson will present a talk entitled “Coming Full Circle.” She has established a generative and externally funded program of research in motor behaviour, focusing primarily on understanding similarities and differences in typical development and in autism spectrum disorder. Dr. Biondi will discuss his work examining human-machine interaction in transportation and manufacturing in his presentation, “Multitasking: The Hidden Connection between Elon Musk's Lies and Zoom Fatigue.” He leverages his background in cognitive science to understand how attention functions when allocated to multiple activities. The one-hour event will begin at noon Friday, Oct. 29, as a videoconference. It is free and open to the public; join here on Microsoft Teams. Courtesy: https://www.uwindsor.ca/dailynews/2021-10-27/two-speakers-human-kinetics-agenda-friday
Walk this way: UWindsor researchers developing prototype of diagnostic insole Engineering professor Jalal Ahamed holds a sensor on his fingertip with a magnified image in the background of a high-density sensor array similar to what will be imbedded in insoles to measure gait. Insoles embedded with tiny sensors may soon diagnose problems with the way you walk. A team of UWindsor researchers is taking the first steps toward bringing this invention to market. Armed with provisional patents and a difficult-to-obtain, research and development grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), members hope to have a prototype ready for commercialization by this time next year. “This is a unique project,” said Jalal Ahamed, a professor of mechanical, automotive, and materials engineering who brings his expertise in micro-scale sensors to the project. Other principal researchers are materials chemists Tricia Carmichael, who specializes in wearable electronics, and Simon Rondeau-Gagné, who has invented the flexible, self-healing…
Session promises info on how and why to involve students in research An online information session introducing the WE-Spark Student Volunteer Network is set for noon Friday, Oct. 29. The institute has developed a team of post-secondary students working to support and advance health research across Windsor-Essex. “Our WE-Spark student volunteers bring energy and enthusiasm to research teams,” says network co-ordinator Ryan Palazzolo. “They’re busy, dedicated, and hungry to learn.” The students are matched with projects that align with their interests, and that best suit their talents, skills, and needs. Some specialities include data entry, collection and analytics, outreach and public education, digital communications, literature review, and proposal writing. Volunteers are drawn from St. Clair College, the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry (Windsor Campus), and the University of Windsor. “We’re training the next generation of researchers, while creating and advancing research and innovation right here in our region. It’s a win-win…
‘They’re often overlooked and not heard’: Family caregivers need more support, says nursing expert Global News Caregivers say they need more support while caring for loved ones dealing with mental illness and addictions. Clementa Stan is the only full-time caregiver for her sister. WATCH : Caregivers of family members with addictions and mental health illnesses make significant sacrifices -- their time, their own health and often their finances. But who is looking out for the caregiver? Kendra Slugoski reports. For more than a decade, Stan has been the main support network for her sister after she was diagnosed with a mental health illness when she was a teenager. Her sister is now in her mid-30s. “It’s been quite the journey,” said Stan. “I would use the analogy of a rollercoaster. “Our lives are so closely intertwined with our persons. So, when my sister is in crisis, I’m in crisis.” The siblings were raised by their grandmother in Romania, after their mother wasn’t able to care for her daughters. She had also suffered from a mental illness and passed away…
