UWindsor researchers hope to lessen vaccine hesitancy Paula van Wyk, associate professor of kinesiology at the University of Windsor, pictured on Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, helped lead a team to develop a website to combat vaccine hesitancy. PHOTO BY DAX MELMER /Windsor Star The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront just how many people are hesitant about getting a vaccine of any sort. They are not all anti-vaxxers or misguided freedom fighters, they’re ordinary people who would never think to book an appointment for a tetanus or shingles shot. Paula Van Wyk, a University of Windsor kinesiology professor, is leading a research project aimed at educating adults about vaccines and boosters for a range of illnesses. The project’s goal is to combat vaccine hesitancy among adults that exists because of misleading information often promoted through social media. “What COVID has done is catapulted vaccines back to the forefront of discussions,” said van Wyk. “It’s illuminated the fact that a lot of adults don’t…
Researchers aiming to increase vaccine awareness Kinesiology professor Paula van Wyk is leading a project to educate adults about vaccines and boosters for a range of illnesses. The project, which includes an interactive website and printed materials, has received $50,000 in federal funding. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a lack of knowledge about vaccines, and a team of UWindsor researchers has a plan to remedy it. Kinesiology professor Paula van Wyk is leading a research project that will use a variety of tools to educate adults about vaccines and boosters for a range of illnesses. Together with fellow kinesiology professor Patti Weir, nursing professor Debbie Kane, and computer science professor Ziad Kobti, van Wyk will work with community agencies and local pharmacies to combat the vaccine hesitancy among adults that exists because of misleading information being promoted through social media. “The evidence is clear that a large percentage of the adult population is not fully vaccinated for conditions and diseases…
Virtual conference planned for caregivers to people with mental illness, addictions In a report released on Wednesday Aug. 24, 2016, Ontario's ombudsman said some extreme cases he has seen amount to "a modern-day version of institutionalization." Several community partners are coming together in response to conducting a needs assessment asking caregivers of adults with mental illness how they can be supported. Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH), The University of Windsor and WE SPARK Health Institute will host its inaugural Caring for the Caregiver Conference on Oct. 16 and Oct. 23. The half day event will be held virtually from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at no cost to attendees. The virtual conference is also for caregivers of loved ones with addictions. Participants will hear from experts on topics such as Navigating the Healthcare System, and Compassion Fatigue, as well as Consent and the Mental Health Act. Each day will also include connection and support from peer groups and an opportunity to engage with fellow caregivers. “From the more than 75 individuals…
Social work professor made Royal Society of Canada college member Adrian Guta has been inducted as a member of the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. A UWindsor professor who specializes in addictions research has been inducted as a member of the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. Social work professor Adrian Guta is one of 53 new members announced by the RSC Tuesday. They have been selected for their contributions in the arts, the humanities, and the sciences, as well as in Canadian public life. “I am honoured to be amongst this year’s impressive list of inductees and part of a scholarly community dating back to 1882,” Dr. Guta said. The college is Canada’s first national system of multidisciplinary recognition for the emerging generation of Canadian intellectual leadership. Its members are Canadians and permanent residents who, at an early stage in their career, have demonstrated a high level of achievement. The criterion for election is excellence, and membership…
Appointments to increase research capacity in Faculty of Science Christina Semeniuk and Drew Marquardt are the inaugural Faculty of Science Research Chairs. The new two-year research chair program is designed to increase research funding and capacity in the faculty by growing existing research programs, fostering new partnerships and directions, and supporting outstanding faculty researchers. Dr. Semeniuk is an integrative biology associate professor and researcher with the Great Lakes Institute of Environmental Research (GLIER). She will focus on learning more about how fish species are coping and adapting to the rising temperatures caused by climate change. “I’ll engage with government, non-government organizations, and Indigenous communities to focus on the big questions arising from rapid ecological change,” says Semeniuk. “First: how does behavioural flexibility mediate an individual’s ability to persist in situ or shift to more suitable habitat, and second: how do these behavioural traits integrate with underlying physiological or…
Federal COVID research funding responds to Windsor-Essex’s unique location, population Biochemistry professor Yufeng Tong and team have received CIHR funding to tackle new ways of fighting COVID and variants A team of UWindsor professors developing novel ways to detect COVID and limit the spread of its variants has been awarded $500,000 from a federal agency that funds health research. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), recognizing Windsor and Essex County can offer advance warning of spikes in infection rates by virtue of its location, is funding a team of researchers led by biochemistry professor Yufeng Tong. Dr. Tong, together with biochemistry professor Kenneth Ng, biomedical sciences professor Lisa Porter, psychology professor Kendall Soucie, and Mike McKay, executive director of the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, will collaborate on the project to tackle COVID from multiple fronts. “Windsor-Essex sits at one of the busiest border crossings between the USA and Canada and is located at the heart of intensive year-round agricultural…
WE-SPARK Annual report shows growth Annual Report Shows WE-SPARK Growth WE-SPARK Health Institute has released its second annual report indicating the Windsor-Essex research community continues to achieve more together. “WE-SPARK accelerates and strengthens collaborations, and provides tools and resources needed for health research across Windsor-Essex to excel,” said Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Executive Director. “Despite the challenges that the global pandemic placed on all of our members, with a particular strain on our hospital partners caring for those who fell ill during this difficult time, we are proud of how our region came together to move health research forward.” WE-SPARK began its second year with 146 members with membership growing to 677 in a single year. Other highlights include: $8,881,856 in external funding – an annual increase of 44%; $340,000 to local research projects; 1,335 patients / participants involved in research. The full report is available here. WE-SPARK Health Institute is supported…
Student wins support for work on psychological interventions in chronic health conditions UWindsor psychology student Jasmine Kobrosli has received a $5,000 scholarship from Crohn’s and Colitis Canada. A $5,000 scholarship from Crohn’s and Colitis Canada will enable UWindsor student Jasmine Kobrosli further her work examining the psychological effects of inflammatory bowel disease. Kobrosli, entering her fourth year of undergraduate study, has lived experience with IBD: she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2013 and Crohn’s disease in 2018. “I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis during my final year of high school,” she says. “Since my illness was so severe at the time, my university career was delayed.” After regaining her health, she enrolled at the University in 2018. “I had always planned to study psychology, but since being diagnosed with both ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, I have been inspired to conduct research that will have a meaningful impact on the inflammatory bowel disease community by tying my love of psychology into the…
Award to fund doctoral research into e-cigarettes PhD student Mitchell DiPasquale is using synthetic membranes to study the physical effects of vaping and e-cigarettes. Mitchell DiPasquale (BSc 2017) is taking the health debate surrounding vaping and e-cigarettes down to the molecular level. E-cigarette or Vaping use-Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) can range from shortness of breath to severe lung damage requiring intensive care. DiPasquale, a doctoral candidate in chemistry and biochemistry, is using synthetic membranes to study the physical effects of EVALI. For this research he was awarded the Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarships Doctoral Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). The award provides special recognition and support to students who are pursuing a doctoral degree in a health-related field in Canada. “Little is known about what causes EVALI, but evidence suggests it may stem from a physical interaction between toxicants in the vape and the pulmonary surfactant — a thin…
