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Adaptation of the Positive Discipline in Everyday Parenting (PDEP) program for expectant parents: a pilot study
No full textIn many parts of the world prenatal education classes are a common practice that primarily focus on pregnancy and childbirth yet only minimally on preparation for parenthood and child development. Although pregnancy and childbirth are a relatively small proportion of the parenthood journey compared to the years spent parenting, there are currently no wide-spread prenatal parent education programs. Parents who do not understand expected child development or the harmful effects of punishment might respond to their children in ways that could have negative outcomes. Based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (United Nations, 1990), the Positive Discipline in Everyday Parenting (PDEP) program (Durrant, 2013) aims to reduce the incidence of physical punishment and promote positive parent-child relationships and healthy child development. PDEP was originally designed to be delivered to parents and caregivers of children from birth to 18 years of age. The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the feasibility of delivering a modified version of the PDEP program to expectant parents, focusing on the first year of life. The modified program was named Positive Foundations for Everyday Parenting (PFEP), and Ajzen’s Theory of Planned Behaviour (1991) provided the theoretical foundation for this research. Participants’ knowledge of child development, preparedness for parenting and attitudes towards physical punishment were measured via a 10-item pretest and posttest, along with open-ended questions on the program itself. Findings showed that participants enjoyed the program and found the content to be helpful. All participants agreed they felt more confident about becoming a parent since taking PFEP and what they learned will help them better understand their baby and build a strong relationship with their baby. There was a trend noted in participants’ feeling better prepared for parenthood compared to pre-program. Findings from this pilot study provide support for larger scale intervention and research, and as a resource for nurses who care for families and expectant parents.Manitoba Centre for Nursing and Health Research (MCNHR) research grantFebruary 202
Research Summary
No full textSTAR has a mailing list of over 100 students, yet meetings typically have fewer than 10 students in attendance. We asked the question “How can we increase student engagement in STAR”
An exploratory study on renovations of a special needs dementia unit
No full textIn the summers of 2017 and 2019, a team of researchers from the Centre on Aging at the University of Manitoba conducted a research project on the renovations to the special care unit at Riverview Health Centre. During this project, we were fortunate to have many staff, family and residents participate in the various aspects of the project. We are grateful to all participants who were very generous with their time.
Please note that all elements of the renovated spaces were not fully functional during this research project. This was due in part to technology implementation and renovation delays at Riverview. We had hoped to do an evaluation of all the new spaces in 2020 with family and staff. However, the pandemic prevented this from happening. This means that we were not able to assess the use of the new pavilion and courtyard spaces.
The completed renovation and technology elements included: smaller dining and lounge spaces, new lighting, image films on doors (resident rooms and exit), flooring and wall coverings, murals, staff communication technology, and re-location of the nursing station.
This summary will highlight research findings associated with the new elements and how they impacted residents and staff. Research findings come from surveys, resident statistics, observations of the residents and how the spaces were used. In addition, we made physical measurements of lighting and noise levels.Mitac
Influence of fluconazole drug-dosing regimen on the rate of adaptation and extinction in Candida albicans
No full textInvasive infections caused by human fungal pathogens are a global health concern due to high mortality and morbidity rates. Many fungal infections are caused by species from the genus Candida. The most common, Candida albicans, is both a commensal member of the healthy human microbiota and a prevalent opportunistic fungal pathogen. The antifungal azole drug fluconazole (FLC) is frequently prescribed for treating C. albicans infections. Azole drugs are typically fungistatic—they inhibit cell growth rather than kill susceptible cells within a population. Therefore, fungal populations can potentially adapt to fluconazole through increases in drug resistance or increases in drug tolerance (the ability of some cells of a susceptible population to grow slowly at inhibitory drug concentrations). Given the limited arsenal of antifungal drugs and the difficulty in developing novel antifungals due to the close phylogenetic relationship between human and fungal cells, there is a need to design treatment strategies that prolong drug efficacy and delay the evolution of drug tolerance or resistance.
To understand the influence of fluconazole drug-dosing regimen on the rate of adaptation and extinction in Candida albicans, I performed nine short-term in vitro evolution experiments. I independently evolved twenty-four replicates from four C. albicans strains to 0.25 μg/mL FLC ("FLC0.25"), 1 μg/mL FLC ("FLC1"), and 16 μg/mL FLC ("FLC16"), with 1:1000 dilutions done at three transfer durations (24 h, 48 h, and 72 h). Transfer duration significantly influenced the extinction rate: all replicates evolved at all drug concentrations survived the 48 h and 72 h transfer experiments, yet the extinction rate increased sharply from low to high drug concentration with 24 h transfers. Increases in drug tolerance were very frequent regardless of the dosing regimen. In contrast, large increases in drug susceptibility occurred for higher drug concentrations- FLC1 and FLC16 evolved replicates with 48 h and 72 h transfers. Reduction in drug susceptibility and growth rates of the evolved replicates were common. Genome size changes were common in some strain backgrounds evolved to higher fluconazole concentrations and longer transfer times. Overall, we found a significant effect of the drug-dosing regimen on the phenotype and genome size and was strain background specific.February 202
Identification of quantitative trait loci for pod shatter tolerance in Brassica napus L.
No full textBrassica napus L. (canola and rapeseed) is the second most produced oilseed crop worldwide and is of substantial economic value to Canadian agriculture. However, pre-harvest seed loss due to pod shatter and pod drop poses a substantial threat to canola production. Both pod shatter and pod drop present key concerns: economically, they reduce yield and lead to lost revenue, while agronomically, the dropped seeds become competitive weeds in subsequent growing seasons. This study focuses solely on pod shatter. Pod drop was not examined. Pod shatter is a quantitative trait that is primarily genetically controlled but is also highly influenced by environmental factors, including hail, heat, humidity, precipitation and wind. In this study, quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis was conducted to identify genomic regions and molecular markers associated with pod shatter tolerance using a doubled haploid (DH) population consisting of 192 genotypes derived from a cross between 13R4497 (pod shatter susceptible) and 13R3973 (pod shatter tolerant). The genotypes were planted in a randomized complete block design across two Manitoba field sites in 2022 and 2023, for a total of three site-years. Pod shatter tolerance was assessed using a rating scale of one (susceptible) to nine (tolerant) following a high-speed wind event simulated with a leaf blower. Genomic DNA was extracted, and parental and DH genotypes were genotyped using the Brassica 90K Illumina Infinium™ SNP array. A genetic linkage map covering 988.1 cM and containing 535 SNP markers was anchored to the B. napus ‘Darmor-bzh’ v10 reference genome. Inclusive composite interval mapping identified 13 additive-effect QTL on chromosomes A03, A04, A05, A06, A08 A09, C01 C03, C04 and C09. QTLs associated with pod shatter tolerance explained 4.01 % to 17.00 % of the phenotypic variation observed in the population. Three of the QTLs were present in more than one site-year and in the combined site-year data. Four QTLs were selected for candidate gene screening based on the criteria of appearing in more than one site-year or explaining over 15 % of the phenotypic variation. Based on gene ontology annotations, a total of 23 candidate genes were identified as potentially contributing to the genetic control of pod shatter tolerance in the DH population, including the AG and NST1 genes, which have been associated with pod shatter tolerance in Arabidopsis. The results of this research may provide a foundation for developing molecular markers linked to QTLs associated with pod shatter tolerance, advancing marker-assisted selection, and enhancing our understanding of the molecular control of pod dehiscence in B. napus.February 202
Reconstruction of ancestral non-coding RNA sequences using sequential and structural information with tree decomposition
No full textAncestral sequence reconstruction aims to infer what was the content of certain biological sequences of interest for ancestral species that do not exist anymore. This is accomplished by comparing and extracting similarities and differences from the sequences in extant (i.e. living) species. Since the search space is quite large, a lot of research has been devoted to the design of efficient and accurate methods to solve different variations of this problem. However, ancestral sequence reconstruction becomes even more complex when the goal is to reconstruct the ancestors of sequences that are not well conserved in extant species. This is the case with non-coding RNA (ncRNA) sequences, for which the structure (formed by base pairing) is more conserved than the actual sequences. One recent approach to tackle the ancestral reconstruction of ncRNA sequences involved considering the sequences of two related ncRNA families simultaneously. Although this helped avoid biases in the reconstruction, some cost calculations had to be simplified for efficiency. In this thesis, the goal was to improve the cost calculation of that approach by using a more advanced structural model and tree decomposition to partition the cost calculation into subproblems. Our results demonstrate an important gain in accuracy and a significant reduction in the number of optimal sequences inferred.February 202
A prospective multi-site study to evaluate the performance and usability of an oral fluid-based HIV self-test in Canada
Get PDFAbstract Background Blood and oral fluid-based HIV self-tests are important for reaching the undiagnosed living with HIV. The study objectives were to evaluate the oral fluid-based OraQuick® HIV Self-Test (HIV-ST) performance in comparison to laboratory reference testing; determine if laypersons can correctly perform the HIV-ST; document if intended users can successfully interpret pre-made contrived positive, negative, and invalid results; and document if intended users can understand the key messages in the product labeling. Methods This prospective study enrolled consenting adult intended users of HIV self-testing from six community health centres in four Canadian provinces between June 2022 and January 2024. Positive and negative agreement was determined by comparing the results of the HIV self-tests with the results of the laboratory-based “gold standard” Abbott Alinity HIV Antigen/Antibody Combo test. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize usability self-test procedure steps. Results Overall, 951 participants were recruited and consented with 911 available for all analyses. With respect to sociodemographics: 84% of participants were between 18–45 years of age, 73% had at least a college education, 48% were Cis-male, 45% were employed; and 26% identified as White, 23% as African, Caribbean or Black, 5% as Indigenous [First Nations, Métis or Inuit], 33% as Asian, and 6% as LatinX. Primary efficacy analysis on the 911 who completed HIV-ST revealed a single confirmed positive participant and a negative percent agreement of 100% (880/880, 95% CI: 99.9–100%) with the comparator method. For usability determination, the average success rate for “critical” steps for completing the test was 94.1%. Approximately 97% of participants found the instructions easy to follow and 98% of participants reported they would use the test again. Of the 465 participants who interpreted the strong positive, weak positive, negative, and invalid pre-made contrived results, the average of correct interpretations ranged from 59–97% Conclusions A licensed oral fluid-based HIV self-test in Canada can present an accurate, easy-to-use, and less invasive alternative to blood-based HIV testing. The addition of an oral-fluid self-test along with the current licensed blood-based HIV self-test could help reach the undiagnosed with HIV in Canada and positively impact HIV testing rates overall by offering individuals a choice of self-testing devices
A case study of teachers’ perspectives on middle school students’ misconceptions and myths in learning mathematics in Ghana
Get PDFThis study explores teachers’ perspectives on misconceptions and myths about mathematics learning among Ghanaian middle school students and the possible factors contributing to these misconceptions and myths. Such misconceptions and myths are well-documented globally but less understood in the Ghanaian context. Grounded in theories from Piaget and Vygotsky, the study employed a qualitative case study design, guided by an Integrated Teacher Student Environment model. Data were collected through teacher interviews and classroom observations and analyzed using deductive thematic analysis. The findings reveal that teachers believe students have misconceptions about mathematics dimensions such as adding or subtracting unlike terms, operations involving negative numbers, and operations involving different measurement units. Teachers believe that students also exhibit several myths about mathematics learning, including its perceived difficulty, gendered suitability, the myth of inherited mathematical competence, and the belief that mathematics requires memorization. These teachers also believe that traditional instructional practices, teacher discomfort with mathematics, students’ lack of confidence in their mathematical abilities, and socio-cultural influences may be contributing factors. These findings highlight the need for instructional reforms that actively address the myths and misconceptions students hold about mathematics by promoting conceptual understanding, challenging stereotypes, and creating a more inclusive and confidence-building learning environment.October 202
Enhancing well-being: the role of nature-based features in healthcare environments for stress recovery among military veterans
Get PDFEach year, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) experiences an alarming increase in the number of military personnel being discharged for medical reasons including orthopedic injuries, operational stress injuries, and mental health disorders such as depression and PTSD. Due to their operational duties, veterans experience higher rates of physical and mental health illnesses. As a result, veterans require more access to healthcare services such as occupational therapists, audiologists, speech pathologists, and therapy counsellors. Complex care requirements create challenges in navigating the healthcare system to receive treatment and successfully transition back into civilian life. These challenges have sometimes discouraged individuals from seeking healthcare and receiving proper medical treatment.
The primary purpose of this practicum project is to consider a new approach to interior design that focuses on reducing patient and staff stress in community-based healthcare environments for veterans. It reimagines the traditional institutional feel of healthcare facilities to prioritize patient physical and psychological well-being. It builds upon existing literature and theoretical frameworks for healthcare design. The design investigation includes identifying the barriers to accessing healthcare faced by veterans, analysis of the architectural and spatial guidelines of existing veteran-centered healthcare facilities and determining the potential impact of integrating nature-based features on stress reduction (Nuamah et al., 2021; Totaforti, 2018; Jencks et al., 2015). Interior design strategies informed by Roger Ulrich’s theory of supportive design and Stephen Kellert’s biophilic design are applied to create a veterans' healthcare setting. The resulting redesign of the North Pavilion located on the Deer Lodge Campus in Winnipeg, Manitoba, into a rehabilitation center for military veterans experiencing physical or psychological trauma represents a new approach to providing an accessible, supportive and safe healing environment.MSBI Bursary fundMay 202
Examining inequalities in sugar sweetened beverage consumption using the 2004 and 2015 Canadian Community Health Surveys
Get PDFBackground: Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) are associated with type 2 diabetes and other metabolic disorders, and as such, have become a popular health policy target. Reduction strategies include excise taxation, health education, and restrictions on the sale and marketing of SSBs in schools and public settings. Despite endorsement by health organizations and researchers, there is concern that these policies will not reduce health inequities for marginalized groups that consume SSB at higher frequencies and amounts. It is critical to examine changes in inequalities in SSB intake over time and in response to SSB policies. To examine inequalities in SSB intake, we are particularly interested in examining the association between smoking and SSB consumption.
Objectives: Manuscript 1.0 aims to examine the associations between smoking and SSB consumption in 2004 and 2015. Manuscript 2.0 aims to examine the associations between relative income deprivation score and SSB consumption, comparing between 2004 and 2015.
Methods: The 2004 and 2015 Canadian Community Health Surveys (CCHS) were used, which include representative samples of the Canadian population and detailed dietary data collected through 24-hour dietary recalls. Descriptive and analytical statistics were carried out to achieve the listed objectives, including developing logistic and linear regression models to determine the influence of predictors, such as relative income deprivation score (RID) and smoking, on binary SSB consumption and SSB-derived sugar amount.
Results: Current smoking is associated with higher odds of SSB consumption (aOR: 1.86 [95% CI, 1.29, 2.68]), but not with SSB-derived sugar intake (Coeff: 0.10 [95% CI, -0.03, 0.23]), after adjusting for confounders. RID based on sex and province was not associated with SSB consumption in 2004 and 2015. Indigenous individuals had higher odds of consuming SSBs compared to non-Indigenous individuals (2004 OR = 2.65 [95% CI, 1.35, 5.20]), and 2015 (OR = 2.77 [95% CI, 1.39, 5.54]) with no significant change over time. There was no significant association between food insecurity and SSB consumption.
Conclusion: Current smoking is associated with SSB intake, pointing to potential shared behavioural and socio-economic drivers. Persisting inequalities in SSB consumption between Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations emphasize the need for more equitable public health policies.University of Manitoba Graduate Fellowship
CIHR master’s Canada Graduate Scholarship
Manitoba Research Data Centre Fellowship award
SMART Healthy Cities Training Grant
Bruce McDonald Award in Clinical Nutrition
Holmfridur Kristjansson Graduate Award in Nutrition
Margaret I. Morton Scholarship in Human Nutritional ScienceOctober 202