Connect and Collaborate at WE-SPARK After Dark August 6 Join the WE-SPARK Health Institute community for the next WE-SPARK After Dark on Thursday, August 6, from 5 to 7 p.m. at The Bourbon Tap & Grill.This free, informal networking event brings together researchers, students, healthcare professionals, community partners and anyone interested in health research. The evening provides an opportunity to make new connections, exchange ideas and learn more about the work happening across our region’s health research community.Registration is encouraged but not required, and everyone is welcome.Please click here to register.
How hot is too hot? Guidelines could protect athletes from heat injury The heavy gear required for football may put athletes at particular risk when training in extreme heat (JASON JONES/University of Windsor) How hot is too hot to exercise safely? For Canadian varsity coaches, athletes and even youth sports organizations, getting a clear answer to that question is surprisingly difficult. With extreme heat blanketing southern Ontario in recent weeks, UWindsor Kinesiology professors Dr. Anthony Bain and Dr. Andrew Perrotta sought out heat training guidelines governing Canadian varsity sports. “I was shocked that we had nothing,” says Bain. While U SPORTS, the governing body for Canadian university athletics, provides parameters for training related to air quality, lightning and wind chill, Perrotta and Bain noticed that heat-related guidelines are absent. “With global climate change only progressing, I found it astonishing that the governing body has not addressed this,” Perrotta says. “It’s actually up to each institution.” With Canada…
UWindsor nursing study shows trust and mentorship are key to medication incident reporting Faculty of Nursing professor Natalie Giannotti led a study examining perceptions of medication incident reporting,helping advance a culture of patient safety, learning, and transparency. (SUBMITTED BY NATALIE GIANNOTTI/University of Windsor)Administering medication may appear straightforward, but behind every dose is a complex series of steps where errors can still occur despite the best intentions of health-care professionals.Nearly two decades after introducing a medication incident reporting system for nursing students, the University of Windsor is seeing evidence that its efforts to build a culture of safety are taking hold.A new study led by Dr. Natalie Giannotti, a professor in the Faculty of Nursing, explores how nursing students and instructors perceive medication incident reporting and the culture surrounding it."We wanted to see how far along we've come and whether we've established the culture of safety we thought we had," Giannotti said. "If there are…
Getting proactive about women’s bone density: Partnership with Field Hockey Canada to explore athlete spine health Dr. Andrew Perrotta worked as the physiologist with the Canadian national women’s field hockey team during the Rio Olympic cycle(PROVIDED BY A. PERROTTA/University of Windsor)For female athletes — and women in general — bone health is key to long-term health.At the same time, research on women’s physiology has often been overlooked in medicine and sports science.As part of a new partnership with Field Hockey Canada, kinesiology professor Dr. Andrew Perrotta and the University of Windsor’s Sport Science Laboratory are working to help change that, examining the spine health of female field hockey players on Canada’s national team.“With women, it’s really important that they prep their body physically for later in life when they go through menopause and bone mineral density goes down due to changes in estrogen,” Perrotta explains.“It’s really important for female athletes and women in general to develop as much bone mineral density as possible early in life, during…
A fair shot at work: UWindsor researcher explores what helps justice-involved Canadians succeed Dr. Kemi Anazodo, professor at the University of Windsor’s Odette School of Business, is part of a research team studying employment outcomes for justice-involved adults. (DAVE GAUTHIER /University of Windsor) For people with criminal records, finding steady work can be one of the hardest parts of rebuilding their lives. A new research project involving University of Windsor business professor Kemi Anazodo is examining how employment programs can help justice-involved Canadians overcome those barriers and build long-term stability. Backed by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Partnership Engage Grant, the study evaluates the John Howard Society of Ontario’s EMPower program, a 12-week employment training and placement initiative designed for people navigating the justice system and other structural barriers. The project is led by Steven Smith of Saint Mary’s University, with Katelynn Carter Rogers of St. Francis Xavier University, Anazodo and the John Howard Society…
What happens when bacteria outsmart antibiotics? A UWindsor researcher is building the answer Dr. Opeyemi Lawal is the Canada Research Chair in Environmental and Public Health Genomics. (PETER MARVAL/University of Windsor) Drug-resistant infections are silently spreading through water, soil, food systems and healthcare settings — often undetected until they become a public health emergency. At the University of Windsor, environmental microbiologist Dr. Opeyemi Lawal is developing new ways to spot these threats early, understand why they persist, and stop them before they spread. His work focuses on detecting and controlling antimicrobial resistance and emerging pathogens in environmental reservoirs — places where resistance often takes hold long before people get sick. That research has now earned Lawal a Canada Research Chair, one of the country’s highest academic honours, recognizing his work at the intersection of environmental science, public health, genomics, and artificial intelligence. He is a professor in the School of the Environment and a researcher with…
The rankings are in, and UWindsor's research influence is being felt around the world University of Windsor researchers at work. UWindsor ranked 265th globally for research citation impact in the 2027 QS World University Rankings, nearly tripling the global average. (FILES/University of Windsor) The University of Windsor has reached its highest-ever position in the QS World University Rankings, ranking third in Ontario among non-medical universities and placing among the world’s top 20 per cent for research impact. This year, more than 8,800 institutions were evaluated and 1,504 were ranked. UWindsor placed 537th overall — up nine positions from last year — marking its third consecutive year among the top 550 universities in the world and making it one of only eight Canadian universities to improve its position this year. Now in its 23rd edition, the QS rankings is one of the most widely referenced assessments of university performance globally. Behind the result is research influence — a measure of how often scholars around the world read, use and cite research…
Making friends, having fun and getting moving: Inclusive exercise program expands to more local high schools STEPS teacher Joey Filipic coaches a student through some batting practice during the APEX wrap-up event at Westview Freedom Academy (KYLE ARCHIBALD/University of Windsor) With baseballs and frisbees flying, music pumping and students dancing, the Adapted Physical Exercise (APEX) program wrapped up for the summer at Windsor’s Westview Freedom Academy. APEX — started 15 years ago in the University of Windsor’s Faculty of Human Kinetics — provides exercise programming for community members with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). In the past two years, the program has expanded to local high schools in both the Greater Essex County District School Board (GECDSB) and Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board, with student peer leaders pairing up to exercise with students with IDD. The success of the program in three initial GECDSB schools led to an expansion into Westview, Vincent Massey Secondary School and Sandwich Secondary School this spring. …
WE-SPARK Think Tank Opens the Door to Collaboration on Emerging Health Research Ideas WE-SPARK Health Institute is inviting researchers, health care professionals, students, and community organizations to take part in its upcoming Virtual Think Tank on Friday, June 19, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. The WE-SPARK Think Tank is designed to bring people together around emerging health research ideas, community priorities and opportunities for collaboration. Participants will hear from local presenters who are looking to build partnerships, gather feedback and move their projects forward through meaningful discussion. All are welcome to attend, especially those who enjoy exploring new ideas, solving problems, making connections and supporting research that responds to real-world health needs. Think Tank Topics Advancing Sexually Transmitted Blood-Borne Infections Awareness and Access Presenters Roselyn Kyeame and Razane Diab from the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit will introduce the development of a community-informed sexual health committee focused on strengthening collaboration…
