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Introduction: Students from low‐income backgrounds (LIB) have been under‐represented in Canadian medical schools for over fifty years. Despite our awareness of this problem, little is known about the experiences of aspiring physicians from LIB in Canada who are working towards medical school admission. Consequently, we have little insight into the barriers and facilitators that may be used to increase the representation of students from LIB in Canadian medical schools. Methods: This paper describes a qualitative description interview study aimed at understanding the experiences of aspiring physicians from LIB as they attempt to gain entry to medical school. We conducted semi‐structured interviews with 21 participants at different stages of their undergraduate, master's, and non‐medical professional education, and used the theories of intersectionality and identity capital as a theoretical framework for identifying barriers and facilitators to a career in medicine. Results: Participants experienced social, identity‐related, economic, structural and informational barriers to a career in medicine. Intrinsic facilitators included motivation, self‐confidence, attitude, strategy, information‐seeking and sorting, and financial literacy and increasing income. Extrinsic facilitators were social, informational, financial and institutional in nature. Conclusion: This study fills existing knowledge gaps in the literature by identifying the pre‐admissions barriers and facilitators encountered by aspiring physicians from LIB in Canada. The barriers and facilitators outlined in this study offer a framework for identifying target areas in developing support for admitting medical students from LIB. Given that medical students from LIB are more likely to serve underserved populations, our study is relevant to Canadian medical schools' social accountability commitment to producing physicians that meet the health needs of marginalised and vulnerable patients. Out of concern for socioeconomic diversity, the authors apply an intersectional approach to examine the barriers and facilitators faced by aspiring physicians from low‐income backgrounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine positioned as the "right tool" to protect girls' health and sexual health, public discourse positions parents as "responsible" if they vaccinate, "irresponsible" if they do not. The problem with this binary, however, is that it cannot account for the full spectrum of responsibilities and social norms that parents enact in vaccine decisions. In this paper, and in the context of low HPV vaccination rates, I confront this binary and encourage a fuller view of adolescent health and sexual health. Using data from qualitative semi‐structured interviews with 28 Canadian mothers tasked with consenting to the HPV vaccine, I examine the complexity of this responsibility. I find HPV vaccine‐consenting mothers have normative conceptualisations of responsibility aligned with dominant interpretations of public health. Rather than expressing irresponsibility, some non‐HPV vaccine‐consenting mothers articulated alternate responsibilities, aligned with broad efforts to manage their teens' sexual health and sexuality. They extend responsibility beyond cancer protection vis‐à‐vis vaccines to a general responsibility for daughters' sexual health and self‐esteem. In conclusion, I recommend the need for a broader public health approach to HPV, which includes, and goes beyond vaccination. Moreover, I suggest that some of these alternate responsibilities be viewed as complementary to vaccination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To explore the views and practices of paediatric occupational therapists and physical therapists in Canada and the USA regarding the implementation of power mobility for children with mobility limitations.Method: This descriptive study utilized a web-based survey that included questions pertaining to therapists' decisions to trial and use power mobility, agreement or disagreement with statements developed from published practice considerations regarding power mobility, and the frequency of performing tasks related to power mobility prescription and training.Results: Most respondents reported that child characteristics (e.g. cognition, safety awareness) were important factors in decision-making about power mobility, whereas other child characteristics (e.g. communication abilities, age) were not as important. Family resources and home accessibility were also not considered important. The average age at which respondents considered power mobility for children was 2 years 3 months. The majority of respondents agreed with statements developed from published practice considerations and most frequently performed various power mobility tasks twice a year or less.Interpretation: Although most respondents appeared to have positive views regarding power mobility, few appeared to actively perform power mobility tasks in their practice. Resources to support therapists in the early introduction of power mobility may be beneficial.What This Paper Adds: Occupational and physical therapists positively view early introduction of power mobility for children with mobility limitations. Few therapists actively provide early power mobility experiences. Power mobility training and monitoring power mobility devices are important therapist roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Using theory syllabi and departmental data collected for three academic years, this paper investigates the institutional practice of theory in sociology departments across Canada. In particular, it examines the position of theory within the sociological curriculum, and how this varies among universities. Taken together, our analyses indicate that theory remains deeply institutionalized at the core of sociological education and Canadian sociologists’ self‐understanding; that theorists as a whole show some coherence in how they define themselves, but differ in various ways, especially along lines of region, intellectual background, and gender; that despite these differences, the classical versus contemporary heuristic largely cuts across these divides, as does the strongly ingrained position of a small group of European authors as classics of the discipline as a whole. Nevertheless, who is a classic remains an unsettled question, alternatives to the “classical versus contemporary” heuristic do exist, and theorists’ syllabi reveal diverse “others” as potential candidates. Our findings show that the field of sociology is neither marked by universal agreement nor by absolute division when it comes to its theoretical underpinnings. To the extent that they reveal a unified field, the findings suggest that unity lies more in a distinctive form than in a distinctive content, which defines the space and structure of the field of sociology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Participating in everyday life is essential to the healthy development and emotional well-being of children. However, little is known about siblings of children with complex care needs (CCN), and their perspectives and experiences of participating in everyday life. The aim of this paper is to present research findings that add to our understanding of how siblings of children with CCN view and experience participation in everyday life. Methods To arrive at a detailed and accurate understanding of the siblings' perspectives and experiences, we used the qualitative research design of ethnography. Sixteen siblings (seven brothers, nine sisters) of children with CCN were recruited. The siblings ranged in age between 7 and 25 years, with a mean age of 14 years. All siblings took part in opened-ended interviews and completed ecomaps to describe how they participate. Five siblings also took part in the photovoice method. Analysis involved several iterative steps, congruent with ethnography. Results Four main themes emerged as follows: (1) participation is about being part of a group; (2) it feels good; (3) I love my sibling but...; and (4) promoting participation. Siblings of children with CCN identified challenges to participation and also described ways that they participate that relate to the care of their sibling. Conclusions Siblings prioritized the relationship with their sisters and brothers with CCN in their life, and a great deal of their participation was chosen with their sibling in mind. Sibling-to-sibling relationships were distinct and meaningful and, as a result, participation was always done mindfully and with the family needs at the forefront. Nonetheless, clinicians caring for children with CCN must keep in mind the challenges that siblings of children with CCN experience and provide strategies to siblings that will help to promote their participation in everyday life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2010 Prime Minister Stephen Harper quietly created a system of Minister's Caucus Advisory Committees (MCACs), requiring ministers to consult with their backbench colleagues before taking policy proposals to cabinet. Based on interviews with Conservative MPs, ministers, political staffers and public servants, the paper argues that MCACs increase MPs' influence over government policy and enhance cohesion within the government's parliamentary caucus. By constraining ministers' policy freedom and providing the prime minister with regular political intelligence concerning policy proposals, MCACs reinforce his pre-eminence within cabinet and represent a significant innovation in the relationship between the executive and government caucus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]