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While internationalization is among the top strategic priorities of universities and colleges globally, research into the expanse of internationalization in the kinesiology discipline is not well researched. Given this gap, critical consideration of the state and status of the phenomenon is needed. Knowing more about what is being done in the name of internationalization within kinesiology and reflecting on how those actions and outcomes are aligned, or not, with key theoretical guidance is necessary in order to plan for improvement accordingly. For these reasons, this paper first provides a primer on internationalization in higher education, including how the phenomenon has come to be defined as well as key contemporary critiques associated with it. In particular, we highlight Beck's (2012) theoretical concept of 'eduscape' to critically consider the influences of globalization on internationalization within higher education kinesiology as well as Khoo, Taylor, and Andreotti's (2016) principles of intelligibility, dissent, and solidarity to consider the ways kinesiology scholars engage critically with internationalization processes. Presented next is a review of the kinesiology literature that is explicitly focused on internationalization. Then, the results of a pilot survey into the views of National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education (NAKHE) members and other Western kinesiology scholars on internationalization is reported next. The paper concludes with recommendations as to how NAKHE and the broader community of Western kinesiology scholars might best navigate internationalization moving forward. We recommend the complexity-informed and principle-driven approach of inclusive leadership as a means of pursuing cognitive justice in the 21st century.

This paper is a conversation about growing an inclusive field of disability studies. The paper draws on data collected through an analysis of existing disability studies programmes in selected Canadian universities. The paper makes a case for including diverse perspectives, experiences, viewpoints, and voices in these programmes. In this work, I call for an interrogation of the normativity in the field of disability studies and for critical reflections and discussions about growing a diverse and inclusive field that pays attention to marginalised populations. There is a need to rethink the exclusionary nature of knowledge, space, bodies, and pedagogy in the field, which perpetuates Eurocentric culture, thoughts, and practices.

In this paper, I discuss the process of redesigning and teaching a mandatory, academic skill building course for students on academic probation at Mount Saint Vincent University (MSVU) in Atlantic Canada. The rationale for redesigning the course was to offer an alternative curricular framework, including instructional approaches, to course instructors who taught a modular-based curriculum. The original course was designed to focus on improving students' individual self-efficacy and motivation for academic success; however, the social and relational nature of learning was not articulated as an underpinning theory in the curriculum. In the new curriculum, I draw on both Etienne Wenger's (1998) notion of communities of practice as sites for learning and Howe and Strauss' (2000; 2007) work on generational analysis as theoretical frameworks. Furthermore, I incorporate Wenger, McDermott, and Snyder's (2002) design principles for cultivating communities of practice as a framework for translating theory into practice. The initial information that I collected from students, instructors, and a thorough review of the original curriculum led to the main inquiry question: How can a curriculum, centred on building community in the classroom, help students to cultivate meaningful learning experiences that take learning beyond a "fake it 'til you make it" mentality? This question guided the curricular design process and also my experiences teaching the course at MSVU during the Fall semester of 2012.

Comparing group is one of the key uses of large-scale assessment results, which are used to gain insights to inform policy and practice and to examine the comparability of scores and score meaning. Such comparisons typically focus on examinees' final answers and responses to test questions, ignoring response process differences groups may engage in. This paper discusses and demonstrates the use of response process data in enhancing group comparison and fairness research methodologies. We propose two statistical approaches for identifying differential response processes which extend the differential item functioning (DIF) detection methods and demonstrate the complementary use of process data in comparing groups in two case studies. Our findings demonstrate the use of response process data in gaining insights about students' test-taking behaviors from different populations that go beyond what may be identified using response data only.

Learning as a central focus in the discourse on professional development is well grounded in the educational and professional development literature. Yet, despite this consensus, and significant research on how professionals learn, most professional development and continuing professional education (CPE) practices continue to focus on delivering content rather than enhancing learning. This paper provides an update and overview of adult education's ongoing critique of and contributions to debates about the aims, structure, and purposes of continuing professional development and CPE. The author profiles a long-standing and continuing effort by educational scholars to reclaim this vital area of study and practice, in order to bring their learning focus as well as their critical questions to bear on it.

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Microbotryum marginale is reported for the first time on Bistorta plumosa, based on a collection from the Yukon coast, Canadian Arctic, at 68°55'N. This locality is a new northern limit for M. marginale in North America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of TOPIA: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies (University of Toronto Press) is the property of University of Toronto Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The higher religiosity of women in the Western Christian societies is one of the best documented findings in the religious scholarship. In spite of the recent vibrancy of secular movements in North America, the higher religiosity of women appears persistent. As a result, the gender ratio is greatly skewed in the secular groups in favour of males. For instance, for every atheist female in North America, there are at least three males. Using the Canadian General Social Surveys of 1985–2014, this paper examines how the gender religiosity gap has evolved among the Canadian-born. Throughout the period, Canadian-born women are found less likely to be unaffiliated and show a greater frequency of religious attendance. The religious attendance gap is found to be closing. The unaffiliation gap, on the other hand, seems to have widened in the 21st century. Limiting the analyses to the gainfully employed respondents only reduces the religious attendance gap. For the high earners, the attendance gap effectively disappears, while a large unaffiliation gap persists into the 2010s. This pattern is best explained by the recent literature asserting that men and women are differentially socially sanctioned for the adoption of a secularized identity. The alleged sexism of the new secular movements is also noted as a potential explanation. The examination of the recent Canadian data on perceived religious and gender discrimination produces evidence congruent with both of these potential explanations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floating Catchment Area (FCA) methods are a popular tool to investigate accessibility to public facilities, in particular health care services. FCA approaches are attractive because, unlike other accessibility measures, they take into account the potential for congestion of facilities. This is done by 1) considering the population within the catchment area of a facility to calculate a variable that measures level of service, and then 2) aggregating the level of service by population centers subject to catchment area constraints. In this paper we discuss an effect of FCA approaches, an artifact that we term demand and level of service inflation. These artifacts are present in previous implementations of FCA methods. We argue that inflation makes interpretation of estimates of accessibility difficult, which has possible deleterious consequences for decision making. Next, we propose a simple and intuitive approach to proportionally allocate demandand and level of service in FCA calculations. The approach is based on a standardization of the impedance matrix, similar to approaches popular in the spatial statistics and econometrics literature. The result is a more intiuitive measure of accessibility that 1) provides a local version of the provider-to-population ratio; and 2) preserves the level of demand and the level of supply in a system. We illustrate the relevant issues with some examples, and then empirically by means of a case study of accessibility to family physicians in the Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), in Ontario, Canada. Results indicate that demand and supply inflation/deflation affect the interpretation of accessibility analysis using existing FCA methods, and that the proposed adjustment can lead to more intuitive results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freely-available satellite data streams and the ability to process these data on cloud-computing platforms such as Google Earth Engine have made frequent, large-scale landcover mapping at high resolution a real possibility. In this paper we apply these technologies, along with machine learning, to the mapping of peatlands–a landcover class that is critical for preserving biodiversity, helping to address climate change impacts, and providing ecosystem services, e.g., carbon storage–in the Boreal Forest Natural Region of Alberta, Canada. We outline a data-driven, scientific framework that: compiles large amounts of Earth observation data sets (radar, optical, and LiDAR); examines the extracted variables for suitability in peatland modelling; optimizes model parameterization; and finally, predicts peatland occurrence across a large boreal area (397, 958 km2) of Alberta at 10 m spatial resolution (equalling 3.9 billion pixels across Alberta). The resulting peatland occurrence model shows an accuracy of 87% and a kappa statistic of 0.57 when compared to our validation data set. Differentiating peatlands from mineral wetlands achieved an accuracy of 69% and kappa statistic of 0.37. This data-driven approach is applicable at large geopolitical scales (e.g., provincial, national) for wetland and landcover inventories that support long-term, responsible resource management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study reports on physicians’ experiences with chronic pain management. For over a decade prescription opioids have been a primary treatment for chronic pain in North America. However, the current opioid epidemic has complicated long-standing practices for chronic pain management which historically involved prescribing pain medication. Caring for patients with chronic pain occurs within a context in which a growing proportion of patients suffer from chronic rather than acute conditions alongside rising social inequities. Methods: Our team undertook an ethnographic approach known as institutional ethnography in the province of Ontario, Canada in order to explore the social organization of chronic pain management from the standpoint of primary care physicians. This paper reports on a subset of this study data, specifically interviews with 19 primary care clinicians and 8 nurses supplemented by 40 hours of observations. The clinicians in our sample were largely primary care physicians and nurses working in urban, rural and Northern settings. Findings: In their reflections on providing care for patients with chronic pain, many providers describe being most challenged by the work involved in helping patients who also struggled with poverty, mental health and addiction. These frustrations were often complicated by concerns that they could lose their license for inappropriate prescribing, thus shifting their work from providing treatment and care to policing their patients for malingering and opioid abuse. Interpretation: Our findings show that care providers find the treatment of patients with chronic pain–especially those patients also experiencing poverty–to be challenging at best, and at worst frustrating and overwhelming. In many instances, their narratives suggested experiences of depersonalization, loss of job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion in relation to providing care for these patients, key dimensions of burnout. In essence, the work that they performed in relation to their patients’ social rather than medical needs seems to contribute to these experiences. Their experiences were further exacerbated by the fact that restricting and reducing opioid dosing in patients with chronic pain has become a major focus of care provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We argue that scholars of immigrant integration should pay more attention to immigrants' ‘civic visibility’ among local government officials, organisations and other residents. To document and analyse immigrants' civic visibility, we examine coverage of the Vietnamese and Indian communities in newspapers in San Jose, Boston, Vancouver and Toronto from 1985 to 2005. We ask (i) do local newspapers cover the lives of immigrants and their descendants and (ii) what explains variation in the amount of coverage devoted to different immigrant-origin communities in different places? We find little evidence that newspaper coverage is affected by the demographics of an area, newsroom factors or simplified models of the national political and discursive opportunity structures. Instead, we take an ‘embedded’ context of reception approach, which takes seriously the intersection between general discursive opportunity structures on immigration and particular discourses about certain types of migrants. Our findings suggest the need to complicate national opportunity structure frameworks by considering how their interaction with specific immigrant communities produces between-country and between-group variation. Our results also underscore the importance of immigrant agency; greater visibility in local media appears to link with immigrants' greater presence in domestic politics. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The continued economic integration of North America has connected cross-border shoppers along the US-Canadian border. This paper explores the use of the US dollar in Canadian retail establishments along a geographical spine in Saskatchewan and Alberta, Canada. We find that distance away from the border is inversely related to the rate of US dollar acceptance in Saskatchewan. More important to the acceptance decision, however, is business maturity and provincial location in Saskatchewan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If decolonization truly begins with land, then it can be said that landscape studies—as a field concerned with the study, design, and ordering of land—has at least some stake in on going processes of decolonization. Repeated contestations for Indigenous land rights in North America suggest that settler-colonial contexts present a distinct and pressing concern for decolonization. The landscapes of colonialism are also deeply racialized, converging on extractive capitalism and environmental racism. Historically, landscape has been used as a disciplinary tool to facilitate the control of land and to naturalise colonial hegemonies, including the cultural framing of landscape through art and architecture. Current approaches to the built environment (including development, conservation, and management) also routinely perpetuate colonizing logics. For landscape studies, the prospect of decolonization (and of a decolonizing landscape praxis) demands the critical reconciliation of underlying coloniality within the field and a complete reorientation towards anti-colonial subjectivities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Centennial‐to‐millennial temperature records of the past provide a context for the interpretation of current and future changes in climate. Quaternary climates have been relatively well studied in north‐east North America and the adjacent Atlantic Ocean over the last decades, and new research methods have been developed to improve reconstructions. We present newly inferred reconstructions of sea surface temperature for the north‐western Atlantic region, together with a compilation of published temperature records. The database thus comprises a total of 86 records from both marine and terrestrial sites, including lakes, peatlands, ice and tree rings, each covering at least part of the Holocene. For each record, we present details on seasons covered, chronologies and information on radiocarbon dates and analytical time steps. The 86 records contain a total of 154 reconstructions of temperature and temperature‐related variables. Main proxies include pollen and dinocysts, while summer was the season for which the highest number of reconstructions were available. Many records covered most of the Holocene, but many dinocyst records did not extend to the surface, due to sediment mixing, and dendroclimate records were limited to the last millennium. The database allows for the exploration of linkages between sea ice and climate and may be used in conjunction with other palaeoclimate and palaeoenvironmental records, such as wildfire records and peatland dynamics. This inventory may also aid the identification of gaps in the geographic distribution of past temperature records thus guiding future research efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In North America, the psychiatric workforce while relatively large, remains insufficient for the population needs. Specialist training opportunities in psychiatry continues to grow, reflected in both increased recruitment and competitiveness. Furthermore, the iterative process of curriculum development and standardisation of training encourages greater educational consistency. There is an ongoing growth in subspecialty training opportunities, however access varies across centres and curriculum gaps remain. The diverse demographic characteristics and requirements of populations also play a role in educational needs, such as youth mental health, tele-psychiatry, cultural, rural and addictions psychiatry. Advances in science such as genetics, and the use of technologies and digital media also invite innovative approaches to knowledge acquisition. Overall, training needs to be matched by sufficient numbers of experienced and skilful trainers, mentorship and leadership in psychiatry with awareness of physician wellbeing and the risks of burnout. In the USA and Canada, the growing prospect of fellowships in leadership and administration lay important foundations for the growth of psychiatry, driven by high quality education for the mental health professionals and leaders of tomorrow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the late 1990s, Smart Growth has found broad acceptance within Canadian planning as a framework for sustainable urban development. Smart Growth emerged as a response to decades of dispersed and decentralized growth that dominated urbanization patterns in North America post-WWII. Through a series of spatial analysis methods, this research examines whether Smart Growth has influenced growth patterns of six mid-sized Canadian census metropolitan areas from 1990 to 2010. Findings of this research suggest that municipalities and regions have adopted policies consistent with Smart Growth, however, its influence on dispersed patterns of spatial growth has been limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, there is no consensus regarding the way that changes in climate will affect boreal forest growth, where warming is occurring faster than in other biomes. Some studies suggest negative effects due to drought‐induced stresses, while others provide evidence of increased growth rates due to a longer growing season. Studies focusing on the effects of environmental conditions on growth–climate relationships are usually limited to small sampling areas that do not encompass the full range of environmental conditions; therefore, they only provide a limited understanding of the processes at play. Here, we studied how environmental conditions and ontogeny modulated growth trends and growth–climate relationships of black spruce (Picea mariana) and jack pine (Pinus banksiana) using an extensive dataset from a forest inventory network. We quantified the long‐term growth trends at the stand scale, based on analysis of the absolutely dated ring‐width measurements of 2,266 trees. We assessed the relationship between annual growth rates and seasonal climate variables and evaluated the effects of various explanatory variables on long‐term growth trends and growth–climate relationships. Both growth trends and growth–climate relationships were species‐specific and spatially heterogeneous. While the growth of jack pine barely increased during the study period, we observed a growth decline for black spruce which was more pronounced for older stands. This decline was likely due to a negative balance between direct growth gains induced by improved photosynthesis during hotter‐than‐average growing conditions in early summers and the loss of growth occurring the following year due to the indirect effects of late‐summer heat waves on accumulation of carbon reserves. For stands at the high end of our elevational gradient, frost damage during milder‐than‐average springs could act as an additional growth stressor. Competition and soil conditions also modified climate sensitivity, which suggests that effects of climate change will be highly heterogeneous across the boreal biome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of continuous antiretroviral therapy, HIV has become a complex chronic, rather than acute, condition. The Chronic Care Model (CCM) provides an integrated approach to the delivery of care for people with chronic conditions that could therefore be applied to the delivery of care for people living with HIV. Our objective was to assess the alignment of HIV care settings with the CCM. We conducted a mixed methods study to explore structures, organization and care processes of Canadian HIV care settings. The quantitative results of phase one are published elsewhere. For phase two, we conducted semi-structured interviews with key informants from 12 HIV care settings across Canada. Irrespective of composition of the care setting or its location, HIV care in Canada is well aligned with several components of the CCM, most prominently in the areas of linkage to community resources and delivery system design with inter-professional team-based care. We propose the need for improvements in the availability of electronic clinical information systems and self-management support services to support better care delivery and health outcomes among people living with HIV in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: La Maison Bleue is a community-based perinatal health and social centre in Montreal that provides services during pregnancy up to age five to families living in vulnerable contexts. The study aimed to describe: 1) the challenges and protective factors that affect the well-being of migrant families receiving care at La Maison Bleue; and 2) how La Maison Bleue strengthens resilience among these families. Methods: We conducted a focused ethnography. Immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers and undocumented migrants were invited to participate. We collected data from November to December 2017 via semi-structured interviews and participant observation during group activities at La Maison Bleue. Data were thematically analysed. Results: Twenty-four mothers participated (9 interviewed, 17 observed). Challenges to well-being included family separation, isolation, loss of support, the immigration process, an unfamiliar culture and environment, and language barriers. Key protective factors were women’s intrinsic drive to overcome difficulties, their positive outlook and ability to find meaning in their adversity, their faith, culture and traditions, and supportive relationships, both locally and transnationally. La Maison Bleue strengthened resilience by providing a safe space, offering holistic care that responded to both medical and psychosocial needs, and empowering women to achieve their full potential towards better health for themselves and their families. Conclusion: Migrant mothers have many strengths and centres like La Maison Bleue can offer a safe space and be an empowering community resource to assist mothers in overcoming the multiple challenges that they face while resettling and raising their young children in a new country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Residential segregation into spatial neighborhoods and boroughs is a well-known spatial dynamic process that characterise complex urban environments. Existing models of segregation, including the pioneering Schelling ones, often do not consider all the factors that can contribute to this process. Segregation as well as aggregation emerges from local interactions among individuals, and is rooted in the complexity of social, economic and environmental interactions. The main objective of this study is to develop and implement a geospatial agent-based model to simulate the decision-making process of location of new household for incoming immigrant populations. Particularly this study aims to simulate and analyse the dynamics of the new immigrant populations arriving in the bilingual cities and boroughs of the island of Montreal. The model was implemented in NetLogo software, using real geospatial datasets. The obtained simulation results indicate realistic spatial patterns of spatial composition of the ethnographic fabric on the island of Montreal. The proposed model has the potential to be used as part of the city planning purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-consensual condom removal (NCCR) is the removal of a condom before or during sexual intercourse without one’s partner's consent. Despite considerable news and media attention devoted to the trend (as stealthing), little empirical research to date has examined people’s views of the practice. The present study aimed to contribute toward generating empirical evidence to guide the discussion surrounding NCCR. We asked participants about whether or not they felt NCCR is wrong, whether there should be consequences for its perpetration, and contextualized responses within legal context. A total of 592 undergraduate students took part in an online survey inquiring about their experiences with and views of NCCR. We used descriptive statistics to determine sample prevalence and outcomes of NCCR and qualitatively analyzed responses to open-ended questions asking about perceptions of NCCR. Of participants who had engaged in penetrative sexual intercourse with a male partner using an external condom, 18.7%, 95% CI [14.4, 22.7] reported that they had NCCR perpetrated against them. The majority of these participants reported that they experienced NCCR negatively and encountered related consequences; several reported contracting an STI, experiencing an unplanned pregnancy, or both. Nearly all participants expressed that NCCR is wrong, citing reasons that included the lack of consent, possibility of unplanned or unwanted outcomes, and a betrayal of trust. In this study, we found that there was agreement that NCCR is wrong, but variability in responses regarding the circumstances under which there should be consequences for the action. These perceptions reflect the current uncertainty in law. We recommend researchers refer to the phenomenon as NCCR (rather than stealthing) and discuss related issues to encourage future research to adopt consistent and accurate labels and definitions for NCCR. We hope that our findings will guide future research and spur public and legal discussion on NCCR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Attention to research and planning are increasingly being devoted to newcomer health, but the needs of newcomers with disabilities remain largely unknown. This information is difficult to determine since population-level data are rarely available on newcomers or on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), although in Ontario, Canada these databases are accessible. This study compared the prevalence of IDD among first generation adult newcomers to adult non-newcomers in Ontario, and assessed how having IDD affected the health profile and health service use of newcomers. Methods: This population-based retrospective cohort study of adults aged 19–65 in 2010 used linked health and social services administrative data. Prevalence of IDD among newcomers (n = 1,649,633) and non-newcomers (n = 6,880,196) was compared. Among newcomers, those with IDD (n = 2,830) and without IDD (n = 1,646,803) were compared in terms of health conditions, and community and hospital service use. Results: Prevalence of IDD was lower in newcomers than non-newcomers (171.6 versus 898.3 per 100,000 adults, p<0.0001). Among newcomers, those with IDD were more likely than those without IDD to have comorbid physical health disorders, non-psychotic, psychotic and substance use disorders. Newcomers with IDD were also more likely to have psychiatry visits, and frequent emergency department visits and hospitalizations. Conclusion: First generation adult newcomers have lower rates of IDD than non-newcomers. How much of this difference is attributable to admission policies that exclude people expected to be high health service users versus how much is attributable to our methodological approach is unknown. Finding more medical and psychiatric comorbidity, and more health service use among newcomers with IDD compared to newcomers without IDD is consistent with patterns observed in adults with IDD more generally. To inform polices that support newcomers with IDD future research should investigate reasons for the prevalence finding, barriers and facilitators to timely health care access, and pathways to care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are more likely to be readmitted than patients with other chronic medical conditions, yet knowledge regarding such readmissions is limited. We aimed to determine factors associated with readmission within 30 days of a COPD hospitalization or death with an emphasis on examining aspects of socioeconomic status and specific comorbidities. Methods: A population-based cohort study was conducted using health administrative data from Ontario, Canada. All hospitalizations for COPD between 2004 and 2014 were considered. The primary exposures were socioeconomic status as measured by residential instability (an ecologic variable), and comorbidities such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. Other domains of socioeconomic status were considered as secondary exposures. Logistic regression with generalized estimating equations was used to examine the effect of exposures, adjusting for other patient factors, on 30-day readmission or death. Results: There were 126,013 patients contributing to 252,756 index COPD hospitalizations from 168 Ontario hospitals. Of these hospitalizations, 19.4% resulted in a readmission and 2.8% resulted in death within 30 days. After adjusting for other factors, readmissions or death were modestly more likely among people with the highest residential instability compared to the lowest (OR 1.05, 95% CI 1.01–1.09). Comorbidities such as cardiovascular disease and cancer, as well as other aspects of low socioeconomic status also increased readmission or death risk. Interpretation: Socioeconomic status, measured in various ways, and many comorbidities predict 30-day readmission or death in patients hospitalized for COPD. Strategies that address these factors may help reduce readmissions and death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are currently over 80 species of mosquito endemic in Canada-although only a few of these carry pathogens that can cause disease in humans. West Nile virus, Eastern equine encephalitis virus and the California serogroup viruses (including the Jamestown Canyon and snowshoe hare viruses) are mosquito-borne viruses that have been found to cause human infections in North America, including in Canada. Over the last 20 years, the incidence of most of these endemic mosquito-borne diseases (MBD) has increased approximately 10% in Canada, due in large part to climate change. It is anticipated that both the mosquito lifecycle and virus transmission patterns will be affected by climate change, resulting in an increase in both the range and local abundance of several important mosquito species. Laboratory studies and mathematical modelling suggest that increased ambient temperatures, changes in precipitation and extreme weather events associated with climate change will likely continue to drive mosquito vector and MBD range expansion, increasing the duration of transmission seasons and leading to MBD-related epidemics. Furthermore, Canada's endemic MBDs have complex transmission cycles, involving multiple reservoir hosts (birds and mammals), multiple pathogens and multiple mosquito species-all of which may be sensitive to climate and other environmental changes, and making forecasting of potential emerging trends difficult. These expected climate-induced changes in mosquitoes and MBDs underline the need for continued (and expanded) surveillance and research to ensure timely and accurate evaluation of the risks to the public health of Canadians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Population trends of disease prevalence and incidence over time measure burden of disease and inform healthcare planning. Neuromuscular disorders (NMD) affect muscle and nerve function with varying degrees of severity and disease progression. Objective: Using health administrative databases we described trends in incidence, prevalence, and mortality of adults and children with NMD. We also explored place of death and use of palliative care. Methods: Population-based (Ontario, Canada) cohort study (2003 to 2014) of adults and children with NMD identified using International Classification of Disease and health insurance billing codes within administrative health databases. Results: Adult disease prevalence increased on average per year by 8% (95% confidence interval (CI) 6% to 10%, P <.001), with the largest increase in adults18-39 years. Childhood disease prevalence increased by 10% (95% CI 8% to 11%, P <.0001) per year, with the largest increase in children 0 to 5 years. Prevalence increased across all diagnoses except amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and spinal muscular atrophy for adults and all diagnoses for children. Adult incidence decreased by 3% (95% CI -4% to -2%, P <.0001) but incidence remained stable in children. Death occurred in 34,336 (18.5%) adults; 21,236 (61.8%) of whom received palliative care. Death occurred in 1,009 (5.6%) children; 507 (50.2%) of whom received palliative care. Mortality decreased over time in adults (odds ratio (OR) 0.86, 95% CI 0.86–0.87, P <.0001) and children (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.76–0.82, P <.0001). Use of palliative care over time increased for adults (OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.28, P <.0001) and children (OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.23, P <.0001). Conclusions: In both adults and children, NMD prevalence is rising and mortality rates are declining. In adults incidence is decreasing while in children it remains stable. This confirms on a population-based level the increased survival of children and adults with NMD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tree cavities provide a critical resource for cavity-nesting animals, and high quality cavities can be difficult for animals to acquire in habitats where competition is high. We investigated the breeding performance of Lewis's Woodpeckers in three habitat types in British Columbia, Canada in 2013 and 2014. We also assessed whether the number of nest competitors and cavity availability influenced the habitat specific breeding performance of this threatened cavity nesting species. We found that daily nest survival rate was lower in burned habitat (0.15 ± 0.08 (0.05–0.37)) than in live pine (0.72 ± 0.10 (0.51–0.87)) or cottonwood (0.69 ± 0.09 (0.51–0.83)) habitats. However, hatching success (the proportion of eggs that hatch) was lower in live pine habitat (0.59 ± 0.09 95% CI) than burned (0.77 ± 0.19 95% CI) or cottonwood (0.80 ± 0.07 95% CI) habitat, and the fledging success of successful nests in live pine and burned habitat (1.86 ± 0.31 and 1.88 ± 0.59 95% CI, respectively) was slightly lower than in cottonwood habitat (2.61 ± 0.45 95% CI). Consequently, Lewis's Woodpeckers in cottonwood habitat produced more fledglings per nesting attempt (2.05 ± 0.49 95% CI) than in live pine (1.53 ± 0.35 95% CI) or burned (0.79 ± 0.49 95% CI) habitat. Habitats differed in the number of nesting competitors and the number of suitable cavities surrounding active Lewis's Woodpecker nests. Our results showed that cavity density best explained breeding performance differences although the mechanisms remain unclear. There was no evidence that the number of heterospecific nest competitors, including the invasive European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris), explained or influenced Lewis's Woodpecker breeding performance. Cavity density influenced the productivity of successful nests but did not explain habitat differences in hatching success or daily nest survival. Further work is required to understand the mechanistic basis for the habitat specific breeding performance of Lewis's Woodpeckers. Habitat differences in breeding performance in British Columbia are not consistent with those in other regions, highlighting the importance of regionally-specific demographic data for managing species at risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automobiles are ubiquitous objects of private consumption and their meaning and use are shaped by different aspects of identity, including gender. The gender dimensions of automobility associated with particular types of vehicles have not been extensively researched. This article studies pickup trucks and masculinities in relation to home and work in the industrial construction sector in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. There, like in much of North America, trucks have become the most commonly purchased new vehicles over the last decade. Their widespread popular appeal contrasts with their historical development for manual labour gendered as masculine, such as farming and fishing, in rural places and environments conducive to such labour. Drawing on interviews with construction industry actors and workers, the article shows how new, expensive trucks have come to reflect the hegemonic masculinity at male-dominated industrial construction projects, while also showing how the meanings and uses of trucks are complex and contested. Trucks are understood to be functional for work and driving, but they are also status symbols, often used only sparingly for commuting, masculinized domestic work and leisure activities. The article unpacks the new and expanding popularity of the truck and its positioning in practice in relation to masculinities, work, and to the landscape in a place-based gender regime. In doing so, it contributes to efforts to contextualize masculinities in place, while also revealing how they are related to gender constructs in other places and at other scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Food insecurity is associated with a wide array of negative health outcomes and higher health care costs but there has been no population-based study of the association of food insecurity and mortality in high-income countries. Methods: We use cross-sectional population surveys linked to encoded health administrative data. The sample is 90,368 adults, living in Ontario and respondents in the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS). The outcome of interest is all-cause mortality at any time after the interview and within four years of the interview. The primary variable of interest is food insecurity status, with individuals classed as “food secure”, “marginally food insecure”, “moderately food insecure”, or “severely food insecure”. We use logistic regression models to determine the association of mortality with food insecurity status, adjusting for other social determinants of health. Results: Using a full set of covariates, in comparison to food secure individuals, the odds of death at any point after the interview are 1.28 (CI = 1.08, 1.52) for marginally food insecure individuals, 1.49 (CI = 1.29, 1.73) for moderately food insecure individuals, and 2.60 (CI = 2.17, 3.12) for severely food insecure individuals. When mortality within four years of the interview is considered, the odds are, respectively, 1.19 (CI = 0.95, 1.50), 1.65 (CI = 1.37, 1.98), and 2.31 (CI = 1.81, 2.93). Interpretation: These findings demonstrate that food insecurity is associated with higher mortality rates and these higher rates are especially large for the most severe food insecurity category. Efforts to reduce food insecurity should be incorporated into broader public health initiatives to reduce mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maintaining body temperature is a unique challenge with burn care. We sought to describe core temperature goals in the operating room (OR) and the methods used to achieve and maintain these goals, along with current methods of warming in the intensive care unit (ICU), the perception of effect of increased ambient temperature on work performance, and concerns with contamination of sterile fields due to increased ambient temperature. A 24 question survey was disseminated to burn centers in the United States and Canada. The questions included demographics, target core and ambient temperatures, warming methods, and beliefs on ambient temperature's effects. Of 121 burn centers, 52 questionnaires were completed (43% response rate). The majority of centers targeted a core temperature between 36 and 38°C in the OR and an ambient temperature between 75 and 95°F in the ICU. The most common methods for maintaining core temperature included warmed ambient temperature, forced air devices, and intravenous fluids. Although the majority of centers reported the belief that increased ambient temperature benefits patients, many also reported that there is a negative impact on staff performance and risk of staff perspiration contaminating sterile fields. Burn centers reported a range of target core temperatures and methods to reach target temperatures. More than a third of respondents perceived a negative impact work performance while more than half acknowledged the potential for contamination of sterile fields. A prospective observational study is needed to determine actual temperature regulation practice patterns and its impact on outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beginning with the first travelogues of the late 1890s, the film and tourism industries collaborated both directly and indirectly to shape representations of North America’s western landscape and its people. These non-narrative motion pictures intersected with the rise of mass consumerism, modern tourism, the forces of imperialism and colonialism, as well as industrialized forms of transportation. In particular, railroad travel films from the Canadian Pacific Railway Company and the Northern Pacific Railway Company transformed motion-picture goers into armchair tourists, exposing audiences to the scenic wonders of the West. These transcontinental railroads, themselves products of nation-building initiatives, competed against one another to increase passenger traffic by marketing the sublime and often overlapping landscapes of the American and Canadian Wests as potent nationalist and unifying symbols that heralded each country’s uniqueness. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]