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Introduction Food allergy affects approximately 7.0% of children worldwide. Children spend most of their waking hours at school, yet, teachers, who have the majority of contact with children during all school day, have variable food allergy-related knowledge. Objective We aimed to identify how Winnipeg-based elementary school teachers manage food allergic reactions in their classrooms and schools. Methods Winnipeg-based public and private school teachers who taught Kindergarten to Grade 6 were recruited via social media and word-of-mouth, and were interviewed virtually consent. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. The study followed a pragmatic framework. Data were analysed via thematic analysis. Member checking was done to enhance study rigour. Results We interviewed 16 teachers, who taught primarily public school and between Kindergarten Grade 3. The manuscript presents four identified themes. Theme 1 (“Each classroom is a case-by-case basis”) describes the minimal standardization and inconsistent policies and education between and within schools. Theme 2 (Food allergy-related knowledge, experience and supports shape teachers’ confidence) reflected teachers’ variable confidence/perceived food allergy knowledge. Theme 3 (Food allergy could be a more prominent conversation for teachers to “debunk the myths”) captured the lack of standardized food allergy education for teachers. Theme 4 (Communication between all parties is essential) described how teachers’ reliance on school staff, families and students to effectively communicate. The published paper presents two identified themes. Theme 1 (COVID-19 restrictions made mealtimes more manageable) depicted how pandemic-related restrictions, such as enhanced cleaning, handwashing, and emphasis on no food sharing, were deemed positively influencing food allergy management. Theme 2 (Food allergy management was indirectly adapted to fit changing COVID-19 restrictions) captured how food allergy management had to be adapted to pandemic restrictions. Teachers also had less nursing supports and virtual training. Conclusions Teachers’ food allergy management was informed by their knowledge and lived experience, guided by school policies, and students’ needs. Continuation of pandemic-related restrictions may enhance food allergy management in the classroom. Teachers unanimously wanted further food allergy education and training, and resources to improve communication gaps and language barriers. More training throughout the school year and multimedia resources may be beneficial.

Persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are found to be at a greater risk for social isolation during COVID-19 pandemic. While existing literature has examined the challenges faced by persons with IDD, there is a dearth of research that addresses the access and usage of digital technologies by persons with IDD as a solution to stay socially connected during the pandemic. This study therefore investigated the access to and use of digital technologies such as the internet in relation to the risk of social isolation experienced by persons with mild intellectual disabilities ID (with or without developmental disabilities) during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Manitoba. Additionally, barriers to the usage of online technology were explored. Data for a sample of 39 adults were collected using an online survey questionnaire, and phone interviews. The key variables in this study are internet use, access to an electronic device, barriers to the internet usage, loneliness, and social isolation. Loneliness was measured using the Revised UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) Loneliness Scale. To measure social isolation, the MSNA-ID (Maastricht Social Network Analysis – Intellectual Disabilities) tool was used. The study utilized both descriptive and inferential analyses to address the research objectives. We found that the majority of the study participants (89.5%), had access to the internet and possessed some form of electronic devices for online connection. The most commonly used devices were smartphones, desktop computers, and tablets. The majority of the study participants (67.6%) who had access to the internet and an electronic device used the internet for social connection during the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of the study participants (53.8%) perceived that their internet usage made them feel less isolated. The use of the internet was associated with a feeling of less isolation. The results further revealed the most prevalent barriers to the usage of the internet as reported by the study participants. The cost of internet service/equipment (20.6%), having access to the internet elsewhere (17.6%), difficulty in using the internet (14.7%), and safety concerns (14.7%) were the most commonly barriers reported by the study participants.

La pandémie de la COVID-19 a suscité l'inquiétude d'experts en raison du risque accru de violence familiale. L'isolement des familles et la promiscuité entre ses membres favorisent les tensions. Malgré un nombre croissant d'études, les connaissances sur le vécu des parents pendant cette période demeurent émergentes. Cette étude a pour objectif de décrire l'évolution des conduites parentales à caractère violent (agression psychologique et violence physique mineure) et du soutien social des parents pendant la pandémie de COVID-19. Elle vise également à déterminer la contribution du soutien social à l'évolution des conduites parentales à caractère violent. Cette étude s'inscrit dans une étude de cohorte prospective longitudinale, Ma vie et la pandémie au Québec (MAVIPAN). Les participants sont des parents vivant avec au moins un enfant entre 0 et 17 ans (N = 514). Les conduites parentales à caractère violent, le soutien social et les attributs sociodémographiques ont été mesurés à deux reprises (avril à juillet 2020, mai 2021). Les conduites parentales à caractère violent ont diminué significativement entre ces deux moments. Le soutien social est demeuré stable. Le soutien social est un prédicteur significatif de l'évolution de l'agression psychologique. Les participants rapportant un niveau de soutien social plus faible sont plus susceptibles de rapporter de l'agression psychologique aux deux temps de mesure, en comparaison aux parents qui ne rapportent aucune agression psychologique. Cette étude est un pas vers une meilleure compréhension de l'expérience des familles pendant la pandémie. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, several experts have raised concerns over an increased risk of family violence. Proximity between confined family members and social isolation foster tensions, making families more vulnerable. The first objective of this study was to describe the evolution of family violence against children (psychological aggression and corporal punishment) and parents' social support during the COVID-19 pandemic. The second objective of this study was to determine the contribution of baseline social support to the evolution of family violence against children between the two measurement times. This study was part of a broader longitudinal prospective cohort study, My life and the pandemic in Quebec (MAVIPAN). Participants included parents living with at least one child between 0 and 17 years old (N = 514). Family violence against children, social support, and sociodemographic characteristics were measured twice (April to July 2020, and May 2021). Family violence against children changed significantly between the two measurement times. Social support remained stable. Social support was a significant predictor of the evolution of psychological aggression. Participants reporting a lower level of perceived social support were more likely to report psychological aggression at both measurement times, compared to the reference group of parents reporting none. This study is a step towards a better understanding of families' experiences throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the individual level, physical activity is one of the interventions that has been recommended to prevent burnout during COVID-19. In a post-pandemic context where organisations have considerably changed, the promotion of physical activity as an organisational intervention still appears to be very useful to prevent burnout. However, there are some paradoxes unexplained in the scientific literature that hinder our understanding of the relationship between physical activity and burnout, and ultimately, the use of physical activity as a resource to prevent burnout. The purpose of this chapter is therefore to shed light on certain contradictions regarding physical activity and its potential benefits to help prevent burnout through the recovery process. Specifically, we attempt to provide some answers to the following critically important questions emerging from our reading of conflicting studies on the relationship between physical activity and burnout: Is physical activity practiced during work time as beneficial for health as when done during non-work time? Do only sedentary office workers benefit from occupational physical activity?

The purpose of this study was to investigate how the public health measures implemented in Manitoba and Ontario during waves 1 and 2 of the COVID-19 pandemic impacted allied health professionals working in primary care settings. This study used a case study methodology to develop four cases, two allied health professionals from Manitoba and two allied health professionals of the same professions from Ontario. Two methods of data collection were used, diary entry and interview. Diary entry data was collected between March 2020 and August 2020. Interviews were conducted in December 2020. This study’s approach to data analysis was to use the framework analysis to apply a conceptual framework, specifically the Roy Adaptation Model. The Roy Adaptation Model encompasses four adaptive modes: role function, interdependence, group identity, and physiological. The results section presents how each of these modes were operationalized for each case. The public health measures affected the role function mode more significantly than the other modes. All participants experienced role disruptions with redeployment and role change with the transition to remote and virtual care. The allied health providers in both provinces experienced role reductions with limitations in their ability to practice their primary role. The implemented COVID-19 public health measures led providers to work within their roles in an adapted capacity during the length of the pandemic. The greatest differences between the experiences of providers in Ontario versus Manitoba was the timeline of events and the response of the provincial governments. This study highlights how macro policies influence the day-to-day of healthcare workers.

The number of IoT devices in healthcare is expected to rise sharply due to significantly increased demand since the COVID-19 pandemic. Deep learning and IoT devices are being employed to monitor body vitals and automate anomaly detection in clinical and non-clinical settings. Most of the current technology requires the transmission of raw data to a remote server, which is not efficient for resource-constrained IoT devices and embedded systems. In this work, we have developed machine learning models to be deployed on Raspberry Pi. We present an evaluation of our TensorFlow Model with various classification classes. We also present the evaluation of the corresponding TensorFlow Lite FlatBuffers to demonstrate their minimal run-time requirements while maintaining acceptable accuracy. Additionally, to address the problem of sensor and data integration when using multiple devices, we propose a unified server on our Edge Node.

The past two years of pandemic schooling have pushed many educators into a mental health crisis. Teachers were navigating the stress of educational outcomes, increased safety risks, lack of protection, regular COVID-19 exposures, constant changes in protocols, and providing increased supports for students in their classrooms. A 2020 profile of Canadian mental health services identified that per every 100 000 Canadians, there are 283 total mental health professionals (WHO, 2022). These figures average one mental health professional for every 353 Canadians, leaving mental health services understaffed and often inaccessible. While mental health services struggled to meet the demands of individuals pre-pandemic, the WHO has identified that anxiety and depression have increased 25% across the globe since March 2020 (WHO, 2022, COVID-19). According to the UN Special Rapporteur on mental health (2017), “there can be no health without mental health” (p. 3). The purpose of this research is to review current policies in Winnipeg’s six school divisions, identify formal mental health protections for educators, and propose recommendations for a sustainable future in education. The exploration of the mental health of educators will draw on international and domestic instruments to argue that mental health is undoubtedly a universal human right. This research will conclude with recommendations for stakeholders in education, including: the review of current policies, prioritize early interventions to reduce occupational burnout, increase capacity and availability of resources, increase accessibility to and remove barriers from mental health supports for educators, and make space for educators to process educational opportunities and challenges. It is crucial that every Canadian is afforded the right to security of person, and it is imperative that educators are protected in their classrooms as well. These protections must be mandated in policy and prioritized in school culture to ensure that teachers have the space to fully enjoy them. Schools must commit to nurturing a healthy environment for all within their buildings.

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing has widespread use in the systematic identification of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) strains. However, another approach for identifying the SARS-CoV-2 virus is by the machine learning classification of genome sequences, which has shown promising results. While trained clinicians usually perform the classification of genome sequences, a machine learning classifier can be used to complement the process and provide a short list for further analysis. A machine learning approach can provide a unique fingerprint of base pairs and yield a quick classification. To this end, we investigated a k-mer approach in order to classify genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 and common respiratory viruses, as well as a Human genome sequence. We aim to provide a simplified classification approach that balances validation time while limiting hyperparameter tuning. Our approach achieved F1 scores in excess of 0.99, and perfect scores between the common respiratory viruses. We demonstrated a simple 5-base sub-sequencing scheme which has the power to differentiate over 7.91 million sequences from almost 20 thousand genome assemblies.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to the global population. Due to pandemic-related difficulties, some individuals are reporting increased alcohol use. The four-factor model suggests that individuals with at-risk personality traits (anxiety sensitivity, hopelessness, sensation seeking and impulsivity) may have exhibited increased alcohol use during the pandemic. Cognitive constructs such as self-efficacy, perceived control, and boredom proneness, which have been linked to alcohol use, have been shown to be negatively impacted during the pandemic. However, the mediational roles these constructs potentially played between at-risk individuals and alcohol used during the pandemic have not been examined. The current study utilized a longitudinal design to examine the mediating roles of perceived control of internal states, generalized self-efficacy, and boredom proneness between at-risk personality traits and binge drinking and alcohol-related problems. A sample of 301 participants (46.2% Female; Age M = 32.3, SD = 9.6) recruited on the crowdsourcing platform Prolific completed extensive surveys at the start of the pandemic (May 2020), and at two three-month intervals after that. Consistent with theory, at-risk personality traits predicted alcohol use and problems. After controlling for known drinking correlates during the pandemic, path modelling revealed that the cognitive processes were not supported to mediate at-risk personality traits and binge drinking or alcohol-related problems. Contrary to predictions, reductions in key cognitive constructs resulting from pandemic-related stressors did not facilitate deleterious alcohol outcomes for at-risk individuals. Results add to the literature on the longitudinal effects of the pandemic and substance use.

The COVID-19 pandemic intensifies the challenging realities of institutionalization for many disabled people living in care facilities. This thesis project examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of disabled people living in institutions from the perspective of a care provider. This project is situated within the theoretical frameworks of the political/relational model of disability, along with Crip theory. Data was collected from personal journal excerpts, as well as from health care protocols released from the Government of Saskatchewan and governing health care bodies. Data analysis through analytic autoethnography and critical discourse analysis revealed themes including isolation and societal understandings of the disposability of disabled individuals. This thesis project looks to communicate the realities of long-term care and highlight the harm health care protocols had for disabled individuals during the COVID-19, from the perspective of a care worker, while challenging ideas of institutionalization and merging thoughts around aging and disability studies.