A Healthier Canada Through Effective Nutrition Policy: Food Policy in CanadaOBrien Institute for Public Health2026-09-26 | A Healthier Canada Through Effective Nutrition Policy: Food Policy in CanadaEffective Mentorship Must Do’s (and Don’ts)OBrien Institute for Public Health2025-07-08 | Presenters: Tiffany Boulton, Paul Ronksley, Levi Frehlich, Benedicta (Benn) Antepimand and Anmol ShahidEDIA in Health Professions Education: Implications for Health Learning Systems and Public HealthOBrien Institute for Public Health2025-06-17 | Presented by Dr. Aliya Kassam, PhD. This presentation will explore how health professions education (HPE) and health equity impact learning health systems. Exploring the individual, programmatic, systemic and structural influences in HPE can assist in the culture change of higher education institutions and healthcare services alike. Consideration of upstream, midstream, and downstream effects in HPE and population health can also inform curriculum development, competency assessment, health equity as well as continuous quality improvement in learning health systems.
Correction to answer given to audience questions regarding international medical graduate spots: The overall number of resident spots are increasing, however the number of spots for IMGs has decreased since 2008. So they have gone down over the past 6 years but are slowly expected to increase but not by much.Evidence in action: Community-driven interventions for better health policiesOBrien Institute for Public Health2025-06-05 | On May 22, the O’Brien Institute for Public Health’s Centre for Health Policy and Health Policy Trials Unit brought together researchers, community organizations, and health leaders to explore how policy trials—from large-scale initiatives to grassroots programs—can drive real-world, evidence-based health solutions.Knowledge Engagement Impact Assessment ToolkitOBrien Institute for Public Health2025-04-22 | The Knowledge Engagement Impact Assessment Toolkit was designed in 2020 to address this gap, and enable meaningful assessment of collaborative and community-engaged research. Please download this toolkit: research.ucalgary.ca/engage-research/knowledge-engagement/ke-toolkit Speakers: Stephanie Warner, Manager, Knowledge to Impact, and Sarelle Azuelos, Partnership and Knowledge Mobilization SpecialistChatGPT – What’s new at the U?OBrien Institute for Public Health2025-01-23 | Following up on last year’s panel discussion, Syntax to Symposium: ChatGPT’s Linguistic Legacy, audience members were hungry for more on how to use AI in the classroom setting and navigate doing so appropriately and ethically. We will be hearing from Lorelei Anselmo, from the Taylor Institute, who will help inform us about UCalgary’s best practices when using AI in the classroom; Dr. Na Li will provide in-class perspectives as she frequently uses it in her teaching repertoire; and Felix Akanno will provide his insight on how he uses it as a trainee.Optimizing Internal Peer Review – helping you help others!OBrien Institute for Public Health2025-01-21 | The most appreciated service of the O’Brien Institute has been Internal Peer Review, wherein Institute members volunteer advice to colleagues writing applications for external funding competitions. Join the Institute’s new IPR Lead, Dr. Andrew McRae, for a panel discussion of what applicants and reviewers can do to make the most of their valuable IPR interaction.
This seminar features Dr. Andrew McRae, Dr. Karen Tang, Dr. Dana Olstad, and Jenna Slobozian.So you want to build some ethnography into your health research study?OBrien Institute for Public Health2025-01-21 | Health research studies may be strengthened by the inclusion of an anthropologist and ethnography. This aligns with calls for expanded transdisciplinary research. However, meaningful incorporation of ethnography can be easier said than done. This presentation will explore some of this complexity with a case example.
This seminar features Dr. John D. McLennan, Dr. Warren Wilson, and Noemi Uribe de la Rocha.Connections in the Cold: Navigating the Challenges of Winter for Older AdultsOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-11-27 | This video was created as part of the Age-Friendly Calgary Steering Committee's strategic priority to reduce barriers to older adults' participation in winter. The video was produced by Idea Factory, with creative and financial support from the Calgary Seniors' Resource Society, University of Calgary Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging, and Healthy Aging Alberta.
Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging: obrieniph.ucalgary.ca/agingCharting Your Course: Transitioning to Retirement and Life Beyond WebinarOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-11-19 | This Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging webinar features a thought-provoking presentation on embracing retirement as a time for personal growth, new experiences, and meaningful connection. Along with insights for UCaglary retirees about opportunities available to them through the UCalgary Retirees Association.Empathy across ages: Strengthening our campus communityOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-11-07 | This webinar features a captivating presentation on intergenerational empathy followed by a dynamic panel discussion on ageism and intergenerational connections with past and present UCalgary faculty and students who will share their experiences.
Visit the Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging website to learn more: obrieniph.ucalgary.ca/agingBetter Together: Strengthening public health in Canada through collaboration and researchOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-11-05 | On Oct. 30, leading researchers and Canadian public health experts explored collaborative solutions and strengthen our shared efforts in tackling public health challenges.
The O'Brien Institute for Public Health at the University of Calgary, in partnership with the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta, invites you to watch an exciting event dedicated to strengthening individual and collaborative efforts in public health research. This event addresses common challenges faced by Canada’s public health research institutions and explores innovative and equitable solutions to enhance public health impact.
0:00 Opening remarks
20:51 The Mo Watanabe Memorial Lecture: Building Tomorrow’s Public Health System , Featuring Professor Adalsteinn (Steini) Brown. Moderated by Dr. Pamela Roach
1:07:27 Reflections and projections: Lessons from the past, insights from the present, and pathways for the future of public health research, Featuring Dr. Lindsay McLaren, Dr. Esyllt Jones & Dr. Heather MacDougall. Moderated by Dr. Jason Cabaj
1:53:56 Envisioning the future: Trainee perspectives on the future of evidence-informed public health research, Featuring Dayirai Kapfunde, Kathleen Mather & Sandy Rao. Moderated by Nina Carcamo Arakawa
2:38:55 Navigating governance: Exploring structures, challenges, and opportunities in Canadian public health institutions, Featuring Dr. Amity Quinn, Dr. Braden Manns & Dr. Chris Sarin. Moderated by Dr. Bill Ghali
3:28:19 Broadening horizons: A fireside chat with Canada's public health leaders on defining public health, A pre-recorded discussion with Dr. Kate Frohlich, Dr. Rick Glazier, Dr. Marisa Creatore and moderated by Dr. Kirsten FiestAlumni spotlight panel: Celebrating a decade of excellenceOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-09-26 | This fall, the O’Brien Institute marked the 10th anniversary of our naming donation from Gail and David O’Brien. To commemorate this milestone, we hosted an alumni spotlight panel. This event featured past Institute/CHS trainees who have made remarkable contributions to their fields and pursued unique career paths.Helping you find those international funding dollars and partnersOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-09-10 | A UCalgary International service for UCalgary researchers, CHS & O'Brien Institute SeminarJoining the dots of older homelessnessOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-05-08 | Joining the dots of older homelessness: A transdisciplinary understanding of the structural landscape across 3 provinces
Concurrent mental and physical ill-health, substance use, frailty, and social exclusion contribute to escalating housing precarity and homelessness in older Canadians. Although older adults often fall through the cracks in current care systems, promising evidence-based innovations do exist. This seminar presents on intersecting determinants of health as well as innovative approaches in encampments and supportive housing to promote well-being with older people experiencing structural vulnerability and complex health needs.Transfers from long term care to acute care hospitalOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-04-10 | Transfers from long term care to acute care hospital: Measuring harms and benefits, generating evidence to support resident centered decision making
Dr. Kobewka’s lab is studying health outcomes and health care utilization for long-term care residents who become ill and are transferred to hospital. For some residents, transfer to acute care prolongs life and improves function, for others it has no benefit or causes harm by prolonging life in states of disability or suffering that are unacceptable to the resident. His team is engaged in a 4 year mixed methods study with a goal to ensure that transfers to hospital are guided by resident’s goals and wishes. The team is using semi-structured interviews, large data base analysis, and co-design workshops to support decisions about transfer. Their quantitative analyses include marginal structural models and instrumental variable analyses to adjust for unmeasured confounding to understand potentially causal relationships.Human biomonitoring of environmental chemicals: Opportunities for epidemiologicalOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-04-02 | CHS & O'Brien Institute Seminar This presentation highlights the Human Biomonitoring Program at Health Canada, including national, maternal-infant, and targeted biomonitoring activities.Syntax to Symposium: ChatGPT’s Linguistic LegacyOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-04-02 | CHS & O'Brien Institute Seminar
You don’t need to be afraid of using AI in academia, but before you start incorporating it into your own work, in the classroom, or on a project, it wouldn’t hurt to understand the risks and rewards. This session will touch on how academics have used it in various capacities and what their experiences have been using it in a teaching or a research context, and what advice they have for those seeking to utilize AI tools in their own work.Building for success: Recruiting the right people for effective research teamsOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-03-28 | CHS & O'Brien Institute Seminar: Collaboration is key to conducting research and having the right group of people on your team can advance your research goals. In this seminar, you will learn about the necessary skill sets that your team needs, how to recruit the right people and how to navigate the challenges of team dynamics.Rounding up the unusual suspects: Non-traditional sources for funding your researchOBrien Institute for Public Health2024-01-18 | The Department of Community Health Sciences and the O’Brien Institute for Public Health seminar, featuring Derek Exner, Joanna Rankin, Jenna Slobozian, Gavin McCormack & Andrea Ostergard.Quantifying outcomes, cost savings, hospital volume changes from emergency stroke transportOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-12-05 | In collaboration with the Centre for Health Informatics, the Department of Community Health Sciences and the O’Brien Institute for Public Health present:
Quantifying improved outcomes, cost savings, and hospital volume changes from optimized emergency stroke transport
Join the Centre of Health Informatics for a chat about quantifying improved outcomes, cost savings, and hospital volume changes from optimized emergency stroke transport.
Speaker:
Dr. Jessalyn K. Holodinsky, PhD is a Data Scientist and Epidemiologist. She specializes in answering important healthcare questions through a unique population and policy-based perspective. Her work focuses on complex problems at the health system level resulting in the optimization of healthcare services and patient outcomes for emergent conditions. She is highly skilled in administrative and big data use, complex modelling techniques including machine learning, and health system level research.
Moderator:
Dr. Cathy Eastwood, PhD is an Adjunct Assistant Professor within the department of Community Health Sciences and Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships at the Centre for Health informatics. Dr. Eastwood, a registered nurse since 1986, brings experience in clinical cardiology care, quality improvement, management, and education of nurses. In 1998, as clinical nurse specialist, she founded an outpatient heart failure clinic in Houston, Texas, and later successfully led multidisciplinary teams to improve patient and hospital outcomes.Sharing learnings from editors: hot tips for publishingOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-11-28 | The panel will discuss different aspects of the editorial process for academic publication submissions. The panelists will provide an overview of the editorial process in the journals they’ve been associated with, and they will also discuss any unexpected insights they gained during their time as editors that they wouldn’t have known otherwise.
Panelists will provide tips on what challenges students, early career academics, or even seasoned academics might face that they didn’t know about when submitting their work for publication, and how to navigate those with confidence.
Speakers:
Dr. Kathryn King-Shier, PhD (Panelist) & Dr. Fiona Clement, PhD (Panelist) with Dr. Paul Ronksley, PhD (Moderator).A healthier future for all - OBrien Institute Members Forum 2023OBrien Institute for Public Health2023-11-28 | The O’Brien Institute for Public Health presents its 2023 Members Forum - A healthier future for all: Mobilizing health equity research into action. This event brought researchers, students and community organizations together to forge a collaborative path toward transformative health equity solutions.
This forum served as the official launch of the O’Brien Institute Health Equity HUB which acts as a platform for researchers across the University of Calgary to collaborate with government and community agencies. The alliance will mobilize health equity research into innovative changes to policy and practice, addressing persistent and challenging structural problems that can only be solved through a focus on health equity.Beyond Publication 2.0OBrien Institute for Public Health2023-10-12 | Beyond Publication 2.0 will build on the topics and presentations from our April 11, 2023 seminar by sharing strategies for academic researchers, students and trainees to further their work towards policy change, public awareness and enhanced service delivery.Beyond publication: Elevating your research impactOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-09-20 | Apr 11, 2023. The Department of Community Health Sciences and the O’Brien Institute for Public Health seminar featuring Marcello Tonelli, Jennifer Zwicker, Jean-Christophe Boucher, Kelly Johnston and Tom Stelfox.Saying no: focusing on the “right” opportunitiesOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-09-14 | This panel is comprised of folks who have had to say no, or not right now, in an effort to ensure they aren’t taking on too much or spreading themselves too thin. In academia, sometimes people struggle with different and varying demands on their time and energy, and sometimes you have to learn how to say no so you can focus your energy where it is needed most.
Presenters: Dr. Katrina Milaney and Dr. Tyler Williamson. Moderated by Dr. Fiona ClementAlberta 2023: Health system challenges and opportunitiesOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-05-04 | A Town Hall presented by the Centre for Health Policy at the University of Calgary. An esteemed panel of experts gathers to discuss health system challenges facing Albertans and potential solutions. Topics include:
Access and quality of health care in rural and remote Alberta - Dr. Aaron Johnston, MD Options to improve senior care - Dr. Jayna Holroyd-Leduc, MD Primary care reform- Dr. Kerry McBrien, MD Youth mental health - Dr. Paul Arnold, MD, PhD The future of Alberta Health Services - Dr. Tom Noseworthy, MD
Moderator: Ken Lima-Coelho, President and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary.Improving primary health care in Alberta with Dr. Kerry McBrienOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-04-26 | Albertans should have access to comprehensive, longitudinal, team-based primary health care, as provided in a health home.
However, many Albertans are facing challenges accessing care and primary health care services available in Alberta are not meeting its residents’ needs.
Learn about potential solutions to improve access to comprehensive primary health care in this video with Dr. Kerry McBrien.Recommendations for a comprehensive youth mental health strategy in Alberta with Dr. Paul ArnoldOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-04-19 | Alberta needs a comprehensive youth mental health strategy that is designed with youth and family input and incorporates the perspectives of marginalized groups.
Learn about the core elements of this strategy in this video with Dr. Paul Arnold.Advancing health and health care through citizen engagement - 2023 Gairdner SymposiumOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-04-11 | On April 4, the 2022 Gairdner Wightman Award winner, Dr. Deborah J. Cook, MD, from McMaster University and Dr. Verna Yiu, MD, Interim Provost and Vice-President (Academic) from the University of Alberta joined the O'Brien Institute for a discussion on how health and health care can be improved through citizen engagement. Hear from these distinguished scholars and others on their experiences in the constantly changing landscapes of health and health care. More information about the event: obrieniph.ucalgary.ca/Gairdner-Symposium-2023Supporting the Alberta population living in Continuing Care Facilities with Dr. Jayna Holroyd-LeducOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-03-29 | Timely investment in Alberta's continuing care sector is needed to support the rapidly aging Alberta population.Priorities to improve care in rural Alberta with Dr. Aaron JohnstonOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-03-21 | Healthcare is at the heart of every thriving rural community but Alberta is experiencing an accelerating loss of rural physicians, nurses and other health professionals.
The time to address the rural healthcare crisis is now.Our health system on life support? Strategies for reformOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-02-08 | Government spending on health care has been growing more rapidly than inflation for years and is at risk of crowding out spending on other publicly funded services. This has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic which has increased health care spending, reduced government revenues, deferred care for non-urgent health problems and exposed and worsened existing health inequities. The result is that urgent action is needed to ensure the long-term sustainability of health care systems and other publicly funded programs.
Watch as our esteemed panel explores findings to date from the Health System Sustainability Initiative, and potential strategies for health system reform in Canada.Grant resubmission panelOBrien Institute for Public Health2023-02-07 | First round success in the grant funding game is a huge feat for any investigator, however, given the extremely competitive nature of research grant applications, it is sometimes inevitable that PIs will feel the sting of an unsuccessful grant and go on to navigate the challenge of resubmitting their revised grant for another shot at the top prize. This presentation intends to provide experience-based expertise from CHS and O’Brien Institute members who have already done this navigating and are willing to share their journey and advice. Our expert panel is comprised of individuals from all stages of their careers, from junior to emeriti faculty, who have had experience with the resubmission process after an unsuccessful grant. Panelists: Christine Friedenreich, PhD, Lynn McIntyre, MD, Khara Sauro, PhD, Nauzer Forbes, MD, and Tom Stelfox, MD, PhD as the moderatorManagement of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Case from NepalOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-11-28 | The rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged contemporary ‘ways of knowing’, formulating policies, endorsing clinical protocols, managing cases, and assuring financial resourcing. It didn’t only challenge health systems but also the systems that are designed to ‘work across the whole of government’ and ‘serve the whole of society’. Historically, lower- and middle-income countries (LMIC) received resources from resource-rich countries to manage epidemics/shocks. To prevent future pandemics/shocks, health systems should be empowered to lead the process of formulating policies, programmes and actions.
Speaker:
Dr. Suresh Tiwari, Country Director, Oxford Policy Management.Public and patient engagement in health services researchOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-11-01 | In Canada, Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research was established to emphasize the importance of partnership between members of the public, patients, researchers, health care providers and other decision-makers in health services research. The objective is to improve health for Canadians.
Members of the public and patients are individuals with personal experience of a health issue or health care situation, including family, friends, and caregivers. These individuals bring their own experiences and critical expertise to the health research process. While the public and patients are experts based on their lived experience of a disease, health condition, or health-related situation, researchers and clinicians are trained in clinical and health research.
This Friday seminar with Dr. Maria J. Santana will present and discuss the evidence related to public and patient engagement in health research and its impact on health services research and healthcare.Social Innovation reenactment: Knock on any doorOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-10-13 | Learn about the University of Calgary’s Social Innovation Accelerators including:
Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking Innovate Calgary Knowledge Engagement Mitacs Social Innovation Initiative W21C
This panel is from the 2022 O'Brien Institute Members Forum: Social Innovation for Public Health.Social Innovation for Public Health - O’Brien Institute Members Forum 2022OBrien Institute for Public Health2022-10-12 | Social Innovation has been heralded in recent years, but how does it work in the Calgary context, and what can it mean for health services and population health researchers in the O’Brien Institute for Public Health?
On Oct. 11, the O’Brien Institute annual Members Forum explored the topic of social innovation in the framework of public health. Although public health is the field used as the exemplar, other health and social science researchers were encouraged to attend and advance their understanding of social innovation.Trusting Relationships: The aim of transformational Indigenous health researchOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-09-26 | For Indigenous health research to make effective beneficial change compels reframing western perspectives and overcoming long-standing institutional barriers such that trusting relationships are made the focus rather than a means to an end. This presentation outlines several key elements that have proven central to developing trust for our long-standing community-based participatory research partnership.Welcome and Meet and Greet with LeadershipOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-09-13 | As the first seminar of the 2022-2023 academic year, the Department of Community Health Sciences (CHS) and O’Brien Institute leadership teams are hosting a meet-and-greet style seminar to welcome new and returning members of our communities. This seminar will offer a high-level overview of the new strategic directions for both the O'Brien Institute and CHS, and introduce leadership to members.Medicating Normal panel discussionOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-07-14 | Medicating Normal follows the stories of five subjects harmed by prescribed medications they believed would help them. It is the untold story of what happens when profit-driven medicine intersects with human beings in distress.
Watch a panel discussion on the film featuring:
Lynn Cunningham, Film Co-Director/Producer
Brooke Siem, chef and author who has written about her experience using antidepressants
Dr. Jim Wright, clinical pharmacologist and an expert on the dangers of psychiatric medication, University of British Columbia
Moderator: Dr. Eddy Lang, Emergency Medicine Physician, University of Calgary
This event was presented by the O’Brien Institute and the Preventing Overdiagnosis Conference on June 10, 2022.The Urgency of Intersectionality for Addressing Systemic Inequities in Higher LearningOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-06-26 | The W21C Research and Innovation Centre, O'Brien Institute for Public Health, and the Cumming School of Medicine's Office of Professionalism, Equity, and Diversity present a talk with:
Dr. Tonya D. Callaghan, PhD, (she/they), Associate Professor, Killam and SSHRC Scholar, Academic Coordinator of Advancing Healthy & Socially Just Schools & Communities, Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary.
In her 2016 TED Talk, The Urgency of Intersectionality, Kimberlé Crenshaw, the African American law professor who coined the term “intersectionality” observed: "We all know that when there's no name for a problem, you can't see a problem, and when you can't see a problem you pretty much can't solve it.” The problem Crenshaw is talking about here is multiple forms of discrimination based on layers of difference. I will define what it means to take an intersectional approach when supporting the learning needs of students enrolled in contentious courses that actively address equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) issues. The Werklund School of Education’s undergraduate course, Diversity in Learning, has been held up as an EDI exemplar and I will be drawing from my experience leading this course to talk about ways we all can move towards inclusive and equitable teaching practices. I will conclude by overtly addressing the toll such work can take on those of us who actively teach EDI topics and what allies can do to support us.Alberta’s Tomorrow Project (ATP) - year 20 of a 50 year studyOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-06-25 | Topic: A description of the ATP research platform, a provincial asset of longitudinal data and biosamples on 55,000 Albertans, and how this asset can and is being used to support health research. Speakers: Drs. Darren Brenner, Gavin McCormack and Grace Shen-Tu.COVID-19 Research Showcase: The Dr. Watanabe Lectureship Panel-The future of public health researchOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-06-02 | The Dr. Watanabe Lectureship Panel
The future of public health research What’s next for researchers and institutes?
Featuring special guests:
Dr. David Naylor, MD, physician, medical researcher and past Dean of Medicine and President Emeritus of the University of Toronto Carly Weeks, health reporter, Globe and Mail Dr. Charu Kaushic, PhD, Scientific Director, CIHR-Institute of Infection and Immunity and Professor, Department of Medicine, McMaster University Panel #3 Moderator: Dr. Tito Daodu, MDCOVID-19 Research Showcase: Panel 2 - Preparing for future pandemics and contagious outbreaksOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-06-02 | Preparing for future pandemics and contagious outbreaks: Surveillance and evidence-informed responses
Speakers and topics:
Dr. Gabriel Fabreau, MD; New Canadians Dr. Michael Parkins, MD; Wastewater surveillance Dr. Stephen Freedman, MD: Pediatric emergency care Drs. Suzanne Tough, PhD/Sheila McDonald, PhD; Families in COVID Panel #2 Moderator: Danielle Southern, MScCOVID-19 Research Showcase: Panel 1 - Policy and practice implications of researchOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-06-01 | Policy and practice implications of research How can scholars impact meaningful public health policy?
Speakers and topics:
Dr. Sofia Ahmed, MD; Gender and the health care workforce Dr. Pamela Roach, PhD; Virtual Care and Indigenous Health Dr. Jean-Christophe Boucher, PhD; Social media impact Dr. Stephana Julia Moss, PhD, Social-cultural implications of COVID-19 Panel #1 Moderator: Dr. Katrina Milaney, PhDCOVID-19 Research Showcase: Lessons learned and future directionsOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-05-31 | Canada is at another turning point in the COVID-19 pandemic. Public health restrictions are being lifted across the country and Canadians are preparing for what the next phase of the pandemic may bring.
The pandemic exposed deep, long-standing vulnerabilities in society, highlighted gaps in contagious disease monitoring and has implications for linking research to action with the best available evidence. It has also presented an opportunity for public health institutions to reflect on the most effective ways to contribute during times of emergency.
Watch as the O’Brien Institute for Public Health hosts top public health experts from Calgary and across Canada to discuss lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and how to prepare for the next public health crisis.Pathways to Healing: An initiative to catalyze development in critical Indigenous health educationOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-05-03 | Pathways to Healing is an Indigenous, Local & Global Health Office initiative to catalyze development in critical Indigenous health education.
Members of the Indigenous, Local & Global Health Office share the innovative nature of the Pathways to Healing initiative, including the need for Indigenous health education at a systems level, progress to date and how decolonial practice is embedded into the process.Epidemic Modeling: Investigating Popular Approaches in the Context of COVID-19OBrien Institute for Public Health2022-05-02 | Statistical modeling of infectious diseases allows researchers to study disease transmission, quantify the effectiveness of interventions, and forecast future epidemic trajectory, aiding the public health mission to stop the spread of such diseases. This presentation will cover several popular approaches to infectious disease modeling and compare the benefits and goals of each approach. The modeling approaches will be illustrated and explored in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.Being kept out of sexual fields: The intimate lives of adults labeled/with intellectual disabilitiesOBrien Institute for Public Health2022-03-29 | Speaker: Dr. Alan Martino
The intersection of disability and sexuality remains a taboo topic. Along with this taboo, people with intellectual disabilities are rarely afforded the opportunity to share their experiences and desires when it comes to their intimate lives. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 46 adults with intellectual disabilities in Ontario, and using a sexual fields framework, this research explores how people with intellectual disabilities are kept out of sexual fields – spaces that bring together sexual actors in their pursuit for love, intimacy, and pleasure - through a series of disabling social processes. Processes that impact their willingness and ability to auspiciously “play the field,” but that also inspire forms of resistance and creative strategies to remain sexual.Lost in transition: Job market integration of internationally trained health professionals in...OBrien Institute for Public Health2022-03-18 | Lost in transition: Job market integration of internationally trained health professionals in health and wellness sector
Description: Dr. Turin will be presenting on the racialized community health literacy issues and the role that internationally trained health professionals can play to improve those. The presentation will also highlight the challenges the internationally trained health professionals face for integrating in the Canadian job market.
Learning objectives: - Showcase the development of a community-informed and -engaged program of research. - Discuss the research landscape focusing on high-skilled immigrants (internationally trained health professionals). - Inform the potential of involving internationally trained health professionals in the community health and wellness initiatives.