New Publication! Trends in NTD and climate change research in East Africa

Congratulations to Julia Bryson on her recent publication, entitled, “Neglected tropical diseases in the context of climate change in East Africa: A systematic scoping review”.

Citation:

Bryson, J. M., Bishop-Williams, K. E., Berrang-Ford, L., Nunez, E. C., Lwasa, S., Namanya, D. B., Indigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team, & Harper, S.L.. (2020). Neglected Tropical Diseases in the Context of Climate Change in East Africa: A Systematic Scoping Review. The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 102(6), 1443–1454. Click here to access the article.

Congratulations Dr. Bishop-Williams!

Congratulations to Dr. Kate Bishop-Williams for successfully defending her PhD thesis dissertation! Dr. Bishop-Williams has been an important part of our team since 2014, examining health impacts of climate change in Uganda.

Learn more about Kate's work here!

Kate Bishop-Williams PhD Defence

ANNOUNCEMENT

Interested members of the Ontario Veterinary College are invited to attend the Final Oral Examination for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy of

Katherine Bishop-Williams

of the Department of Population Medicine on, Monday January 13, 2019 at 1:30 pm, in Room 1713, Lifetime Learning Center, OVC. Examination to follow in Room 2527, Stewart Building, OVC.

Thesis Title: “How are climate change impacts on health modified by social determinants of health in Southwestern Uganda”

Examination Committee:

• Dr. Olaf Berke (Chair)

• Dr. Sherilee Harper

• Dr. Victoria Edge

• Dr. Andrew Papadopoulos

• Dr. Lindsay Galway, Lakehead University

Advisory Committee:

• Dr. Sherilee Harper (Advisor)

• Dr. Jan Sargeant (Co-Advisor) 

• Dr. Victoria Edge

• Dr. Lea Berrang Ford

• Dr. Ashlee Cunsolo

• Dr. Shuaib Lwasa

Award Winning Poster: Kate Bishop-Williams

As a part of our Award Winning Poster series, we are pleased to share Kate Bishop-Williams’ poster from 2014. Winning the poster prize at the 2014 ArcticNet Annual Scientific Meeting, Kate shared her research on the seasonal prevalence of acute gastrointestinal illness in Rigolet, Nunatsiavut. This work was conducted in partnership with the Rigolet Inuit Community Government.

Congratulations Kate!

Award Winning Poster

2014 ArcticNet ASM

See Kate's Award Winning Poster Here!

See more award winning posters here!

America Adapts! The Climate Change Podcast

Congratulations to Kate Bishop Williams, PhD Candidate, for her recent interview on the America Adapts, the Climate Change Podcast.

Listen to the podcast by clicking here!

In this episode, Kate talks about how she used an America Adapts episode, “Deconstructing a Climate Change Skeptic” as part of her class curricula at the University of Waterloo. Specifically, in this interview, "Kate discusses why she chose this episode to use a tool to teach her students effective climate communication."

Kate touches on the following topics in her interview:

• Using podcasts in the classroom to promote environmental change;

• Learning that climate skepticism is more prevalent than many realize;

• Developing guidelines for listening to a podcast and talking climate change;

• Understanding the role of open access educational materials, especially climate resources;

• Students explain how listening to a climate skeptic enhanced their ability to communicate climate change.

New Publication! Climate Change and Acute Respiratory Illness in Indigenous Populations

Congratulations to Kate Bishop Williams for her new publication in the journal Systematic Reviews.  This article outlines the protocol that Kate will use to conduct a systematic review to investigate whether associations between acute respiratory illness and seasonal or meteorological parameters differ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups residing in the same geographical region.

Citation: Bishop-Williams KE, Sargeant JM, Berrang-Ford L, Edge VL, Cunsolo A, Harper SL. A protocol for a systematic literature review: comparing the impact of seasonal and meteorological parameters on acute respiratory infections in Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Systematic Reviews 2017; 6(1): 19. Click here for free open-acces to the article.

Abstract:

Background: Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally, and are often linked to seasonal and/or meteorological conditions. Globally, Indigenous peoples may experience a different burden of ARI compared to non-Indigenous peoples. This protocol outlines our process for conducting a systematic review to investigate whether associations between ARI and seasonal or meteorological parameters differ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups residing in the same geographical region.

Methodology: A search string will be used to search PubMed®, CAB Abstracts/CAB Direct©, and Science Citation Index®aggregator databases. Articles will be screened using inclusion/exclusion criteria applied first at the title and abstract level, and then at the full article level by two independent reviewers. Articles maintained after full article screening will undergo risk of bias assessment and data will be extracted. Heterogeneity tests, meta-analysis, and forest and funnel plots will be used to synthesize the results of eligible studies.

Discussion and registration: This protocol paper describes our systematic review methods to identify and analyze relevant ARI, season, and meteorological literature with robust reporting. The results are intended to improve our understanding of potential associations between seasonal and meteorological parameters and ARI and, if identified, whether this association varies by place, population, or other characteristics. The protocol is registered in the PROSPERO database (#38051).