Author: Admin

The Gray Centre for Mobility and Activity is a clinical research program based out of Parkwood Institute of St. Joseph’s Health Care London.  One of the Gray Centre for Mobility and Activity’s main priorities is to bring clinicians and academics together to collectively address the grand challenges that face individuals with mobility and activity dysfunction.

On December 6^th from 10:00 am-12:00 pm we will be holding a Mobility Think Tank at Parkwood Institute. Gray Centre for Mobility and Activity invites you to attend this meeting where we will:

1. Identify where our collective expertise lies in mobility and activity research
2. Identify what resources, skills, and infrastructure we have, and what we would need in order to enhance our mobility and activity clinical research capacity  
3. Identify what are the big challenges in mobility and activity care that have opportunities for clinical research
4. Identify large funding opportunities that would drive our success

If you are interested in attending this meeting, please RSVP by November 30^th by completing the form within the link below.   If you are interested but unable to attend, we will provide a survey to capture your views on each of the above points.

We are looking to reach as many members of the mobility and activity research community as possible so please forward this invite along to colleagues we may have missed.

Light refreshments and coffee will be provided. 

If you have any questions, please reach out to Jeff Weiler – jeff.weiler@sjhc.london.on.ca

On Monday, November 27th, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM, at Innovation Works (201 King Street, London, Ontario), the Centre for Research on Health Equity and Social Inclusion (CRHESI), with community and Western University partners, invites you to an interactive event focused on promoting health equity and peer-driven work in housing, health, and homelessness services. The event goals include creating awareness of peer navigators and other peer work roles in London-Middlesex area, as well as sharing the insights gained from a local evaluation on one model of peer work. We will convene relevant stakeholders, including peer workers, direct care workers, and leaders from health and social services.

The event will feature:

• Interactive Panel Discussions: Hear from peer workers, co-workers, and leaders as they present their work and models of practice.
• Practical Insights: We’ll delve into a guide for peer work with marginalized populations, fostering discussions on what makes peer work successful and how to overcome barriers to implementation.
• Future Planning: Explore the way forward to address the unique needs of peer work in the London-Middlesex area.

We look forward to your participation and contribution to this vital discussion on peer-driven work in housing, health, and homelessness for health equity. Together, we can make a significant impact on the well-being of our community. Register now to be part of this transformative discussion!

Register soon because space is limited

Please contact CRHESI coordinators (crhesi@uwo.ca) if you have questions or need more information.

We look forward to a great discuss

Date: Thursday, November 16

Time: 9:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Format: Hybrid – in person or on Zoom

Location: DCC-707/709, Daphne Cockwell Health Sciences Complex, 288 Church St.

Access information: Screen captioning and ASL interpretation available. Wheelchair-accessible venue.

Introducing Professor Karen Soldatic

Professor Karen Soldatic, Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Health Equity and Community Wellbeing, will join the Faculty of Community Services, Toronto Metropolitan University, in January 2024.

This $8 million 8-year program is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). The Canada Excellence Research Chairs Program supports world-renowned researchers and their teams in establishing ambitious research programs at Canadian universities. 

Professor Soldatic is a leading international scholar of disability, marginality and global inequality. Her research program will use a critical disability lens to expand social understandings of health and well-being.

The CERC program provides an opportunity to work in partnership with local communities, civil society and health-care providers on core equity issues. Please join us for a collaborative discussion and working session to review:

• Core areas of the research program as reviewed and approved by CIHR
• Prioritization and alignment with our community

The CERC research program’s intention is to engage in strategic policy advocacy for social impact, and to ensure that community research partnerships and shared collaborations are robust and sustainable.

FCS looks forward to creating an environment with our partners that will help put knowledge into action and mobilize research to create meaningful, lasting, accessible and equitable outcomes for the communities which we serve.

School of Health Studies is delighted to be holding an Inaugural Public Lecture presented by Senator Salma Ataullahjan.

Senator Salma Ataullahjan is the first Canadian Senator of Pakistani origin, appointed to the Senate of Canada in 2010 as a representative for the province of Ontario. She is Chair of the Canadian’s Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights and a member of the Canadian’s Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans and the Standing Committee on Rules, Procedures and the Rights of Parliament. Senator Ataullahjan is committed to issues affecting women, youth and the world’s most vulnerable, having proposed several recognized studies in the Human Rights committee–one on women’s engagement in Afghanistan, another on cyberbullying of children, and one on Syrian refugee resettlement in Canada. Recently, she spearheaded the study on Islamophobia in Canada, the first study on the topic to be conducted by the Senate of Canada. Senator Ataullahjan is also an accomplished artist, mostly working with watercolours.

Date: November 24, 2023  | Time: 5.30-6.30 pm  | Location: Conron Hall, UC Room 3110

This lecture is open to all SHS members, students and members of the public.

Please RSVP by November 17, 2023

The recent study conducted by ICES Western and Lawson Health Research Institute has shed light on a growing crisis that affects the most vulnerable members of our community: the unhoused. The study’s findings underscore a grim reality: opioid-related deaths have sharply increased among those without stable housing. Unhoused individuals already grapple with adversity, isolation, and a lack of basic necessities, and the opioid crisis compounds their vulnerability. Many turn to opioids as a means of coping with the relentless challenges they face, often leading to addiction and fatal overdose.

This crisis is a clear call to action. Awareness alone is insufficient; we must actively seek solutions to address this urgent problem. Key steps include improving access to harm reduction services, providing affordable housing, offering mental health and addiction support, and engaging communities to reduce stigma and create a more inclusive environment.

It’s vital to approach this issue with compassion, recognizing that unhoused individuals are not mere statistics – they are real people facing unimaginable challenges. As responsible community members, it is our collective duty to address the opioid crisis among the unhoused, advocating for change and providing support to break the cycle of addiction.

For more information on the study, you can read the full article on Western University’s website.