Health Sciences in the News

  • Bolstered mother-child bonds at heart of research

    December 17, 2019
    Postpartum depression (PPD) not only obstructs a mother’s capacity for understanding and enjoying her baby, but puts children at risk for behavioural and cognitive problems. Nursing professor Panagiota Tryphonopoulos looks to reconnect mothers with their young children, counteracting the critical parental bond lost due to the effects of postpartum depression.

  • Why are female test subjects still being excluded from exercise research?

    December 17, 2019
    In a study published last month in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, Western Kinesiology researchers Matthew Heath, Kennedy Dirk and Glen Belfry tested the effects of exercise on cognition in women at different stages of their menstrual cycles. They found no differences linked to hormonal fluctuations.

  • Here’s how to get active as a senior

    December 10, 2019
    Only 16 per cent of Canadians meet the government’s physical activity guidelines, which require 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise every week, according to Statistics Canada. And experts say that as we get older, staying active becomes even more important.

  • Research explores state of migrant worker protections

    December 09, 2019
    Federal protections lacking in clarity, accessibility and enforcement are leaving thousands of migrant workers across Canada open to exploitation, and in some cases putting their health and lives at risk to maintain employment, according to Western Nursing professor Susan Caxaj.

  • Research looks to get kids up and running

    December 04, 2019
    Rethinking how kids go about their day care days, as well as empowering those charged with caring and educating them, may go a long way toward getting kids much-needed physical activity, according to a researcher in Western's School of Occupational Therapy.

  • 2019 in Review: Research and Achievement

    December 02, 2019
    Guided by the four Signature Research Areas of the Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS), our members made a tremendous impact on defining health and on the health outcomes of people around the world over the past 12 months. Revisit the stories that made 2019 a year to remember and showcased how the Faculty of Health Sciences is pursuing its vision and achieving its mission.

  • New audio dome paints research soundscape

    December 02, 2019
    When exploring virtual reality, most consider the simulation as a visual experience. New technology at Western University will allow members of the School of Communication Science and Disorders and the National Centre for Audiology to investigate simulated spaces through sound.

  • Health Studies alumnae named among Canada's Most Powerful

    November 28, 2019
    School of Health Studies graduate Melissa Kargiannakis, BHSc'12, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SKRITSWAP, was recently honoured with the KPMG Future Leaders Award as one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women.

  • Children in childcare are not getting enough physical activity

    November 20, 2019
    In an article for The Conversation, Occupational Therapy professor Trish Tucker, and Health & Rehabilitation Sciences alumna Leigh Vanderloo examine the role that early childhood educators play in helping children get active.

  • BRAINSTORM: Straight Talk on Concussion Part 2

    November 20, 2019
    In the second episode of a four-part video series featuring outstanding Western University researchers, Laura Graham, an assistant professor in the School of Physical Therapy, explores how we can translate what we've learned from sport and apply it more broadly to enhance patient care.

  • Opioid solutions found beyond the headlines

    November 18, 2019
    Every day, the headlines offer yet another example of how the ongoing opioid epidemic is devastating communities and individual lives. But given the significant role popular media plays in shaping public perceptions, where is this non-stop coverage taking us?

  • Physical Therapy professor earns lifetime honour for research

    November 14, 2019
    Physical Therapy professor Michele Crites Battié, the Western Research Chair in Musculoskeletal Exercise, Mobility and Health, was recently recognized with the 2019 ORS PSRS (Orthopaedic Research Society / Philadelphia Spine Research Society) Lifetime Research Achievement Award for her contribution in the area of spine research.

  • Study debunks hormonal misconception of exercise

    November 05, 2019
    Despite the majority of exercise neuroscience studies not including female participants due to concerns over hormonal fluctuations, a new Western University study shows that exercise-related benefits to brain health and cognition are realized independently of a woman’s menstrual cycle.

  • Health Studies member named winner of 2019 Western Award of Excellence

    October 11, 2019
    Andrea Legato, Senior Academic Counsellor in the School of Health Studies, has been named as a winner of the 2019 Western Award of Excellence, which recognize staff members for the exemplary service to the campus community.

  • Health Studies professor earns provincial teaching award

    October 02, 2019
    After 22 years of working with thousands of students, Health Studies professor Jennifer Irwin has been named one of Ontario’s most outstanding university teachers by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations.

  • Revolutionizing audiology education

    October 01, 2019
    Western's National Centre for Audiology has partnered with AHead Simulations in the development of a new patient simulator that has quickly become an invaluable tool for students and professionals in training, research and product demonstrations.

  • The rise of a far-right feminist backlash

    October 01, 2019
    In a piece written for The Conversation, Treena Orchard, an associate professor in Western's School of Health Studies, discusses the connection between angry, anti-#MeToo comments - that came as a response to an earlier article about her experiences with the dating app, Bumble - and other far-right ideologies.

  • BRAINSTORM: Straight Talk on Concussion Part 1

    September 26, 2019
    In the first episode of a four-part video series featuring outstanding Western University researchers, Lisa Fischer, the Director of Sport and Exercise Medicine at the Fowler Kennedy Sport Medicine Clinic debunks three common myths related to concussions.

  • Study targets graduate student stress

    September 25, 2019
    A new study lead by Health and Rehabilitation Sciences doctoral candidate Rebecca Fried, BHSc’12, MSc’14, says the stresses graduate students face could be managed in part through a peer coaching and mentorship program.

  • Garland named to Canadian Academy of Health Sciences

    September 23, 2019
    Health Sciences Dean Jayne Garland has been recognized for her advances in the neural control of movement – particularly relevant to muscle fatigue and the recovery of standing balance and mobility after stroke – with a fellowship in the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.

  • Passion for nursing furthered by honour

    September 17, 2019
    Nursing student Enrique Quintanilla-Riviere was recently selected as one of 17 students to receive a Canadian Hearing Society (CHS) scholarship, offered to deaf and hard-of-hearing postsecondary students.

  • Alumna finding happiness by degrees on campus, in life

    September 16, 2019
    Gillian Mandich, BHSc’07 (Health Promotion), MSc’12 (Rehab Sciences), PhD’19 (Rehab Sciences), has a message for nervous, over-worked students slogging through their degrees right now: Make time for gratitude, regardless of circumstances on any given day.

  • Physical Therapy professor named to Royal Society of Canada

    September 12, 2019
    Physical Therapy professor Joy MacDermid is one of three Western scholars who have been named among the new Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada (RSC).

  • Study turns attention to rural homelessness

    September 03, 2019
    Occupational Therapy professor Carrie Anne Marshall, whose research focuses on social determinants of mental health, has explored the idea of an integrated supported living model for those facing homelessness in rural communities.

  • Car/cyclist crash stats support speed drop: study

    August 26, 2019
    A Western-led analysis of 12 years of car/bicycle crash data in London points to one clear conclusion about the most important variable in whether a cyclist is seriously injured or not – motorist speed.

  • Player safety at the heart of PhD student's research

    August 23, 2019
    Health Sciences doctoral candidate Alexandra Harriss looks to build on work first in 2016 when she teamed up with the Ontario Player Development League and Burlington Youth Soccer Club on the largest and most comprehensive study assessing repetitive head injury in female adolescents.

  • Weighing in on the benefits of fascia treatments

    August 12, 2019
    Jackie Sadi, Acting Director of the School of Physical Therapy, spoke with Global News to provide a scientific look at the evidence supporting treatments for fascia.

  • Love, lust and digital dating

    August 06, 2019
    Health Studies professor Treena Orchard uses her background researching sexuality, gender and health to examine what online dating says about feminism and gender in contemporary dating culture.

  • Graduate student's work helping to build a nation

    July 24, 2019
    Health and Rehabilitation Sciences PhD student Lisbeth Pino hopes her research, focusing on rural communities and nutrition, will help broaden the knowledge base for single mothers trying to raise healthy children with limited resources.

  • How 'smart homes' could help Ontarians with mental illness

    July 23, 2019
    A pilot project underway in London and led by Nursing professor Cheryl Forchuk is setting patients up with a suite of smart devices and paving the way for high-tech mental-health treatment.

  • Training gives control back to the caregivers

    July 16, 2019
    Delivering proper care to thousands living with dementia means personal-support workers must understand more than patients’ medical histories.

  • Study finds keys to exercise in music

    July 16, 2019
    Music can be that key to getting people moving – and selecting the proper style of music for people to move to can lead to a more beneficial and fulfilling workout.

  • Writing the ABCs of language disorder

    July 11, 2019
    A pair of researchers in the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders recently targeted a much younger audience for their work on Developmental Language Disorder.

  • Guideline serves as model for researchers and health care providers

    June 24, 2019
    Kinesiology professor Michelle Mottola was the co-lead on a three-and-a-half year project that led to the development of the 2019 Canadian Guideline for Physical Activity throughout Pregnancy.

  • PhD student leading study to understand attitudes toward cycling

    June 20, 2019
    Health and Rehabilitation Sciences PhD student Rebecca Henderson is leading a research project to understand what residents of the City of London think about cycling.

  • Rowing inspires Kinesiology grad's business idea

    June 14, 2019
    Nicole Baranowski is graduating with a degree in Kinesiology and Sports Management, an invitation to national rowing tryouts and a business start-up for a novel, customizable hair tie.

  • Promoting public health and preventing chronic disease

    June 11, 2019
    As a guest on Western's new podcast, Health Studies professor Jacob Shelley discusses the proper limits and role of law in promoting public health and preventing chronic disease.

  • Kinesiology professor appointed inaugural Hayden Chair in Sport and Social Impact

    June 06, 2019
    The quest to develop a better understanding of how sports and physical activity benefit people with intellectual and developmental disabilities got a major boost with the appointment of a Kinesiology professor David Howe to a new research position at Western.

  • Homelessness stemmed by transition 'helping hand'

    June 05, 2019
    Tackling homelessness following a hospitalization is possible, but it will take a concerted community effort to lessen the ongoing burden to the health-care system and local emergency shelters, according to the findings of a Western-led study.

  • Weese lands International, Leader Academy roles

    June 05, 2019
    Kinesiology professor JIm Weese was named to a pair of posts – Acting Associate Vice-President (International) and Executive Director of the Western Leader Academy – and will help lead Western into the future.

  • Paying people to get healthy...it works!

    June 04, 2019
    In an op-ed for The Conversation Canada, Kinesiology professor Marc Mitchell discusses new research that shows paying people for increasing their daily physical activity can increase long-term activity levels.

  • Tech brings home insight into mental health

    May 30, 2019
    Nursing professor Cheryl Forchuk is leading a unique Smart Home Community Model project, outfitting affordable Canadian Mental Health Association housing units in London and Middlesex County with smart technologies for people dealing with severe mental illness.

  • Constant headphone use can cause hearing damage – here's how to prevent it

    May 27, 2019
    Susan Scollie, Director of Western's National Centre for Audiology, spoke with Global News to discuss about the dangers of headphone use and strategies for avoiding hearing loss.

  • Drones support remote village medical treatment

    May 24, 2019
    An international team of health-care investigators, including Health Studies professor Elysée Nouvet, is piloting a new medical-delivery system that uses a ‘surgical strike’ approach to solve pandemic problems.

  • 3MT champ stands up to sitting down

    May 23, 2019
    Health Sciences PhD student Yoah Sui’s presentation, Sofa, so good? Maybe not, took top spot at Western’s 3MT competition, moved through the Ontario regional finals at McMaster University, and now will compete at the 3MT National Competition June 3.

  • Nursing student awarded Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship

    May 17, 2019
    Amanda Houston, a graduate student in Nursing, is one of four PhD candidates from Western to be awarded 2019-2020 Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships.

  • Study: Cents make sense for physical activity

    May 15, 2019
    It may take only a handful of change to make a lifetime of positive changes in the lives of many when it comes to sustaining physical activity, according to a study led by Western Kinesiology professor Marc Mitchell.

  • Offering insight into speech, stuttering

    May 08, 2019
    With May being Speech and Hearing Month, graduate student Marika Robillard offers her thoughts on stuttering and its impact on lives.

  • Study shows that opioid crisis is burning out doctors

    May 06, 2019
    As the opioid crisis take a deadly toll in human lives, the complex needs of patients in chronic pain are also leaving their doctors increasingly exhausted and overwhelmed, a new study led by Western Nursing professor Fiona Webster says.

  • Ingrid Johnsrude named Director of Brain and Mind Institute

    April 30, 2019
    Ingrid Johnsrude, a professor in the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, is the new Director of Western's Brain and Mind Institute. Her research aims to understand human behaviour through speech, language and hearing.

  • The opioid crisis is not about pain

    April 26, 2019
    According to Physical Therapy professor Dave Walton, the opioid crisis gripping much of North America is not about pain, but more about under-managed mental illness and unresolved emotional trauma.

  • Study seeks to fireproof workers against PTSD

    April 23, 2019
    Physical Therapy professor Joy MacDermid is exploring the effectiveness of a mental health and resiliency program called Resilient Minds on the well-being of firefighters in both Vancouver and Prince Edward Island.

  • Expert sounds warning about child hearing in Canada

    April 22, 2019
    As chairperson of the Canadian Infant Hearing Task Force, Communication Sciences and Disorders professor Marlene Bagatto said Canada receives a failing grade when it comes to prioritizing child hearing health.

  • Health Sciences students shine in Three-Minute Thesis Competition

    April 04, 2019
    Graduate students from the Faculty of Health Sciences claimed two of the top three spots in Western's Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, including Kinesiology PhD candidate Yoah Sui, who took home first-place honours.

  • Celebrating Teaching Excellence: Aleksandra Zecevic

    April 02, 2019
    In a series of stories highlighting teaching excellence at Western, Health Studies professor Aleksandra Zecevic is featured for approach to bring students together from around the world.

  • Celebrating Teaching Excellence: Barbara Sinclair

    April 01, 2019
    In a series of stories highlighting teaching excellence at Western, Nursing professor Barbara Sinclair's work with technology in the classroom showcases how innovation is helping students learn more effectively.

  • Laura Misener named Kinesiology director at 'exciting time'

    March 28, 2019
    After two years in an acting role, Laura Misener has been named Director of Western’s School of Kinesiology, effective July 1. She will be the first woman to occupy the role.

  • Collaborative event builds bridges between health sectors

    March 27, 2019
    An collaborative symposium, presented in part by the FHS Office of Interprofessional Education and Practice, brought together nearly 800 students in an effort to build bridges between health sectors.

  • Funding backs unique shelter-to-housing plan

    March 25, 2019
    Nursing professor Abe Oudshoorn is leading a 14-month demonstration project with the Salvation Army Centre of Hope, looking to transform emergency shelter space into affordable housing with supports.

  • Health Sciences faculty members earn prestigious Western recognition

    March 19, 2019
    Nursing professor Marilyn Ford Gilboe (pictured), and Communication Sciences and Disorders professor David Purcell were recently the recipients of two of Western's most prestigious awards, recognizing their contributions to the academy.

  • Change allows for fuller picture of Nursing applicants

    March 18, 2019
    Applicants to the Labatt Family School of Nursing will be able to present a fuller picture of themselves to reviewers thanks to the addition of a cutting-edged personality assessment to standard entry criteria.

  • Recognizing excellence in the classroom

    March 12, 2019
    A trio of faculty members from the Faculty of Health Sciences have been awarded Western’s highest honours for inspiring active and deep learning in their students.

  • New study aims to understand team-based care for chronic disease management

    March 05, 2019
    Shannon Sibbald, an assistant professor in the School of Health Studies and associate scientist at Lawson Health Research Institute, is leading a study to better understand integrated health care teams for chronic disease management and factors that help successful implementation.

  • All exercise intensities benefit older brains

    March 01, 2019
    Older adults who engage in short bursts of physical activity can experience a boost in brain health even if the activity is carried out at a reasonably low intensity, according to a new study led by Kinesiology professor Matthew Heath.

  • New journal gets young scholars 'through the door'

    February 07, 2019
    Started by Western Kinesiology PhD candidates Taylor KcKee, Andrew Pettit and Jared Walters, The Journal of Emerging Sport Studies launched last fall for both emerging scholars and emerging perspectives in the field of sport scholarship.

  • Words don't let math add up for some students

    January 24, 2019
    Health Sciences graduate student Alexandra Cross is the lead author of a new paper that suggests kids who have issues with some math problems may in fact have language delays.

  • Professor's work looks to celebrate difference

    January 23, 2019
    David Howe, a four-time Paralympian, joined the Faculty of Health Sciences’ School of Kinesiology as a professor in November. His love of sport led him on a path to athletics, academia and advocacy.

  • Initiative builds academic, personal resilience

    January 21, 2019
    The Smart Healthy Campus initiative, led by Kinesiology professor Kevin Shoemaker, aims to help students feel more connected, more accepted and better equipped to deal with academic and personal change.

  • Learning more about how Syrian refugees are faring in Canada

    January 17, 2019
    A four-year study led by Nursing professor Abe Oudshoorn is underway to learn more about how Syrian refugees are settling in Canada. The research, which began in 2017, has now received federal funding for several more years and includes London, Fredericton and Calgary. (Photo: CBC London)

  • Study: Social media sways exercise motivation

    January 16, 2019
    A new study, led by Western PhD graduate Alison Divine and Physical Therapy professor Susan Hunter, showed that providing supportive physical activity environments within Facebook may be a successful avenue to get students exercising.