Publications by authors named "Sara Mizen"

Background: Transgender and nonbinary individuals face substantial cardiovascular health uncertainties. The use of gender-affirming hormone therapy can be used to achieve one's gender-affirming goals. As self-rated health is an important predictor of health outcomes, an understanding of how this association is perceived by transgender and nonbinary individuals using gender-affirming hormone therapy is required.

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Background: Our previous work synthesized published studies on well-being interventions during COVID-19. As we move into a post-COVID-19 pandemic period there is a need to comprehensively review published strategies, approaches, and interventions to improve child and youth well-being beyond deleterious impacts experienced during COVID-19.

Methods: Seven databases were searched from inception to January 2023.

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Background: Despite longstanding efforts and calls for reform, Canada's incremental approach to healthcare changes has left the country lagging behind other OECD nations. Reform to the Canadian healthcare system is essential to develop a higher performing system. This study sought to gain a deeper understanding of the views of Canadian stakeholders on structural and process deficiencies and strategies to improve the Canadian healthcare system substantially and meaningfully.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is an example of a global infectious disease outbreak that poses a threat to the well-being of children and youth (e.g., physical infection, psychological impacts).

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Background: Perceived severity and susceptibility of disease are predictors of individual behaviour during health crises. Little is known about how individual beliefs influence intentions to adhere to public health guidelines during periods of health crises, and how access to and consumption of information influence these intentions. This study investigated behavioural beliefs, normative beliefs, and control beliefs, and their influence on behavioural intentions to adhere to public health guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Purpose: We sought to explore the lived experiences of a professionally diverse sample of healthcare workers (HCWs) in a single intensive care unit (ICU) serving a large and generalizable Canadian population. We aimed to understand how working during the COVID-19 pandemic affected their professional and personal lives, including their perceptions of institutional support, to inform interventions to ameliorate impacts of the COVID-19 and future pandemics.

Methods: In this qualitative descriptive study, 23 ICU HCWs, identified using convenience purposive sampling, took part in individual semistructured interviews between July and November 2020, shortly after the first wave of the pandemic in Ontario.

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Purpose: During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, restricted visitation policies were enacted at acute care facilities to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and conserve personal protective equipment. In this study, we aimed to describe the impact of restricted visitation policies on critically ill patients, families, critical care clinicians, and decision-makers; highlight the challenges faced in translating these policies into practice; and delineate strategies to mitigate their effects.

Method: A qualitative description design was used.

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Introduction: Children and youth are often more vulnerable than adults to emotional impacts of trauma. Wide-ranging negative effects (eg, social isolation, lack of physical activity) of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and youth are well established. This scoping review will identify, describe and categorise strategies taken to mitigate potentially deleterious impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on children, youth and their families.

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Background: The World Health Organization declared vaccine hesitancy a top threat to global health following resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases close to eradication in many countries (e.g. measles).

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Introduction: We explored associations between sociodemographic factors and public beliefs, behaviors, and information acquisition related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to identify how the experiences of subpopulations in Canada may vary.

Methods: We administered a national online survey through Ipsos Incorporated to adults residing in Canada. Sampling was stratified by population age, sex, and regional distributions.

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Background: There is an urgent need to understand the determinants (i.e., barriers and facilitators) of de-implementation.

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Unlabelled: We sought to identify and prioritize improvement strategies that Critical Care Medicine (CCM) programs could use to inform and advance gender equity among physicians in CCM.

Design: This study involved three sequential phases: 1) scoping review that identified strategies to improve gender equity in all medical specialties; 2) modified consensus process with 48 CCM stakeholders to rate and rank identified strategies; and 3) in-person stakeholder meeting to refine strategies and discuss facilitators and barriers to their implementation.

Setting: CCM.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study examines the effects of restricted visitation policies during the first wave of COVID-19 on communication among ICU clinicians, patients, and their families in Canada.
  • It involved 41 interviews with patients, family members, nurses, and physicians, identifying five key themes related to psychosocial needs, communication tools, quality of communication, changing roles, and identifies facilitators or barriers.
  • Strategies like videoconferencing were highlighted as essential for adapting to new communication structures, ensuring that ICU communication remained effective despite visitation restrictions.
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