HIV risk assessment tools for identifying individuals who could benefit from pre-exposure prophylaxis: a systematic review protocol.

Background: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a highly effective, safe and acceptable intervention for preventing HIV infection. However, identifying individuals who could best benefit from PrEP remains a significant challenge. Existing HIV risk assessment tools vary in performance depending on context.

Early Warning Systems for Acute Respiratory Infections: Scoping Review of Global Evidence.

Background: Early warning systems (EWSs) are tools that integrate clinical observations to identify patterns indicating increased risks of clinical deterioration, thus facilitating timely and appropriate interventions. EWSs can mitigate the impact of global infectious diseases by enhancing information exchange, monitoring, and early detection.

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of EWSs in acute respiratory infections (ARIs) through a scoping review of EWSs developed, described, and implemented for detecting novel, exotic, and re-emerging ARIs.

Motivations for enrollment in a COVID-19 ring-based post-exposure prophylaxis trial: qualitative examination of participant experiences.

Background: Ring-based studies are a novel research design commonly used for research involving infectious diseases: contacts of newly infected individuals form a ring that is targeted for interventions (e.g., vaccine, post-exposure prophylaxis).

Using Primary Health Care Electronic Medical Records to Predict Hospitalizations, Emergency Department Visits, and Mortality: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: High-quality primary care can reduce avoidable emergency department visits and emergency hospitalizations. The availability of electronic medical record (EMR) data and capacities for data storage and processing have created opportunities for predictive analytics. This systematic review examines studies which predict emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and mortality using EMR data from primary care.

Does receipt of social housing impact mental health? Results of a quasi-experimental study in the Greater Toronto Area.

Affordable housing is commonly described as an important determinant of health, but there are relatively few intervention studies of the effects of housing on health. In this paper, we describe the results of a quasi-experimental, longitudinal study investigating the impacts of receiving social housing among a cohort of 502 people on waitlists for social housing in the Greater Toronto Area, Canada. Specifically, we sought to determine if adults who received housing were more likely than a control group to show improvements in depression, psychological distress, and self-rated mental health 6, 12 and 18 months after moving to housing.

Association Between Diet and Mental Health Outcomes in a Sample of 13,887 Adolescents in Canada.

Introduction: The high prevalence of mental disorders among adolescents calls for community-based and population-level prevention strategies. Diet is an important intervention target for primary prevention of mental disorders among adolescents. We used data from a large longitudinal study of Canadian adolescents (aged 14-18 y) to examine prospective associations between diet and mental health outcomes.

Critical appraisal of evidence supporting prescription of psychedelics from clinic websites in Ontario, Canada.

Psychedelics, including ketamine, 3,4-Methyl enedioxy methamphetamine (MDMA), and psilocybin, have gained attention for their potential therapeutic role in mental health treatment. While recreational use is prohibited in Canada, medicinal exemptions can be granted. There are several psychedelic clinics in Ontario, Canada, promoting the use of psychedelics for a variety of medical indications.

Coronavirus disease 2019 outcomes in a population-based cohort of people with HIV and a matched cohort of people without HIV during Omicron variant waves.

We found that rates of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing and reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR-confirmed infection were approximately 50% higher in a population-based cohort of people with HIV compared with a matched cohort of people without HIV during the Omicron era (2 January 2022 to 31 March 2023) in Ontario, Canada, after controlling for age, sex, residential census tract, and country of birth. Rates of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related hospitalization and/or death were more than double. Differences persisted independent of vaccination, healthcare access, and COVID-19 diagnosis.

Community Mobilization to Guide the Public Health Response During the 2022 Ontario Mpox Outbreak: A Brief Report.

The 2022 mpox epidemic predominantly affected gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM). Led by a provincial community program and co-galvanized by clinician-researchers, GBM community leaders in Ontario coordinated a robust response, representing a reproducible strategy for community engagement and mobilization during future epidemics.

Toward a universal definition of provider-patient attachment in primary care.

Objective: To explore definitions of provider-patient attachment in primary care (PC) and help inform a universal definition of provider-patient attachment.

Data Sources: Comprehensive searches were conducted using the electronic databases MEDLINE (Ovid), PubMed, CINAHL (EBSCO), PsycInfo (Ovid), Social Sciences Abstracts (EBSCO), Cochrane Library, Scopus, Embase (Ovid), Google Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Study Selection: A scoping review was conducted.

Joint HIV and hepatitis C virus phylogenetic analyses signal network overlap among women engaged in sex work and men who purchase sex.

Background: Transmission of HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are heavily influenced by complex interactions within sexual or injecting networks where risk behaviors occur. In Ukraine, women engaged in sex work (WSW) and men who purchase sex (MWPS) are disproportionately affected by both viruses. The aim of our study was to the investigate the influence of underlying networks on transmission of HIV and HCV.

The Role of Dimensions of Social Support in the Relationship Between Stigma and Mental Health: A Moderation Analysis.

HIV stigma remains a barrier to good health and understanding how social support may reduce the negative impact of stigma on health may help with designing stigma interventions. This study aims to understand how different types of social support may moderate or change the nature of the relationship between stigma and mental health. We recruited 327 participants to complete the People Living with HIV Stigma Index at baseline (t) between August 2018 and September 2019 and at follow-up (t) between February 2021 and October 2021.

Disparities in healthcare costs of people experiencing homelessness in Toronto, Canada in the post COVID-19 pandemic era: a matched cohort study.

Background: Evidence is limited about healthcare cost disparities associated with homelessness, particularly in recent years after major policy and resource changes affecting people experiencing homelessness occurred after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. We estimated 1-year healthcare expenditures, overall and by type of service, among a representative sample of people experiencing homelessness in Toronto, Canada, in 2021 and 2022, and compared these to costs among matched housed and low-income housed individuals.

Methods: Data from individuals experiencing homelessness participating in the Ku-gaa-gii pimitizi-win cohort study were linked with Ontario health administrative databases.

Cardiovascular disease management and healthcare delivery for people experiencing homelessness: a scoping review.

Background: People experiencing homelessness have increased prevalence, morbidity, and mortality of cardiovascular disease (CVD), attributable to several traditional and non-traditional risk factors. While this burden is well-known, mainstream CVD management plans and healthcare delivery have not been developed with people experiencing homelessness in mind nor tailored to their unique context. The overall objective of this work was to explore and synthesize what is known about CVD management experiences, programs, interventions, and/or recommendations specifically for people experiencing homelessness.

Evaluating the impact of surgery sequence on infection rates in hip or knee arthroplasty: does sequence matter?

Purpose: The potential influence of surgical sequence of elective hip-and-knee reconstructive surgery in relation to an infection-related procedure on postoperative infection rates is not clearly understood. Therefore, we aimed to examine the impact of surgical sequence on the incidence of postoperative infections within one-year and the longest available follow-up period in patients undergoing hip-and-knee reconstructive surgery.

Methods: A case-control study with propensity matching was utilized to examine elective surgeries conducted at Sunnybrook Holland Orthopaedic & Arthritic centre, Toronto, Canada between 2015 and 2018.

The impact of determinants of health on the relationship between stigma and health in people living with HIV.

Determinants of health are important drivers of health states, yet there is little work examining their role in the relationship between HIV stigma and health. This study uses moderation analysis to examine how determinants of health affect the relationship between enacted, internalized, and anticipated stigma and mental health. Quantitative data was collected on 337 participants in Ontario, Canada at baseline (t) between August 2018 and September 2019 and at follow-up (t) between February 2021 and October 2021.

Reported Side Effects and Adherence of Daily HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Users in Ontario, Canada: An Analysis of the Ontario Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Cohort Study.

Side effects are a common concern of current and potential HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) users, potentially leading to missed doses. We examined the relationship between reported side effects and adherence in the Ontario PrEP Cohort Study (ON-PrEP). In total, 600 predominantly gay (87.