CROSH-Con Speakers

Dr. Katie Goggins is a Postdoctoral Researcher at CROSH and an Adjunct Professor in the School of Kinesiology and Health Sciences at Laurentian University. Her research interests focus on the role of biomechanics, human factors, and ergonomics on industrial health and safety and occupational disease. As the keynote speaker at CROSH-Con, Dr. Goggins will give an overview of 1) How your workplace can benefit from working with a CROSH student; 2) The different ways your workplace can work with a CROSH student through internships, projects, employment, and more; and 3) How your organization can work with CROSH through Applied Collaborative Research and other CROSH Services.

Workplace violence (WPV) is an ongoing problem in healthcare. In 2018, Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board reported 13% of lost time injuries because of WPV. Northeastern Ontario nurses experience physical violence 8% more than the entire province. Violence is rising within healthcare and if not addressed properly, healthcare delivery services like nursing care could be affected. The results of this study could inform decision makers to create policies that could potentially reduce violence against nurses working in Northern Ontario acute care settings and reduce costs to the healthcare system. Dr. Akpomi-Eferakeya’s presentation will review available literature and provide an overview of her research methods.

Presentation description coming soon!

Caroline’s presentation will provide a brief overview of her thesis research. After outlining the approach she and her team members employed to assess the mental health and wellbeing of mining workers, she will discuss trends relating to stress, anxiety, and depression in this workforce, including how many workers are affected and the various factors that impact their workers’ wellbeing.

Nurses interacting with sophisticated medical device user interfaces efficiently, let alone safely and correctly has become increasingly challenging and precarious. Unintuitive interactions and complex user interface designs can jeopardize a nurse’s safety and efficiency and lead to avoidable outcomes. Medical device user interface design in highlighted as a hidden burden affecting nurse performance

George will present his analysis of the current Working at Heights (WAH) training programs in Ontario, and the knowledge transfer to workers of the topic of suspension trauma. How to manage and treat a worker falling from heights into harness is of much debate and there has not been consensus on the clear definition, treatment and management of suspension trauma in the industrial sector. This presentation will review CROSH’s current (2020) research exploring this topic, including clear recommendations for WAH training providers and Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development on language as well as treatment and management.

Heat stress is a physical hazard, and it annually affects many workers including Wildland Firefighters. Given the recent climate changes and the physically demanding nature of the workforce for Wildland Firefighters, managing heat stress is vital. Therefore, CROSH is providing the tools and research platform for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry – Aviation Forest Fires and Emergency Services branch to protect the health of Wildland Firefighters in Northern Ontario against heat stress. In her talk, Nazanin will discuss how CROSH is going about this.

Various diseases have been linked to low levels of mitochondria. The risk of these diseases can be reduced by increasing mitochondrial content by body cooling after exercise. The purpose of this research is to determine if cooling before exercise can lead to similar increases in mitochondria as post exercise cooling.

Kelsey will give an overview of her internship at Health Sciences North, including her work as an occupational health and safety nurse and her involvement in health promotion, the influenza campaign, and in workplace violence and prevention.

Wesley will give an overview of some of the industry partners CROSH has worked with, and he’ll guide us through how various kinds of projects can be formulated.