Canadian Case Study Research Articles

Co-constructing experiential knowledge in health: The contribution of people living with Parkinson to the co-design approach

Background: The use of collaborative approaches in the design of digital health technologies could help researchers to better understand the patient perspective. Starting from a 2019 Canadian case study focused on co-design and Parkinson’s disease, this paper discusses the potential of using narrative interviews to capture the patient experience. Aim: The objectives of this study are to examine the process of co-construction of ‘experiential knowledge’ through the interaction during a narrative interview and stress the significance of this method in relation to a co-design approach. Methods: A qualitative analysis of transcripts from 19 narrative interviews conducted in 2019 with people living with PD and their caregivers was performed. Results: Materialized in embedded, embodied, and emergent knowledge, findings reveal the potential of narrative interviews to provide insight to how experiential knowledge of people living with PD is constituted. Discussion: In addition to generate a learning environment, the analysis indicates that narrative interviews help to make visible experiential knowledge through the interaction processes between patients, caregivers, and researchers. Conclusion: This suggests that narrative interviews permit a more patient-centered design of digital health technologies, as they collect the psychological, social, and medical factors that influence the experience of these individuals.

Indigenizing Prisons: A Canadian Case Study

Indigenizing Prisons: A Canadian Case Study

Current Techniques and Applications of Mineral Chemistry to Mineral Exploration; Examples from Glaciated Terrain: A Review

This paper provides a summary of traditional, current, and developing exploration techniques using indicator minerals derived from glacial sediments, with a focus on Canadian case studies. The 0.25 to 2.0 mm fraction of heavy mineral concentrates (HMC) from surficial sediments is typically used for indicator mineral surveys, with the finer (0.25–0.50 mm) fraction used as the default grain size for heavy mineral concentrate studies due to the ease of concentration and separation and subsequent mineralogical identification. Similarly, commonly used indicator minerals (e.g., Kimberlite Indicator Minerals—KIMs) are well known because of ease of optical identification and their ability to survive glacial transport. Herein, we review the last 15 years of the rapidly growing application of Automated Mineralogy (e.g., MLA, QEMSCAN, TIMA, etc) to indicator mineral studies of several ore deposit types, including Ni-Cu-PGE, Volcanogenic Massive Sulfides, and a variety of porphyry systems and glacial sediments down ice of these deposits. These studies have expanded the indicator mineral species that can be applied to mineral exploration and decreased the size of the grains examined down to ~10 microns. Chemical and isotopic fertility indexes developed for bedrock can now be applied to indicator mineral grains in glacial sediments and these methods will influence the next generation of indicator mineral studies.

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Contaminated Soil and Groundwater at Airports: A Canadian Case Study.

The occurrence of 93 classes of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) was investigated at aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF)-impacted sites of four Canadian airports. Surface/subsurface soil and groundwater samples were characterized using high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) and an improved total oxidizable precursor (TOP) assay. PFAS profiles, loads, and spatial trends were highly site-specific, influenced by the AFFF use history, variations in sorption, transport, and in situ transformation potential of PFASs. All sites have been impacted by more than one AFFF chemistry, with the active firefighter training area exhibiting a greater PFAS variety and total PFAS burden than decommissioned sites. Zwitterionic and cationic compounds composed a large percentage (34.5-85.5%) of the total PFAS mass in most surface soil samples in the source zone but a relatively low percentage (<20%) in groundwater samples. Background soils surrounding the source zone contained predominantly unidentified precursors attributed to atmospheric deposition, while in AFFF-impacted soils, precursors originating from AFFFs can be largely captured by HRMS using available suspect lists. Horizontal transfer of PFASs in surface soils was limited, but vertical migration down the soil column occurred even in locations of low permeability. This study provides a critical data set to support developing new priority analyte lists and integrating TOP assay for comprehensive PFAS monitoring at AFFF-impacted sites.

Does unionization and working under collective agreements promote health?

Health promoters recognize the social determinants of health (SDOH) shape health outcomes yet generally neglect how unionization and collective agreements (CAs) shape these SDOH. This is surprising since extensive evidence indicates unions and CAs influence wages and benefits, job security, working conditions and income inequality, which go on to affect additional SDOH of food and housing security, child development and social exclusion. We argue unions and CAs should be a health promotion focus by examining how they influence the SDOH and health outcomes in wealthy developed nations in four ways. First, we consider how union density (UD) and CA coverage (CAC) are associated with differences between wealthy western nations in percentage of low-waged workers, extent of income inequality, and low birthweight and infant mortality rates. Second, we bring together literature that shows greater UD and CAC within national sub-jurisdictions are associated over time with more equitable distribution of the SDOH and better health outcomes. Third, we document-also using available literature-how within nations, union membership and working under a CA shape the SDOH one experiences. Fourth, we carry out a Canadian case study-applying a political economy lens-to examine how power relations, working through economic and political systems, determine extent of unionization and CAC and the inclination of health promoters to consider these issues. Implications for health promoters are considered.

Islam, indigeneity, and religious difference in a secular context: Canadian case studies

This paper analyzes the hardening religious difference in contemporary Canadian society and explains why the presence of Muslims, including new converts, constantly incites in the public imagination the primordial threat of Islam to the secular accomplishments of Canadian society. Relying on the available data and previous research on the historical formation of the secular in Canada, the author attempts to detect a paradox within the state-lead politics of recognition that unintentionally creates the conditions for new communal conflicts” (warna kuning) diubah menjadi “Relying on the available data and previous research on the historical formation of the secular in Canada, the author attempts to detect a paradox within the statelead politics of recognition that unintentionally creates the conditions for new communal conflicts. By using an inductive generalization, the author argues that the perceived incompatibility between Islam and secular values is derived not so much from cultural and theological differences or actual political threats posed by Muslims or Indigenous converts. It instead emanates from the self-understanding of the majority of Canadians that defined the nation as essentially Christians and simultaneously secular.

A new workflow for detailed urban scale building energy modeling using spatial joining of attributes for archetype selection

Cities play an essential role in energy consumption and its environmental impacts. Urban Building Energy Modeling (UBEM) can help optimize the built environment's energy efficiency and improve the design and operation of building energy systems. In order to develop UBEM, individual buildings' characteristics such as constructions, internal loads, energy systems, etc., are required. To develop a comprehensive urban building energy model requires detailed 3D urban building geometry information, comprehensive building attribute libraries and a detailed archetype selection to automatically assign parameters to the building construction and usage. Most of the already developed tools do not take full advantage of external data sources of building characteristics with different formats and integrate them into the UBEM workflow. This study introduces a workflow to automatically extract, collect, and pre-process the energy-related parameters from open-source data to enrich the UBEM using spatial joining of attributes and detailed archetype selection. Two different 3D urban models (low and high resolution) are proposed to be used for urban building energy simulation. The workflow using the high-resolution model is demonstrated by applying it to the downtown Montreal buildings as a Canadian case study. A novel method for assigning the building's attributes to the building surfaces and thermal zones is developed, which is based on a detailed and automatic archetype selection. The archetype-selected data and other required information for urban building energy demand calculation are fed into EnergyPlus by introducing a hierarchical concept. The high-resolution enriched UBEM is calibrated using monthly measured data of a reference building, which resulted in an acceptable root mean square error. The method was then applied to the whole district, and it could be shown that ventilation and infiltration rates have the highest impact on energy demand. This study shows that using high-resolution UBEM allows detailed urban building energy analysis, which helps decision-makers to better understand their built environment.

Bayesian model averaging of the RegCM temperature projections: a Canadian case study

Abstract The choices of physical schemes coupled in the Regional Climate Model version 4 (RegCM4), the input general circulation model (GCM) results, and the emission scenarios may cause considerable uncertainties in future temperature projections. Therefore, the ensemble approach, which can be used to reflect these uncertainties, is highly desired. In this study, the probabilistic projections for future temperature are generated at 88 Canadian climate stations based on the developed RegCM4 ensemble and obtained Bayesian model averaging (BMA) weights. The BMA weights indicate that the RegCM4 coupled with the holtslag PBL scheme driven by the HadGEM can provide relatively reliable temperature projections at most climate stations. It is also suggested that the BMA approach is effective in simulating temperature over middle and eastern Canada through taking advantage of each ensemble member. However, the effectiveness of the BMA method is limited when all the models in the ensemble cannot simulate the temperature robustly. The projected results demonstrate that the temperature will increase continuously in the future, while the temperature increase under RCP8.5 will be significantly larger than that under RCP4.5.

Transit Networks, Social Contacts, and Open Data Meet Public Transportation Plans for Post-COVID-19: A Canadian Case Study

The emergence of COVID-19 and its variants has dramatically shifted the way that societies respond to a pandemic crisis and postpandemic plans. One of the response needs is the ability to track potential transmissions within population movements effectively, which can exploit the means of pervasive computing by collecting and processing ubiquitously acquired anonymously aggregated data, as well as long-term data that constitute prior but limited contextual knowledge. This article presents a practical method for the assessment of the risk profiles of communities by acquiring, fusing, and analyzing data from public transportation, district population distribution, passenger interactions, and cross-locality travel data while still preserving individual user privacy. The proposed framework fuses these data sources into a realistic simulation of a transit network for a given time span to report on the risk of the public transit system as whole, as well as problematic wards and routes. By shedding credible insights into the impact of public transit on pandemic spread, the article findings will help to set the groundwork for aggregate transmission simulation tools that could provide pandemic response teams with a robust framework for the evaluations of city districts most at risk, and how to adjust municipal services accordingly.

Leading and lagging indicators in fundraising management: A Canadian case study

AbstractFundraisers, managers, and boards in the charitable sector are faced with an ongoing concern: how do they produce sustainable, predictable financial returns for their causes while minimizing the cost of fundraising? One way to address this is to improve the measurement of fundraising activities and this study asks how fundraising results should be communicated within organizations to support sustainability. This case study focuses on the fundraising program from one Canadian charity with a large, diversified fundraising program to examine how fundraisers can move beyond simple end‐of‐year financial ratios and implement one managerial technique, leading and lagging indicators, to improve long‐term financial performance. A literature review, internal interviews, and internal document review are used to identify 81 potential leading and lagging indicators that fundraisers can use to develop a suite of indicators that fit their context, activities, and goals and to identify potential challenges with implementing indicators. The role of organizational context and characteristics in selecting an appropriate suite of indicators is also discussed.

Accounting for Absences and Ambiguities in the Freelancing Labour Relation

AbstractResearch in economic geography has focused on the shift away from the standard employment relationship in the West; yet within these debates, non‐standard work is an amorphous stand‐in for many kinds of labour. Our aim is to account for absences and ambiguities within one form of non‐standard work – freelancing – to make the contours of this work more visible and to understand why a growing sector of the labour market is not well measured, protected or understood. Working from a Canadian case study, we first examine the conflicting ways freelancing is statistically measured, using an umbrella of intersecting terms that refer to labour or workers. Second, we critically review how freelancing is (not) legislated, organised and protected, areas of mediation which often still presume a standard employment relationship. Finally, we consider how the identity of ‘freelancer’ is lived, through freelancers' complex yet partial definitions that embrace flexibility and constraint.

Putting the employment status of faculty into the quality of education: A Canadian case study

ABSTRACT Drawing on qualitative data, this case study explores how the precarious employment status of college contract instructors in Canada pushes them to consider bypassing some policies and affects their well-being, both of which could negatively influence the quality of education. Since keeping abreast with internationalisation requires addressing quality assurance, it seems that demographic data on the employment status and well-being of academic staff should be incorporated in quality assurance procedures.

Supply Chain Responsiveness to a (Post)-Pandemic Grocery and Food Service E-Commerce Economy: An Exploratory Canadian Case Study

The focus of this study looks at the motivations and rationale from a national survey of over 7200 Canadians in November 2020 into why they use online services to purchase food. As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, food supply chains have been significantly altered. Consumers are purchasing foods with different dynamics, including when they buy in-person at groceries, at restaurants or at food service establishments. Elements of the food supply chain will be permanently altered post-pandemic. The study looks at a specific set of factors, captured in the survey, namely, consumer price sensitivity to the costs of online food purchasing, growing sustainability-related concerns over food packaging and waste, and product sensory experience related to how online purchasing changes from in-person food selection. The end goal, emerging from a case study, is insight into the strategies and preparedness with which CPGs, food services, and retailers can better manage the supply chain in their food product offerings in the post-pandemic era.

Bridging Indigenous and Western sciences in freshwater research, monitoring, and management in Canada

Abstract Mutually respectful and reciprocal relationships between people and their environment is a central tenet of many Indigenous worldviews. Across the Americas, this relational connection is particularly evident when it comes to freshwater ecosystems. However, there are numerous threats to these central relationships between Indigenous peoples and their environment. Using all available ways of knowing to conserve, prioritize, and restore relationships between Indigenous peoples and the environment they live in, and are a part of, is critical. Despite legislative requirements and policy commitments, developing and implementing inclusive approaches that bridge multiple ways of knowing remains a challenge. This systematic map examines the extent, range, and nature of published case studies that seek to bridge Indigenous and Western sciences in ecological research, monitoring, or natural resource management across Canada's freshwater aquatic ecosystems. A total of 74 Canadian case studies from 72 articles were included in the systematic map. There were 30 distinct species of focus across the collection of case studies. This systematic map highlights the diversity of ways knowledge systems can be woven, but that the application of these approaches is limited to some key regions (the Pacific and northern regions) and species (whitefish and salmon). The extent and nature of information provided with regards to demographics (e.g., gender, age) of Indigenous knowledge holders contributing to the studies varied widely and in general was poorly reported. Across all of the case studies included in the systematic map there were 78 distinct Indigenous knowledge systems represented. Fifteen different methodological approaches were identified with community‐based participatory research being the most prevalent approach. The presence and diversity of Indigenous methodologies employed was also notable and was greater as compared to a previous study of Canada's coastal marine regions. Collectively, these findings point to a potential emerging transformation in research focused on freshwater ecosystems, habitats, and species to a practice that elevates the role of Indigenous communities, centres Indigenous science and knowledge, and is informed by Indigenous ways of being and doing.

Assessing the regional biogenic methanol emission from spring wheat during the growing season: A Canadian case study

As a volatile organic compound existing in the atmosphere, methanol plays a key role in atmospheric chemistry due to its comparatively high abundance and long lifetime. Croplands are a significant source of biogenic methanol, but there is a lack of systematic assessment for the production and emission of methanol from crops in various phases. In this study, methanol emissions from spring wheat during the growing period were estimated using a developed emission model. The temporal and spatial variations of methanol emissions of spring wheat in a Canadian province were investigated. The averaged methanol emission of spring wheat is found to be 37.94 ± 7.5 μg·m−2·h−1, increasing from north to south and exhibiting phenological peak to valley characteristics. Moreover, cold crop districts are projected to be with higher increase in air temperature and consequent methanol emissions during 2020–2099. Furthermore, the seasonality of methanol emissions is found to be positively correlated to concentrations of CO, filterable particulate matter, and PM10 but negatively related to NO2 and O3. The uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results suggest that methanol emissions show a Gamma probabilistic distribution, and growth length, air temperature, solar radiation and leafage are the most important influencing variables. In most cases, methanol emissions increase with air temperature in the range of 3–35 °C while the excessive temperature may result in decreased methanol emissions because of inactivated enzyme activity or increased instant methanol emissions due to heat injury. Notably, induced emission might be the major source of biogenic methanol of mature leaves. The results of this study can be used to develop appropriate strategies for regional emission management of cropping systems.

Racialized Women in Canada: Is COVID-19 the Turning Point to More Equality?

The purpose of this paper is to show that currently, the most important issue in gender and politics in Canada is the disproportionate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on racialized women. I use critical-race feminist theory and Dr. Kimberle Crenshaw’s concept of ‘intersectionality’ to evaluate Canadian case studies that demonstrate my argument. Racialized women face unique challenges which neither racism nor sexism can sufficiently address, and I argue that these challenges have been worsened due to the pandemic. This topic is important because, in the midst of the pandemic, it can be easy to disregard or forget the injustices experienced by racialized women. However, by revealing the direct impacts of the pandemic on such women, this paper brings attention to these injustices and advocates for more equality in Canadian society.

Using Skills, Not Pills

Mental health illiteracy in primary care is a growing concern for policymakers. Given the generalist nature of the primary health care practice, these physicians may lack the specialized knowledge and the time to identify and treat mental illnesses appropriately. Mental health literacy interventions are either contact-based, intensive social-contact-based, or skills-based. Although contact-based and intensive social-contact interventions have shown positive improvements in reducing stigma in the short-term, their efficacy for clinical behavioural change is questionable. This paper argues that skills-based interventions are more appropriate mental health literacy interventions for health care settings, using three Canadian case studies to highlight their potential to foster positive improvements to physician confidence and competence when treating mental illness. These interventions require more research with larger sample sizes to determine their efficacies for wide-scale implementation across jurisdictional boundaries and health specializations.

Sociopolitical factors drive conservation planning timelines: A Canadian case study with global implications

With global biodiversity declines, government regulations protecting wildlife serve a key role in species persistence. Despite its importance, planning for protection can be a slow process, taking up to several decades. Such delays have led to species declines and extinction. Here, we investigate the factors driving time between conservation listing and the creation of a plan to support species recovery. Using Canada's Species at Risk Act as a case study, we used Cox proportional-hazards models to test how quickly a species designatable unit (DU) would receive a recovery plan given the reasons for its designation, conservation status, taxon, sociopolitical climate, the extent of scientific research, and public awareness. AIC model selection revealed that sociopolitical factors best explained how quickly a DU would receive a plan. We found that the time for a DU to receive a plan decreased the more often a majority government was in power, the fewer environmental bills passed, and the lower average GDP growth rate during planning. Our results highlight the need for greater consistency in species recovery planning based on conservation needs and status, regardless of sociopolitical climate. We recommend further examination of the relationship between time for recovery planning and plan effectiveness to elucidate how planning delays impact species recovery.

The Role of Population Mobility and Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions on COVID-19 Infection: A Canadian Case Study of Granger-Causal Relationships

Background: The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been the cause of more than 13,350 deaths in Canada. As a result, nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) have been adopted by government officials to mitigate dissemination of the disease. Quantifying NPI effectiveness is challenging due to variability in their implementation between geographic regions. Mobility data can help understand the role of NPIs in reducing COVID-19 cases.Methods: The data used in this analysis consists of individual level time-series of confirmed positive COVID-19 cases in six Canadian provinces, population mobility trends and timing and level of NPI implementation. The Granger causality test was used to assess bi-directional predictive causality between NPIs, mobility and COVID-19 daily cases per 100 000 population. Findings: Using data from February 15th to December 28th 2020, we found that implementations of NPI and daily COVID-19 cases causally influence population mobility in all provinces. The relationship between daily cases and NPIs remains unclear.Conclusion: This study showed that in six Canadian provinces, NPIs and daily cases contributed to minimizing population mobility, but suggested that NPIs may have to be implemented and enforced more promptly to significantly influence the incidence of COVID-19 cases.Funding: There are no funding sources to disclose.Declaration of Interests: None to declare

Retaining and supporting employees with mental illness through inclusive organizations: lessons from five Canadian case studies

PurposeAlthough awareness is growing of the importance of employee mental health and the value of inclusive work practices, less is known about how to support employees with mental illness (MI). We aimed to explore organizational strategies and work practices that promote retention and support of employees living with MI in relation to past theory-driven research by building and extending current theory.Design/methodology/approachWe adopted a qualitative case-study approach focussed on organizations that have taken steps towards promoting workplace inclusion for employees with MI. Five diverse Canadian organizations were recruited based on their efforts to build psychologically safe and healthy workplaces, and actively support employees with MI. Data collection in each organization consisted of onsite observation and interviews with workplace stakeholders, including employees with MI, their co-workers, supervisors/managers and human resource professionals. Thirty interviews were conducted from across the five organizations. Data analysis was informed by interpretive description to identify challenges and opportunities.FindingsTwo key themes were noted in depictions of supportive workplaces: (1) relationship-focussed workplaces and (2) flexible, inclusive work practices.Originality/valueThese practices highlight how organizations support employees with MI. Despite our focus on organizations working towards inclusion, the stigma associated with MI and the rigidity of some workplace processes continue to limit support and retention. Our findings suggest that organizations should focus on communication processes, support mechanisms, how they reinforce flexibility, inclusion and oversight of employees with MI.