Community Programming in Mental Health Care Planning: A Case Study at the Drinkers Lounge in Vancouver, BC

The Drinkers Lounge is an innovative harm reduction drop-in centre for drinkers in the Downtown Eastside (DTES) of Vancouver. Drinkers in this community are arguably the most street-entrenched population in the DTES because they are barred from almost every public space in Vancouver (Maynard 2019). Many of the drinkers are Indigenous, which means they experience racism in addition to the discrimination and the stigma that is associated with living in poverty and drinking. Most services for drinkers and other substance users are informed by biomedical and neoliberal ideology, which pathologizes individuals and commonly takes an abstinence approach to care. The Drinkers Lounge focuses instead on the social determinants that lead to substance use, such as a history of personal trauma, ongoing discrimination, and colonial and neoliberal policy. Rather than focusing on abstinence, they offer a range of supports to the drinkers to improve their health and well-being in many aspects of their lives. For the Drinkers Lounge to connect this population to these supports and services, they have had to create an innovative and radical space that is welcoming to the most marginalized members of the community. They have done this by embodying three main principles: (1) a focus on meaningful community building, (2) valuing the lived expertise of the community members, and (3) considering Indigenous approaches to care. This model has many perceived benefits and is widely credited as lifesaving by community members. Nevertheless, the Drinkers Lounge continues to struggle for survival and sustainable funding

Auxilin is a novel susceptibility gene for congenital heart block which directly impacts fetal heart function

Objective: Neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) may develop after transplacental transfer of maternal autoantibodies with cardiac manifestations (congenital heart block, CHB) including atrioventricular block, atrial and ventricular arrhythmias, and cardiomyopathies. The association with anti-Ro/SSA antibodies is well established, but a recurrence rate of only 12%–16% despite persisting maternal autoantibodies suggests that additional factors are required for CHB development. Here, we identify fetal genetic variants conferring risk of CHB and elucidate their effects on cardiac function. Methods: A genome-wide association study was performed in families with at least one case of CHB. Gene expression was analysed by microarrays, RNA sequencing and PCR and protein expression by western blot, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence and flow cytometry. Calcium regulation and connectivity were analysed in primary cardiomyocytes and cells induced from pleuripotent stem cells. Fetal heart performance was analysed by Doppler/echocardiography. Results: We identified DNAJC6 as a novel fetal susceptibility gene, with decreased cardiac expression of DNAJC6 associated with the disease risk genotype. We further demonstrate that fetal cardiomyocytes deficient in auxilin, the protein encoded by DNAJC6, have abnormal connectivity and Ca2+ homoeostasis in culture, as well as decreased cell surface expression of the Cav1.3 calcium channel. Doppler echocardiography of auxilin-deficient fetal mice revealed cardiac NLE abnormalities in utero, including abnormal heart rhythm with atrial and ventricular ectopias, as well as a prolonged atrioventricular time intervals. Conclusions: Our study identifies auxilin as the first genetic susceptibility factor in NLE modulating cardiac function, opening new avenues for the development of screening and therapeutic strategies in CHB.publishedVersio

Miljöanpassad sträckning för Norrbotniabanan genom Skellefteå

Validerat; 20101217 (root

Young peoples’ entrance to the workplace : Introduction to occupational health and safety

Negative outcomes of a poor work environment are more frequent among young workers. The aim of the current study was to study former pupils’ conditions concerning occupational health and safety by investigating the workplaces’, safety climate, the degree of implementation of SWEM and the their introduction programs. Four branches were included in the study: Industrial, Restaurant, Transport and Handicraft, specialising in wood. Semi-structured dialogues were undertaken with 15 employers at companies in which former pupils were employed. They also answered a questionnaire about SWEM. Former pupils and experienced employees were upon the same occasion asked to fill in a questionnaire about safety climate at the workplace. Workplace introduction programs varied and were strongly linked to company size. Most of the former pupils and experienced employees rated the safety climate at their company as high, or good. Employers in three of the branches rated the SWEM implemented at their workplaces to be effective. The Industry companies, which had the largest workplaces, gave the most systematic and workplace introduction for new employees. There are no results from this study explaining the fact that young workers have a higher risk for workplace accidents.? Ungas introduktion i arbetslivet. Betydelsen av arbetsmiljöutbildning och arbetsmiljöintroduktion för goda arbetsförhållanden och säkert arbete

Young peoples’ entrance to the workplace : Introduction to occupational health and safety

Negative outcomes of a poor work environment are more frequent among young workers. The aim of the current study was to study former pupils’ conditions concerning occupational health and safety by investigating the workplaces’, safety climate, the degree of implementation of SWEM and the their introduction programs. Four branches were included in the study: Industrial, Restaurant, Transport and Handicraft, specialising in wood. Semi-structured dialogues were undertaken with 15 employers at companies in which former pupils were employed. They also answered a questionnaire about SWEM. Former pupils and experienced employees were upon the same occasion asked to fill in a questionnaire about safety climate at the workplace. Workplace introduction programs varied and were strongly linked to company size. Most of the former pupils and experienced employees rated the safety climate at their company as high, or good. Employers in three of the branches rated the SWEM implemented at their workplaces to be effective. The Industry companies, which had the largest workplaces, gave the most systematic and workplace introduction for new employees. There are no results from this study explaining the fact that young workers have a higher risk for workplace accidents.? Ungas introduktion i arbetslivet. Betydelsen av arbetsmiljöutbildning och arbetsmiljöintroduktion för goda arbetsförhållanden och säkert arbete

Young people’s attitudes to attractive work, during and after upper secondary school

Ungas introduktion i arbetslivet. Betydelsen av arbetsmiljöutbildning och arbetsmiljöintroduktion för goda arbetsförhållanden och säkert arbete

Application of Environmental Quality Objectives in Regional Scale Infrastructure Projects : a Swedish Example

It is rarely possible to develop transport infrastructure without significant ecological impacts. A road or a railway will provide new habitat for some species, however, the overall environmental impacts, not at least on biodiversity, tend to be problematic. In order to improve the integration of transport infrastructure in its environmental and cultural settings, different strategies, methods and tools have been developed. EIA and SEA are examples of such methods. In Sweden 16 national environmental quality objectives have been formulated with the intention to guide societal development onto a sustainable path, i.e. to be used in infrastructure planning. The study reviews the experiences of the implementation and utilization of these environmental objectives in infrastructure project planning, including their influence on EIA and SEA procedures. Interviews were held with infrastructure planners, EIA and SEA consultants, representatives of permitting authorities etc.; followed by workshops and seminars. The results show that the objectives are overriding, but difficult to transfer and integrate into the different levels of project planning. Environmental concern seems currently to be driven by other factors. In order to use the official environmental quality objectives as guidance for road and railway planning, consensus on definitions, interpretations and intrinsic relations between different objectives, including the underlying environmental aspects (e.g. between biodiversity and other environmental aspects and objectives such as ‘landscape’), are urged for.QC 20120123</p