Austerity urbanism and Olympic counter-legacies: gendering, defending and expanding the urban commons in East London

This article reflects on an occupation led by single mothers to contest the destruction of social housing in post-Olympics East London. In the process, it argues for a more gendered theorisation of the urban commons. Drawing on auto-ethnography, participant observation and qualitative interviews, the article argues three central points: First, that the occupation demonstrates the gendered nature of the urban commons and the leadership of women in defending them from enclosure; second that the defence of an existing urban commons enabled the creation of a new temporary commons characterised by the collectivisation of gendered socially reproductive activities; and third that this commoning has had a lasting impact on housing activism at the city scale and beyond. This impact is conceptualised as an ‘Olympic counter-legacy’ that is characterised by the forging of new relationships and affinities, the strengthening of networked activism and circulation of tactics between campaign groups

Severity of COVID-19 after Vaccination among Hemodialysis Patients: An Observational Cohort Study

Background and objectives: Patients receiving hemodialysis are at high risk from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and demonstrate impaired immune responses to vaccines. There have been several descriptions of their immunologic responses to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccination, but few studies have described the clinical efficacy of vaccination in patients on hemodialysis. // Design, setting, participants, & measurements: In a multicenter observational study of the London hemodialysis population undergoing surveillance PCR testing during the period of vaccine rollout with BNT162b2 and AZD1222, all of those positive for SARS-CoV-2 were identified. Clinical outcomes were analyzed according to predictor variables, including vaccination status, using a mixed effects logistic regression model. Risk of infection was analyzed in a subgroup of the base population using a Cox proportional hazards model with vaccination status as a time-varying covariate. // Results: SARS-CoV-2 infection was identified in 1323 patients of different ethnicities (Asian/other, 30%; Black, 38%; and White, 32%), including 1047 (79%) unvaccinated, 86 (7%) after first-dose vaccination, and 190 (14%) after second-dose vaccination. The majority of patients had a mild course; however, 515 (39%) were hospitalized, and 172 (13%) died. Older age, diabetes, and immune suppression were associated with greater illness severity. In regression models adjusted for age, comorbidity, and time period, prior two-dose vaccination was associated with a 75% (95% confidence interval, 56 to 86) lower risk of admission and 88% (95% confidence interval, 70 to 95) fewer deaths compared with unvaccinated patients. No loss of protection was seen in patients over 65 years or with increasing time since vaccination, and no difference was seen between vaccine types. // Conclusions: These data demonstrate a substantially lower risk of severe COVID-19 after vaccination in patients on dialysis who become infected with SARS-CoV-2

The need for fresh blood: understanding organizational age inequality through a vampiric lens

YesThis article argues that older age inequality within and across working life is the result of vampiric forms and structures constitutive of contemporary organizing. Rather than assuming ageism occurs against a backdrop of neutral organizational processes and practices, the article denaturalizes (and in the process super-naturalizes) organizational orientations of ageing through three vampiric aspects: (un)dying, regeneration and neophilia. These dimensions are used to illustrate how workplace narratives and logics normalize and perpetuate the systematic denigration of the ageing organizational subject. Through our analysis it is argued that older workers are positioned as inevitable ‘sacrificial objects’ of the all-consuming immortal organization. To challenge this, the article explicitly draws on the vampire and the vampiric in literature and popular culture to consider the possibility of subverting existing notions of the ‘older worker’ in order to confront and challenge the subtle and persistent monstrous discourses that shape organizational life

New Horizons in the use of routine data for ageing research

The past three decades have seen a steady increase in the availability of routinely collected health and social care data and the processing power to analyse it. These developments represent a major opportunity for ageing research, especially with the integration of different datasets across traditional boundaries of health and social care, for prognostic research and novel evaluations of interventions with representative populations of older people. However, there are considerable challenges in using routine data at the level of coding, data analysis and in the application of findings to everyday care. New Horizons in applying routine data to investigate novel questions in ageing research require a collaborative approach between clinicians, data scientists, biostatisticians, epidemiologists and trial methodologists. This requires building capacity for the next generation of research leaders in this important area. There is a need to develop consensus code lists and standardised, validated algorithms for common conditions and outcomes that are relevant for older people to maximise the potential of routine data research in this group. Lastly, we must help drive the application of routine data to improve the care of older people, through the development of novel methods for evaluation of interventions using routine data infrastructure. We believe that harnessing routine data can help address knowledge gaps for older people living with multiple conditions and frailty, and design interventions and pathways of care to address the complex health issues we face in caring for older people

2017 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1004/thumbnail.jp