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Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a Swiss university course called “Psychology and Migration” had to move online over the Spring semester 2021. In this course, Psychology and Education students learn about the sociocultural considerations of migration, through a theoretical, personal and artistic exploration of the subjective experience of migration, based on performing arts. As part of the main pedagogical strategies, students are invited to collectively create a short theatre play based on some selected literary texts. Under the conditions imposed by the pandemic, puppetry arts were chosen as a new tool for distance-learning. Collaborating with theatre professionals, the students created a short play, and performed it online using sock puppets, image theatre or object theatre. Using data collected during the course (video recordings of online sessions and students’ diaries), this article explores the critical process of reduction and expansion, and the (potentially) productive tensions that the course creates. It analyses two main appropriation modes for course students: in adaptative appropriation, students aim to reduce these tensions by adapting to the perceived expectations of teachers; in transformative appropriation, students creatively use possibilities offered by the course to conduct a personal exploration, integrating theories with their own experiences and questions.

Introduction : La pandémie a eu des répercussions sur la santé psychologique et la conciliation travail-famille des infirmières, y compris dans les milieux de soins ambulatoires. Les résultats présentés dans cet article font partie d’une étude visant à décrire et contextualiser la santé psychologique et l’évolution des pratiques de suivi infirmier au Québec (Canada) lors de la pandémie de COVID-19.Objectif : Explorer et décrire les facteurs qui ont influencé la santé psychologique et la conciliation travail-famille des infirmières en soins ambulatoires pendant la première vague de la pandémie de COVID-19.Méthodes : Enquête exploratoire avec données mixtes par le biais de la plateforme SurveyMonkey. Les données ont été collectées de juillet 2020 à septembre 2020. La population cible était toutes les infirmières du Québec dont les activités cliniques incluaient le suivi de patients ambulatoires ; 200 infirmières ont participé.Résultats : Les modèles de régression ont indiqué que les symptômes anxieux (scores au GAD-7) et dépressifs (scores au PHQ-9) étaient associés à un plus jeune âge, au fait de vivre seul, aux inquiétudes concernant la transmission de la COVID-19 et au sentiment que son travail n’était pas cohérent avec ses valeurs. La conciliation travail-famille était jugée plus difficile qu’avant la pandémie par 54,5 % des participants. Les facteurs perçus comme l’influençant étaient soit liés aux conditions de travail (p. ex., horaire et temps de travail, télétravail, délestage), aux tâches familiales, ou étaient spécifiques à la pandémie.Discussion et conclusion : Outre l’âge, le sentiment que son travail n’était pas cohérent avec ses valeurs était la seule variable corrélée à la fois avec le GAD-7 et le PHQ-9. Les futures recherches devraient s’intéresser à la relation entre le sentiment de cohérence, la santé psychologique et les conditions de travail favorables à la conciliation travail-famille. Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic impacted nurses’ psychological health and work-family balance, including in ambulatory care settings. The results presented in this article are part of a study aiming to describe and contextualize the psychological health and changes in nurses’ follow-up practices in Quebec (Canada) during the COVID-19 pandemic.Objective: Explore and describe factors that influenced ambulatory care nurses’ psychological health and work-family balance during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: Exploratory mixed data cross-sectional study using the SurveyMonkey platform. We collected data from July 2020 to September 2020. The target population comprised all practicing nurses in Quebec whose clinical activities included the follow-up of ambulatory patients, 200 of whom completed the survey. Results: Multiple linear regression models indicated that anxiety (GAD-7 scores) and depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 scores) were associated with younger age, living alone, worries about transmitting COVID-19, and feeling that one’s work was not coherent with one’s values. Work-family balance was considered more difficult than before the pandemic by 54.5 % of participants. Factors perceived as influencing work-family balance were either related to work conditions (e.g., schedule and time at work, access to work from home, redeployment to another work setting), to family-related responsibilities/tasks or were specific to the pandemic.Discussion and conclusion: Apart from age, the feeling that one’s work was not coherent with their values was the only variable correlated with both GAD-7 and PHQ-9 in multivariate models. Further research should investigate the relationships between sense of coherence, psychological health, and work conditions like schedule flexibility and access to work from home.

Natalie Grant is a freelance series producer primarily working in entertainment and reality television and codirector of Share My Telly Job (SMTJ), an organisation that exists to promote job-sharing and the normalisation of other forms of flexible working in the UK television and film industry, such as condensed hours and part-time work, in order to encourage better equality, diversity and inclusion. In this interview by Helen Kennedy and Jack Newsinger, held via email in December 2021, Grant talks about her experiences as a mother working in television, what led to her becoming a campaigner, and how more flexible kinds of work can promote greater equality and diversity in the television industry workforce.

Social inequities such as poverty and homelessness are intersectional and complex; they are persistent, wicked and their solutions are elusive. Building capacity for innovation in the social sector, i.e., encouraging the adoption of practices and processes designed for radical solutions to social problems, is an increasingly widespread strategy. Because innovation and change in the social sector are driven by knowledge processes, universities as anchor institutions would seem to have a natural role to play in the social impact ecosystem. Campus-community knowledge collaborations and innovation partnerships can be a vector of impact and, if the conditions are right, academic engagement can increase capacity in the social impact ecosystem. We wanted to better understand the needs of social sector organizations (SSO) in relation to their capacity, interests and experience with innovation and, along the way, assess how these needs had been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Our team collected input through a survey from 180 social service organizations across Canada and analyzed responses for trends, themes, and sentiments. Mitacs

Abstract Background frailty imparts a higher risk for hospitalisation, mortality and morbidity due to COVID-19 infection, but the broader impacts of the pandemic and associated public health measures on community-living people with frailty are less known. Methods we used cross-sectional data from 23,974 Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging participants who completed a COVID-19 interview (Sept–Dec 2020). Participants were included regardless of whether they had COVID-19 or not. They were asked about health, resource, relationship and health care access impacts experienced during the pandemic. Unadjusted and adjusted prevalence of impacts was estimated by frailty index quartile. We further examined if the relationship with frailty was modified by sex, age or household income. Results community-living adults (50–90 years) with greater pre-pandemic frailty reported more negative impacts during the first year of the pandemic. The frailty gradient was not explained by socio-demographic or health behaviour factors. The largest absolute difference in adjusted prevalence between the most and least frail quartiles was 15.1% (challenges accessing healthcare), 13.3% (being ill) and 7.4% (increased verbal/physical conflict). The association between frailty and healthcare access differed by age where the youngest age group tended to experience the most challenges, especially for those categorised as most frail. Conclusion although frailty has been endorsed as a tool to inform estimates of COVID-19 risk, our data suggest it may have a broader role in primary care and public health by identifying people who may benefit from interventions to reduce health and social impacts of COVID-19 and future pandemics.

For decades, farming has been recognized as a highly stressful occupation globally. In 2016, a national survey investigating mental health outcomes among farmers in Canada found increased levels of mental distress among this population compared to the general public. Farmers are known to face a unique host of occupational stressors, and the COVID-19 pandemic introduced additional challenges for farmers in Canada. Hence, the second wave of the national, online, cross-sectional survey of mental health outcomes among farmers in Canada was conducted early 2021. The survey results showed increased levels of anxiety, depression, perceived stress, emotional exhaustion, and cynicism among farmers compared to the Canadian public, particularly among farming women. This justified action towards identifying opportunities to reduce stress and increase well-being in this population. A mixed-methods investigation provided a comprehensive understanding of chronic and episodic farming stressors in Canada and identified promising areas for stress-reduction and well-being promotion efforts. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Low-cost diagnostic tools for point-of-care immunoassays, such as the paper-based enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA), have become increasingly important, especially so in the recent COVID-19 pandemic. ELISA is the gold-standard antibody/antigen sensing method. This paper reports an easy-to-fabricate nitrocellulose (NC) paper plate, coupled with a desktop scanner for ELISA, which provides a higher protein immobilization efficiency than the conventional cellulose paper-based ELISA platforms. The experiments were performed using spiked samples for the direct ELISA of rabbit IgG with a limit of detection (LOD) of 1.016 μg/mL, in a measurement range of 10 ng/mL to 1 mg/mL, and for the sandwich ELISA of sperm protein (SP-10) with an LOD of 88.8 ng/mL, in a measurement range of 1 ng/mL to 100 μg/mL. The described fabrication method, based on laser-cutting, is a highly flexible one-step laser micromachining process, which enables the rapid production of low-cost NC paper-based multi-well plates with different sizes for the ELISA measurements.

Cloud-based Big Data Analytics (CBDA) is an emerging application of data analytics, and its successful adoption in the higher education sector leads to valuable outcomes that improve teaching, learning, research and policy-making. Yet, accepting and using CBDA as a promising innovation for informed decision-making in this sector is falling behind. Like any innovation, CBDA’s full capabilities can be reached only once the factors that facilitate or hinder its adoption are identified. This research proposes a CBDA adoption framework, based on a thorough literature review of cloud computing adoption by organizations. All technical and non-technical factors that affect the adoption of cloud technologies have been identified and classified according to the T.O.E. theoretical framework, which has been found to be the most suitable framework for this research. The context of Saudi Arabian universities has been chosen to empirically test and validate the proposed model, while solving a practical problem associated with the government’s efforts to shift the higher education sector to the cloud service paradigm. The government aims to cut costs and improve education policy, which has become more demanding during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The results from this study indicate that top management support, a non-technical factor, is the main driver for CBDA adoption among Saudi universities, and that relative advantage is not the main predictor of CBDA adoption, which is contradictory to much of the literature. As a result of these investigations, suggestions were identified for future research, and recommendations were laid out to support decision makers toward successful CBDA adoption. Ministry of Education, KSA

A Review of:Glusker, A., Emmelhainz, C., Estrada, N., & Dyess, B. (2022). “Viewed as equals”: The impacts of library organizational cultures and management on library staff morale. Journal of Library Administration, 62(2), 153–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2022.2026119 Objective – To explore what library organizational factors influence library staff morale. Design – Semi-structured interview, grounded theory. Setting – Academic libraries across the United States during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Subjects – 34 academic library staff, defined by the authors as employees whose positions do not require an MLIS degree and do not include the title “librarian”, from 23 private and public colleges and universities across 16 states, mostly representative of the West and Midwest regions. Methods – In 2020, the authors emailed a call for study participants to library listservs and state library associations across the US, selected a convenience sample of 34 library staff from academic institutions, and conducted structured interviews by phone or by Google Meet over the course of May through June 2020. The authors note that the sample over-represents public and larger institutions in the West and Midwest regions. A student worker transcribed the audio recordings and de-identified transcripts underwent iterative, thematic coding in MAXQDA, a qualitative data analysis tool. The authors used a grounded theory approach to conduct open coding, then identified relationships between themes, and elaborated upon each theme based on its relationship to a theoretical model of morale impact avenues in library organizational structures, which was developed by one of the authors. Main Results –The authors uncovered that most study participants (n = 21) reported having high levels of morale, a surprise to the research team who expected that participants with lower levels of morale would participate in the study. Most participants (n = 27) worked in public and larger institutions, and the majority were female (n = 24), though only 5 were Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). Participants mostly had MLIS degrees or other advanced degrees. The results of the study expanded beyond the original research questions to comprise a broader set of factors that impact morale levels including relationships with colleagues and direct managers, opportunities for advancement, respect, work autonomy, and funding. Respondents emphasized that staff morale was significantly impacted by their relationship with direct managers, noting that micromanagement, defensiveness, and lack of accommodations contributed to lower levels of morale and a sense of disconnection. Managers who were supportive, advocated for staff needs, and were good listeners improved morale. Relationships between staff and their librarian colleagues also impacted morale, with the librarian–staff divide and treatment of staff by librarians being major contributors to influencing morale. Additionally, staff felt that having or lacking respect from librarians and administration and having autonomy and flexibility in their work made a big impact on morale. Having opportunities to meaningfully engage, to advance in the workplace, to receive professional development funding, to participate in decision-making processes, and to feel valued by the institution contributed to higher levels of staff morale. Conclusion – Library staff morale is impacted mostly by staff members’ sense of connection, respect, and value within the institution and among their librarian colleagues, direct managers, and library administration. Having pathways for advancement and professional development, meaningful opportunities to contribute to institutional decision-making, and autonomy over their professional and personal lives contributed to a higher sense of staff morale. The authors highlight several practical recommendations for improving staff morale including fostering a respectful environment, advocating for more flexible and better work environments, and providing opportunities for professional development and growth.

Afin de connaître les expériences des bibliothécaires travaillant pendant la COVID-19, nous avons mené des entrevues semi-dirigées auprès de bibliothécaires universitaires à travers le Canada sur des sujets tels la charge de travail, la collégialité et la satisfaction générale à l’égard de leurs conditions de travail pendant la pandémie. Des thèmes ont émergé concernant la sécurité d’emploi, les changements de la charge de travail (tant au niveau des heures travaillées et le type de travail effectué), le travail à distance, les relations avec des collègues et des administrateurs (y compris la vitesse perçue de la réponse institutionnelle face à la pandémie et l’état des communications provenant de l’administration et avec celle-ci), et l’espoir pour l’avenir. Cet article porte sur les éléments sémantiques du travail des bibliothécaires pendant la COVID-19 découverts lors de l’analyse thématique, incluant une discussion approfondie sur la façon dont la charge de travail des bibliothécaires universitaires a changé; un deuxième article portera sur les thèmes latents sur la nature du care au sein du travail en bibliothèque. Cette étude relie des situations individuelles isolées pour offrir un portrait général de ce à quoi ressemblait notre travail et de ce que nous ressentions face à celui-ci durant la pandémie de la COVID-19. Pour les administrateurs des bibliothèques, nous identifions des moyens par lesquels le soutien institutionnel a aidé ou a nui au travail des bibliothécaires. To learn about the experiences of librarians working through COVID-19, we conducted semi-structured interviews with academic librarians from across Canada on issues such as workload, collegiality, and overall satisfaction with their working conditions during the pandemic. Themes emerged around job security, workload changes (both in terms of hours worked and the type of work being done), working from home, relationships with colleagues and administrators (including the perceived speed of the institution’s pandemic response and the state of communication from or with administration), and hopes for the future. This article focuses on the semantic elements of librarian work during COVID-19 uncovered during thematic analysis, including an in-depth discussion of how academic librarians’ workload changed; a second planned article will focus on latent themes on the caring nature of library work. This study connects isolated individual situations with the overall picture of what librarians’ work looked and felt like during the COVID-19 pandemic. For library administrators, we identify the ways in which institutional support helped or hindered librarians in doing their work.