Advancing Women’s Health through Award-Winning Research
Whether they are conducting important research that helps women receive timely diagnoses, or uncovering why women face a higher risk of dementia, this year’s recipients of the Ontario Women’s Health Scholars Awards are making life-changing discoveries in women’s health and driving improved health services for women.
This year, ten exceptional Ontario university scholars have been awarded the Women’s Health Scholars Award for their ground-breaking research in women’s health. Each recipient, awarded up to $50,000, will further their research with a focus on enhancing the health and well-being of women across the province and beyond.
The community of women’s health scholars fostered by this Awards program will excel, according to internationally accepted standards of scientific excellence, in the creation of new knowledge about women’s health and its translation into improved health for women, more effective health services and products for women, and a strengthened heath care system for Ontario.
Below are this year’s recipients of the Ontario Women’s Health Scholars Awards.
With high rates of mental health complications during pregnancy and postpartum periods, there is a critical need for effective interventions. Dr. Hoda Seens’ research focuses on looking into the personal experiences of affected women, along with providing a holistic understanding of their challenges and support needs by studying the relationship between musculoskeletal issues and mental health disorders in these vulnerable populations.
Dr. Seens’ study investigates this by exploring optimal treatment approaches and examines the impact of these conditions on mental health outcomes such as depression and anxiety.
By integrating health data, clinical insights, and patient perspectives, she aims to develop early identification strategies and tailored interventions. Her work aims to enhance the quality of care for pregnant and postpartum women, improving their physical and mental well-being during this critical life stage.
Dr. Seens holds a medical degree, and a PhD in Health Promotion from Western University. Her research, which gained national recognition for addressing mental health during the pandemic, builds on her extensive background, including an MSc in Health Sciences and dual bachelors degree in Health Sciences and Business Administration from Ivey Business School.
The number of women participating in sports and returning to competition postpartum is on the rise. As there is minimal existing guidance regarding the management of female athletes postpartum, making it difficult for both athletes and clinicians to navigate a safe return to sport, Dr. Jenna Schulz’s research aims to develop clinical practice guidelines for the postpartum athlete.
This research will provide athletes and clinicians a framework for return to activity/sport (RTA/RTS) postpartum and other relevant topics like pelvic floor dysfunction and relative energy deficiency to prevent injury and potential long-term muscle and joint issues and other health consequences. It will also provide stakeholders such as health care practitioners, coaches, health policy and governing bodies crucial information to advocate for change surrounding female athlete injury prevention and safe RTS after multiple relevant health consequences. This fellowship has also opened new opportunities more broadly in female athlete health through injury prevention.
Dr. Schulz is a graduate of the MPT/PhD program at Western University, where her research focused on inflammation in knee osteoarthritis. She is currently working at Fowler-Kennedy Sport Medicine Clinic in London as a Postdoctoral Fellow and physiotherapist.
Sexual violence disproportionately impacts young women, affecting their access to crucial support systems. Gena Dufour, a PhD candidate in Applied Social Psychology at the University of Windsor, is investigating the way victims of gender-based violence interact with larger systems and institutions on a day-to-day basis, specifically post-secondary institutions.
Her research examines how inadequate institutional responses to sexual violence could worsen the harm to survivors. Dufour wants to understand how these institutional dynamics influence survivors’ help-seeking behaviours and recovery processes.
By focusing on university responses to campus sexual assault, Dufour’s dissertation looks into how the fear of institutional betrayal is a barrier to accessing essential campus services. She will be examining this type of fear and its impact on marginalized survivors. By developing a new questionnaire to assess fear of institutional betrayal and comparing it with existing tools, Dufour will be able to provide a reliable measure that captures the unique challenges faced by survivors in educational settings.
Her research examines the link between fear of institutional betrayal and health-related outcomes, such as the willingness of survivors to utilize campus health services. This study sheds light on critical barriers to healthcare accessibility for campus sexual violence survivors and aims to inform policy and practice improvements at universities.
Dufour holds an M.Sc. in Applied Forensic Psychology and her research is guided by a commitment to advancing social justice and enhancing institutional support for survivors of gender-based violence in Canadian institutions.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of the leading causes of death in Canada and it disproportionately affects women. Recent studies have shown a higher prevalence of COPD among females compared to males, yet conventional diagnostic methods often fail to detect the disease in women. Kalysta Makimoto, a doctoral candidate in Biomedical Physics at Toronto Metropolitan University, is addressing this critical health care challenge.
Makimoto’s innovative research focuses on developing sex-specific machine-learning models to improve COPD identification in female patients. Her study integrates 115 CT imaging features, demographic data, and questionnaire responses from the Canadian Cohort Obstructive Lung Disease (CanCOLD). These models can better classify COPD by considering sex-specific physiological and anatomical differences, such as lung size variations and disease distribution patterns observed in females with COPD.
By pioneering this approach, she will be working to discover unique sex-specific markers that could significantly improve diagnostic accuracy and early intervention for COPD among Canadian women. Makimoto’s research not only addresses the diagnostic gap between sexes but also highlights the potential of integrating CT imaging with advanced machine-learning techniques in clinical settings, especially where traditional spirometry methods may not be accessible.
Makimoto earned her Honours Bachelor of Science in Medical Physics from Toronto Metropolitan University. She is dedicated to advancing COPD research and improving health care outcomes through innovative biomedical strategies to meet the specific needs of diverse patient populations.
Societal norms often overlook the impact and challenges posed by the menstrual cycle for women in the workplace. Mikaila Ortynsky, a PhD student at the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, explores how workplaces can better accommodate menstrual health and improve the well-being of women in the workplace.
Ortynsky’s dissertation focuses on how women perceive and manage their menstrual cycles at work, navigating physical, emotional, and cognitive symptoms that sometimes clash with workplace expectations. Her research highlights the need for inclusive practices that support employees’ health and productivity. By examining barriers and stigma, Ortynsky aims to drive organizational change, exploring perceptions from various perspectives and evaluating interventions that promote supportive work cultures.
Ortynsky holds a Master of Science in Management (Organizational Behaviour) from Memorial University of Newfoundland and a Bachelor of Commerce (Human Resources) from the University of Saskatchewan. She has also presented her findings at international conferences and media outlets such as The Conversation. Her current research reflects a commitment to advancing women’s health in organizational contexts, advocating for inclusive policies that enhance workplace equity and well-being.
Intimate partner stalking (IPS) is a leading risk factor for domestic homicide with profound implications for women’s safety and well-being. Olivia Peters, a doctoral candidate in Sociology at the University of Guelph, focuses her research on IPS in Canada. Her work explores the experiences of women who have experienced IPS, looking at victimization patterns, help-seeking behaviours, and emerging safety strategies. Her work advocates for practical solutions that empower survivors and enhance institutional responses to IPS.
Through her doctoral research, Peters looks at how technology such as the use of personal devices and social media can lead to criminal harassment. She has also identified previously unaddressed factors in IPS victimization, including unique informal help-seeking experiences and emerging pathways for safety and support.
Peters holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) and a Master of Arts from the University of Manitoba. Her background includes extensive work in victim advocacy and community-based research on issues ranging from child abuse to sexual exploitation. Peters also serves as a consultant for true-crime media, contributing her expertise to a broader public understanding of criminal justice issues.
She is committed to enhancing social service and sociolegal responses through her research on IPS and to preventing IPS-related homicides and suicides. Her findings are expected to help contribute to global efforts in recognizing stalking as a pervasive threat and advocating for systemic changes that prioritize the safety and support of IPS survivors.
There are a number of diseases and conditions which manifest among women that take notoriously long to diagnose, such as endometriosis, cardiovascular disease, ADHD, fibromyalgia, and rheumatoid arthritis, among others. As a result, women are suffering from symptoms, losing confidence in healthcare providers and systems, and experiencing interruptions to their lives, relationships, and sense of self.
Kelly Gregory, a doctoral candidate at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health, focuses her research on the delay women face when seeking diagnoses for various health conditions. Using critical phenomenology and intersectionality theory, Gregory’s study focuses on the social and structural factors that cause delays in diagnoses in Ontario. Through interviews with both patients and health care providers, she is examining personal experiences with these delays to uncover how structural conditions, cultural norms, and institutional practices are shaping the diagnostic process for women.
This pioneering research will provide valuable insights and support for women facing extended diagnostic periods, and generate key insights to support strategies to improve health care equity and delivery. Gregory is pursuing a PhD in social and behavioural health sciences under Dr. Pia Kontos at the University of Toronto. She is dedicated to advancing women’s health through rigorous and critical qualitative research. Her broader field of study focuses on women’s experiences of the healthcare system, to address disparities in health care and enhance the quality of care for women.
Childfree women may face societal stigma, prejudices and discriminatory actions in personal, professional, and health care settings because of their decision not to have children. Erika Puiras, a doctoral student in Lakehead University’s Clinical Psychology program, is working to understand and explore the mental health impacts of this stigma through her dissertation research.
Puiras’ study focuses on exploring the experiences of childfree women and how societal biases affect their mental well-being. With a background in clinical psychology and a track record in women’s mental health research, she specifically looks at the phenomenon of self-stigma — how internalized societal beliefs can lead to adverse psychological outcomes. She also investigates how these experiences influence their trust in health care professionals and their likelihood to use health care services.
Two comprehensive online survey studies were conducted using rigorous methodology. The first study worked with 225 childfree women to capture the experiences they faced with stigma and determine how frequently self-stigma took place. In the second study, involving over 1,100 participants across North America,
Puiras looked at the broader impact of childfree stigma on mental health, well-being, and health care access. The ongoing data analysis from these studies will provide insights for better health care practices and policies.
Puiras completed her Honours Bachelor of Arts Specialization in Psychology and Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology at Lakehead University. Under the mentorship of Dr. Dwight Mazmanian, she studied clinical psychology and mental health research.
Enhancing the quality of life for lymphedema patients is at the heart of Nicholas Levinski’s research at the University of Waterloo. His work focuses on developing innovative technology to provide accurate and accessible limb volume measurements, crucial for effective management of this chronic condition.
Levinski’s research uses wearable textile sensors capable of real-time limb volume monitoring that goes beyond conventional methods like flexible tape and light scanning. These sensors provide patients with continuous, at-home monitoring capabilities enabling remote and accessible interventions, along with personalizing treatment plans and improved overall efficacy.
With advancements in materials and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, Levinski is working towards creating cost-effective, discreet devices that patients can seamlessly and easily use in their daily lives. This approach not only enhances physical health outcomes but also supports patients’ mental well-being by addressing limitations when using existing medical equipment.
Levinski graduated with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Nanotechnology Engineering from the University of Waterloo and is currently pursuing a Master of Applied Science in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering within the Microfluidics Laboratory at the University of Waterloo. He has extensive co-op experiences as a Hermetics Systems Development Engineer at Lumentum, an R&D Engineer at the University of Waterloo Microfluidics Laboratory, and in co-op engineering positions at AMD, contributing to the system and silicon design teams.
Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia, and over two-thirds of affected Canadians are women. Related to this, studies demonstrate that women are more vulnerable to cognitive decline and the accumulation of neurodegenerative pathology with age. Katie Vandeloo’s research is working to uncover why women face a higher risk of dementia, focusing on the impact of menopause and inflammation on brain and cognitive outcomes with age.
Menopause is associated with a steep decline in estrogen, a hormone known for its protective effects against cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease-related pathology in the brain. In combination with the loss of neuroprotection, reductions in estrogen during menopause are associated with an increase in inflammation. Notably, inflammation is a key contributor to Alzheimer’s disease development. Using advanced neuroimaging techniques, Katie will conduct real-time assessments to explore the impact of inflammation on brain structure and cognitive function in postmenopausal women. She will also investigate the impact of earlier versus later age at menopause onset on brain and cognitive outcomes. Ultimately, knowledge on early indicators of dementia risk gained through this research may contribute to the development of effective preventative and/or intervention strategies for dementia in women.
Vandeloo is completing her master’s degree in Clinical Psychology at the University of Toronto, with the long-term goal of becoming a neuropsychologist. In addition to her clinical studies, Vandeloo’s previous research internship at Harvard Medical School provided her with specialized skills in neuroimaging analysis. This unique skillset allows her to explore complex health disparities affecting Canadian women, on both clinical and neurobiological levels.
Additional Resources:
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