Women's Health Interrupted

In this episode, Dr. Siwan Anderson talks about how women's socio-economic status strongly correlates with their health outcomes, especially Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Dr. Anderson discusses some interesting findings in her research on how women are less likely to suffer abuse if they have access to a share of the household. Her current research looks at the women's relationships with power in the household and how religious and cultural norms come into play in this context. Links to resources mentioned in this episode/further reading material:"Intimate Partner Violence and Female Property Rights"  Nature Human Behaviour, 2021, 5: 1021-1026. “Missing Unmarried Women” (with Debraj Ray)  Journal of the European Economic Association, 2019, 17(5): 1585-1616. “Unbundling Female Empowerment”“How Economics can Contribute to Evolutionary Perspectives on the Family” (with Chris Bidner)“Property Rights over Marital Transfers”(with Chris Bidner) Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2015, 130(3): 1421-1484.Guest bio:Dr. Siwan Anderson is a professor in the Vancouver School of Economics at the University of British Columbia. Her research area is applied development economics and much of her work centers on women in developing countries. She has worked on determinants of female autonomy, missing women, and marriage markets in various contexts. Dr. Anderson is a Research Fellow at the Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (BREAD) and the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), and a Faculty Associate at the Center for Effective Global Action (CEGA) at the University of California, Berkeley. She is also a member of the Institutions, Organizations, and Growth research group of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research. Dr. Anderson is the first woman to receive the John Rae Prize, awarded by the Canadian Economic Association.(C) UBC Medicine Learning Network  All Rights Reserved

In the fourth episode of our mini series, we talk to Dr. Kiffer Card about social and behavioural determinants of health and how healthcare researchers can improve the study of these determinants. Dr. Card discusses the historical failures of governments and researchers to provide adequate care for marginalized communities and how his work aims to begin filling those gaps.  Links to resources mentioned in this episode/further reading material:What public health interventions do people in Canada prefer to fund? A discrete choice experimentDBSS S2E10: Stay Social, Stay Healthy - Kiffer CardThe Canadian Social Connection Survey Results WebinarGuest bios:Dr. Kiffer Card is the Scientific Director of the Institute for Social Connection and a Professor with the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University. His research focuses on socio-ecological responses to complex co-occurring health inequities with an emphasis on public health crises driven by social and behavioural determinants. Twitter: @kiffercard, https://twitter.com/kiffercard 

In this episode of our mini-series, we talk to Dr. Elif Sari about how the notion of “becoming sick” is related to people's migration experiences, especially those who are part of the 2S/LGBTQIA+ community. Dr. Sari discusses how this notion is rooted in the idea of harsh working environments and discriminatory practices of healthcare. She also addressed how both of these factors contribute to the emotional and physical wellbeing of these people. Guest bio:Dr. Elif Sari is a queer feminist anthropologist, a new faculty member in the UBC Department of Anthropology, and an uninvited immigrant settler on the unceded Coast Salish territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) First Nation. She completed her Ph.D. (2021) in anthropology at Cornell University with a concentration in feminist, gender, and sexuality studies. After graduate school, Dr. Sari spent one year at the University of Toronto, where she had a chance to work in the Queer and Trans Research Lab as the Martha LA McCain postdoctoral fellow. Currently, she is working on her first book manuscript, which is an engaged ethnography of queer and trans asylum from the Middle East to North America. She is also excited to start two new research projects, one focusing on private refugee sponsorship in Canada and one exploring the connections between migration, sexuality, and art (particularly drag).Links to resources mentioned in this episode/further reading material:Additional resources on asylum in and through Turkey: Amnesty International. 2016. “No Safe Refuge: Asylum-Seekers and Refugees Denied Effective Protection in Turkey.” https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/EUR4438252016ENGLISH.pdfBiehl, Kristen. 2015. “Governing through Uncertainty: Experiences of Being a Refugee in Turkey as a Country for Temporary Asylum.” Social Analysis 59 (1): 55–75.On LGBTQ asylum in Turkey:Durmaz, Nursel, Hakan Topateş, and Aslıcan Kalfa Topateş. 2017. “Working Life Experiences of Iranian LGBTI Migrant Workers in Denizli Province in Terms of Occupational Health and Safety.” Mesleki Sağlık ve Güvenlik Dergisi (The Journal of Occupational Health and Safety) 17(64): 37-43. HYD and ORAM. 2009. “Unsafe Haven: The Security Challenges Facing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Turkey.”https://hyd.org.tr/attachments/article/166/unsafe_haven_2011.pdfKAOS GL. 2016. “Waiting to be ‘Safe and Sound': Turkey as LGBTI Refugees' Way Station.” https://kaosgldernegi.org/images/library/2016multeci-raporu2016.pdf.Sarı, Elif. 2020. “Unsafe Present, Uncertain Future: LGBTI Asylum in Turkey.” In Queer and Trans Migrations: Dynamics of Illegalization, Detention, and Deportation. Eithne Luibhéid and Karma Chávez, eds. Pp. 90-105. University of Illinois Press.Please rate, review, and subscribe to our podcast on all platforms. Check out other UBC Medicine Learning Network podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.(C) 2010-2022 UBC Medicine Learning Network

In the second episode of our mini series, we talk to Dr. Veena Sriram about the role of power structures, such as gender, in global healthcare systems and policies. She highlights the importance of interdisciplinary study between public health and social sciences to better critically analyze healthcare systems.Resources Discussed:Veena's papers that questions were based on: Introduction to “Recontextualizing Physician Associations: Revisiting Context, Scope, Methodology”Heroes on Strike: Trends in Global Health Worker Protests During COVID-1910 best resources on power in health policy and systems in low- and middle-income countriesResource Veena gave for contextDELIVERED BY WOMEN, LED BY MEN:A GENDER AND EQUITY ANALYSIS OF THE GLOBAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL WORKFORCEhttps://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/forefront.20200630.939347/Guest Biography:Dr. Veena Sriram is an Assistant Professor with a joint appointment in the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA) and the School of Population and Public Health (SPPH) at the University of British Columbia. Her research sits at the intersection of global health, social science and public policy, and her interests are in understanding power and politics in health policy processes in low- and middle-income countries. She draws upon theory and methodologies from the social sciences in conducting her research, and has a particular focus on qualitative approaches. Dr. Sriram has conducted extensive research at the national and state level in India, exploring a range of health policy and system questions, including medical specialization, health workforce policy development, the functioning of national health authorities and emergency care systems. She has also contributed to expanding the application of theory and concepts to study power in health policy and systems research.(c) 2022 UBC Medicine Learning Network

In the first episode of our mini-series, we talk to Dr. Ketty Anyeko about how economic barriers prevent many women from seeking justice and reparations in their lives. She discusses storytelling as a powerful tool for many women who have experienced sexual violence in Northern Uganda and the importance of listening to the community. Resources Discussed:Storytelling and Peacebuilding: Lessons from Northern Uganda‘The Cooling of Hearts': Community Truth-Telling in Northern UgandaChild tracing: locating the paternal homes of “children born of war”Improving Accountability for Conflict-Related Sexual Violence in Africa Important Organizations:Water Ki GenWomen's Advocacy NetworkGulu Women's Economic Development and Globalization (GWEDG)  Guest Biography: Dr. Ketty Anyeko is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the Research Network on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, University of British Columbia (UBC), and the School for International Studies, at Simon Fraser University. She holds a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Studies from UBC and an MA in Peace Studies from Notre Dame University (USA). Dr. Anyeko's research is centered on women's senses of justice and reparations after wartime sexual violence in Northern Uganda. With nearly two decades' experience in women, peace, and justice, and gender programme planning and implementation, Dr. Anyeko applies her expertise to her scholarly work around the lack of understanding of justice and reparations for the women she has worked with.

We're taking a field trip away from our regular Women's Health Interrupted content to bring you a special mini series!Hosted by Dr. Marina Adshade and Damara Featherstone, this mini-series aims to find out what every women's health researcher should know about socioeconomic status. Socioeconomic status is a combination of economic factors—like income, education and occupation—and social factors including gender, race, country of origin, and much more. By talking with experts in the arts and humanities, we will get to the bottom of this question, and show how important it is that we all work together, to improve women's health.Join us every second Wednesday of the month starting September 14th for 5 information packed episodes!More UBC Medicine Learning Network podcasts are available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and your favourite podcatcher. Just search "UBC Medicine Learning Network". Learn more about the UBC Women's Health Research Cluster at their website: https://womenshealthresearch.ubc.ca/Follow UBCMLN at @ubcmedvid on all social platforms. (C) 2022 UBC Medicine Learning Network

In this week's episode, we sit down with Dr. Emily Jacobs and Dr. Cailtin Taylor to discuss how oral contraceptives (OC) impact women's brain health. We break down the science behind oral contraceptives, discover gaps in research, and discuss the need for safer birth control options for women.Rate, review, and subscribe to our podcast on your favourite podcast platform. Don't forget to check out the family of podcasts on the UBC Medicine Learning Network.(C) 2022 UBC Medicine Learning Network

Please rate, review, subscribe, and share our podcast.In this week's episode, Rebecca sits down with researcher, Dr. Paula Gordon, and breast cancer survivor and Executive Director of Dense Breasts Canada, Jennie Dale, to break into the science behind breast cancer screening and the importance of early detection practices. We talk about why women with dense breasts are at higher risk for developing more severe forms of breast cancer and what can be done to keep them safe. Links to resources mentioned in this episode:Densebreastscanada.caMyBreastScreening.caDensebreast-info.orgYour comprehensive guide to breast screening in Canadahttps://mybreastscreening.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Guide-to-Screening-in-Canada.pdfFailing Canadian Women: The impacts of outdated and inconsistent breast screening practiceshttps://densebreastscanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Failing-Canadian-Women.pdfPetition linkhttps://chng.it/MCYFS7tR8z Biographies:Dr. Paula Gordon is a breast radiologist and professor at the University of British Columbia. She is also a tireless advocate for screening and ultrasound for women with dense breasts starting at age 40 -- options that are not available in most provinces. Dr. Gordon believes that too many women are denied mammograms at 40 because family doctors have not received accurate information. The work she has done in partnership with the organization Dense Breasts Canada (DBC) has been in service of getting accurate information into the hands of patients and their doctors so that women can have the best chance of catching and treating cancers early.  Jennie Dale is the Executive Director of Dense Breasts Canada (DBC). She lives in Ontario. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2014. Mammogram and tomosynthesis did not detect her cancer-it was detected by ultrasound. Inspired by the successful advocacy efforts of American organizations, "areyoudense.org" and "densebreast-info.org," Jennie co-founded DBC with Michelle DiTomaso in 2017 and has teamed up with breast cancer survivors nationwide to raise awareness of the risks of dense breasts. Together, over the past four years, they have successfully advocated for changes in policy in many Canadian provinces.(C) UBC Medicine Learning Network

Thank you for listening. Please subscribe, rate, and review our show on your podcast platform of choice. Content Warning: Mentions of suicide/self harmIf you are experiencing thoughts of self harm and need support contact someone here: Canada:https://www.crisisservicescanada.ca/en/Find your local crisis center: https://www.crisisservicescanada.ca/en/looking-for-local-resources-support/   If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please call 9-1-1In this episode, Rebecca sits down with Lan Randhawa (they/them) and Kate Wahl (she/her) to talk about all things endometriosis. Lan is a member of the Patient Research Advisory Board for the Endometriosis Pelvic Pain Lab at UBC. Kate is a graduate researcher focused on advancing sexual and reproductive health and has co-led a study on menstrual health and endometriosis education in schools. We dive into what can be done to address some of the gaps in the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis, despite its debilitating and widespread impacts.Links to resources mentioned in this episode:Endo Act: https://endoact.ca/Pelvic Pain Clinic at BC Women's: http://www.bcwomens.ca/our-services/gynecology/pelvic-pain-endometriosisPatient Research Advisory Board at BC Women's (if you can't find this then thats ok): https://yonglab.med.ubc.ca/endometriosis-patient-research-advisory-board/Endo Knows no Gendo (facebook group): https://m.facebook.com/groups/117791448846494https://endopain.endometriosis.orgBiography:Lan Randhawa is an Emergency Medical Call Taker and Dispatcher for BC Ambulance and a member of the Patient Research Advisory Board for the Endometriosis Pelvic Pain Laboratory at UBC. They are passionate about using their personal experience with Endometriosis, Adenomyosis and Pelvic Pain to further research and innovations in order to help others suffering from these diseases. Since April, they have been a part of ENDO Act Canada, where they are a part of the Advocacy and Communications team, helping them with their mission to drive policy action on Endometriosis in Canada. Since their partial hysterectomy in 2019, they have been able to enjoy living a relatively pain free life with their husband and two beautiful dogs while they anxiously await their adopted children to join their family.Kate Wahl is a graduate student researcher interested in new strategies for moving evidence into health policy and practice. She uses qualitative methods to develop and evaluate approaches for sharing research findings with stakeholders including the public, healthcare providers, and policy makers. Kate's focus is on advancing sexual and reproductive health, and she is currently investigating patient decision aids, education programs, and storytelling in this context. Recently, Kate has co-led a study of menstrual health and endometriosis education in schools and she is involved with endometriosis advocacy through the Pan-Canadian organization EndoAct.(C) UBC Medicine Learning Network

Please subscribe, rate, and review our podcast on your favourite streaming platform.In this week's episode, Rebecca and Sidney sit down to talk with Dr. Jade Boyd, of the BCCSU to discuss the gendered impacts of drug use and drug policy. They go over some of the ways in which researchers, harm reduction services, and state services could all better support women who use drugs. Dr. Boyd also highlights the intersectional nature of drug use stigma and the need to incorporate research into drug policy.Links to resources mentioned in this episode:British Columbia Centre on Substance Use:https://www.bccsu.caSister Space - Women-only overdose prevention site:https://atira.bc.ca/what-we-do/program/sisterspace/FIR Square - Harm reduction for pregnant women and women with newborns:http://www.bcwomens.ca/our-services/pregnancy-prenatal-care/pregnancy-drugs-alcoholBiography:Dr. Jade Boyd, PhD, is a Research Scientist with the BC Centre on Substance Use and Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. She draws upon qualitative, ethnographic and community-based methods to examine social, structural and environmental factors that impact people who use drugs, with particular emphasis on how gender—intersecting with race, class and sexuality, influences drug policy and practice. In her role with the BCCSU, Dr. Boyd collaborates with local and national peer-based, drug user-led groups, as well as leads a program of qualitative and community-based research activities investigating drivers of drug-related harms among women, including barriers to harm reduction and the criminalization of women who use drugs. (C) 2022 UBC Medicine Learning Network

In this episode, Rebecca sits down with Jaime Charlebois and Patricia Tomasi, co-Founders of the Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative, which advocates for the treatment of all individuals during preconception, pregnancy, and the postpartum periods. We get into the topic of perinatal mental health and how advocacy platforms can be used to inform policy and to improve perinatal mental health care. Links to resources mentioned in this episode:Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative (CPMHC): https://cpmhc.ca/You Are Not Alone: An anthology of perinatal mental health stories from conception to postpartumAmazon: https://www.amazon.ca/You-Are-Not-Alone-conception/dp/1989664083Indigo: https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/you-are-not-alone-an/9781989664087-item.htmlBiographies:Jaime Charlebois is the Perinatal Mood Disorder Coordinator at Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital and Regional Volunteer Coordinator for Postpartum Support International. She is also the Co-Founder & Research Director of the Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative, non-profit lobbying the federal government to create a perinatal mental health strategy. Ms. Charlebois holds a Master of Science in Nursing, a Perinatal Nursing Certification from the Canadian Nurses Association, and a Perinatal Mental Health certification from Postpartum Support International. Her work experience includes 16 years of clinical nursing, seven years in higher education, and seven years in clinical leadership positions. She collaborates at the local, provincial, and national levels with multiple organizations and committeesPatricia Tomasi is a mom of two who struggled to find help for perinatal mental illness. She is a former journalist, turned fierce advocate, who went from writing about the state of maternal mental health in Canada as a reporter for HuffPost Canada to lobbying the federal government for a national perinatal mental health strategy. She is the Co-founder and Communications Director for the Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative and the Founder of the cheeky Maternal Mental Health Matters Blog. She started the private Facebook Postpartum Depression & Anxiety Support Group in 2017 where thousands of women from around the world support each other 24/7. Prior to her advocacy work, Patricia spent a decade providing communications and media relations expertise for the Ontario government, and in addition to HuffPost Canada, she worked as a reporter for CTV and CBC News in Vancouver, Toronto, Timmins, and Thunder Bay.

Content Warning: discussions of partner violence and traumatic brain injury.In this episode, Sidney and Rebecca sit down with Karen Mason and Dr. Paul van Donkelaar, co-founders of SOAR, or Supporting Survivors of Abuse and Brain Injury through Research - a multi-disciplinary research collaboration between University of British Columbia Okanagan and Kelowna Women's Shelter. We talk about some of the many ways that intimate partner violence (IPV) can have long term impacts on women's health - in particular the effects of traumatic brain injury.Rate, review, and subscribe to the podcast on Itunes, Spotify, or where you find your podcasts. (C) 2022 UBC Medicine Learning Network 

In this episode, Sidney and Rebecca sit down with personal trainer, nutrition coach, and best-selling author, Amanda Thebe, to talk about all things menopause. We get into some of the major misconceptions and research gaps around menopause and perimenopause and how it impacts women's health. We also look at what resources are out there and outline some steps women can take to make this major transition as smooth as possible.

In this episode, Sidney speaks to Dr. Sherri Hayden, a clinical neuropsychologist and assistant professor at the University of British Columbia. Dr. Hayden speaks about the increased risk of neurological and mental health issues among women and the differences in the way that symptoms of these manifest in comparison with men, as well as the lack of clinical research reflecting these sex differences. Dr. Hayden also emphasizes how important it is for women to self-advocate when speaking to health care personnel, and for women in a caregiver position to look after their own mental health and wellbeing.

In this episode, Sidney and Rebecca sit down with gender, intersectionality, and health systems expert, Dr. Rosemary Morgan. We dig into how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted everything from women's physical and mental health to their professional lives. We also look at how the pandemic has fueled setbacks on gender equality initiatives within our health systems. Plus, Dr. Morgan breaks down what the science has to say about the pandemic's longer term health impacts, where we're still waiting for answers, and what we can do moving forward. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (C) 2010-2020 UBC Medicine Learning Network

Links to the resources mentioned in this episode:“The Research Divide” https://assets.bcwomensfoundation.org/2020/11/02162501/BCWHF-The-Research-Divide-2020.pdf“In Her Words: Women's Experience with the Healthcare System in BC” https://www.bcwomensfoundation.org/inherwords/ "Ms.Understood: Women's hearts are victims of a system that is ill-equipped to diagnose, treat and support them"https://www.heartandstroke.ca/-/media/pdf-files/canada/2018-heart-month/hs_2018-heart-report_en.ashx Biographies:Dr. Liisa Galea is a Professor in the Department of Psychology, Health Advisor to VPRI, member of the Centre for Brain Health, Director of the Graduate Program in Neuroscience, and Lead of the Women's Health Research Cluster at UBC. She is also a Scientific Advisor at Women's Health Research Institute at the University of British Columbia. Dr. Galea has her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Western Ontario and was a Postdoctoral fellow from The Rockefeller University.Dr. Galea's research investigates how sex hormones influence brain health and disease in both females and males. The main goal of her research is to improve brain health for women and men by examining the influence of sex and sex hormones.Dr. Victoria Gay is the Senior Director of strategy at BC Women's Health Foundation. Victoria has a PhD from University College London and 15 years' experience in research, strategy and innovation, across multiple sectors. Since joining the Foundation in 2018, Victoria has been instrumental in driving the BC Women's Health Foundation from a foundation that served BC Women's Hospital to a provincial foundation dedicated to improving women's health. She leads the Research, Innovation, Education + Awareness portfolios and associated strategic partnerships. She has also been heavily involved in the Foundation's advocacy efforts these past few years to encourage transformational investments in research, policy and practice.Additional thanks to Tallinn Splinter, Alex Lukey, Dr. Travis Hodges, Katherine Moore, and UBC Medicine Digital Solutions: Ed Tech's Stephen Gillis.Visit our website for more info: https://womenshealthresearch.ubc.ca/womens-health-interrupted/season-1 (C) 2010-2020 UBC Medicine Learning Network

Women's Health Interrupted explores women's health across four overarching and multidisciplinary themes: general health and wellness, brain health, socio-cultural determinants of health as well as politics, policy and advocacy. The podcast debuts Wed Aug 11th on the UBC Medicine Learning Network and will be available every second Wednesday of the month thereafter. Subscribe now! (C) 2021 UBC Medicine Learning Network