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Global Futures: Canada needs a health-care transformation
This article is part of the Global Futures series.
Dr. Catherine Burns is the Chair in Human Factors in Health Care Systems and leads the University of Waterloo’s health initiatives. She is an expert in human-centred approaches to the design and implementation of advanced health-care technologies.
Burns also heads Waterloo's Transformative Health Technologies initiative, a collaboration spanning all faculties and the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. We asked her how we can redesign our health systems to create better patient outcomes and more equitable access to care.
Read Burns’ perspective on how technology can help solve the challenges of our health-care crisis and transform the future of care
Advancement celebrates Black History Month
A message from the Office of Advancement.
The Office of Advancement is proud to celebrate the contributions and achievements of Black community members during Black History Month and throughout the year.
We invite you to learn about the important work of Black alumni, donors and partners. From building supportive networks for students and alumni, to launching ventures that improve lives, Black community members are driving meaningful change at our University and around the world.
Discover more on our Black History Month page.
Staff association to hold tribute event for Michael Herz
A message from the University of Waterloo Staff Association (UWSA).
To celebrate the life and achievements of Michael Herz, a long-standing member of the UWSA executive, please join the UWSA Presidents, Staff and the Board in a special tribute event to remember and celebrate Mike’s dedicated service to the UWSA.
The event will open with remarks from Agata Antkiewicz, UWSA Chair, but—in keeping with Mike’s preference to always focus on the individual—we would like to keep the tribute fairly informal. If you have a story about Mike that you would like to share, you are most welcome to present it yourself during the event or to draft something ahead of time and have it read out to the attendees. In either case, please contact Agata Antkiewicz (ajantkiewicz@uwaterloo.ca) to note your willingness to participate in the storytelling.
The special tribute will take place on February 16 from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (hybrid format). In order to best accommodate those who would like to participate in the event, we ask that you please register no later than 4:00 p.m. on February 8. The on-campus location for the tribute as well as an online meeting link for those attending remotely will be announced after the registration deadline.
CEE launches Insights for Impact newsletter
A message from Co-operative and Experiential Education (CEE).
Co-operative and Experiential Education (CEE) has launched the new Insights for Impact newsletter. An evolution of the Work-Learn Institute’s Insights newsletter, the bi-monthly newsletter offers valuable research-based best practices and tips to help employers engage with emerging talent.
Read the first edition of the newsletter which is focused on sustainability through the lens of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Be sure to subscribe to receive future emails.
New mathematical model shows how the body regulates potassium
Having levels of potassium that are too high or too low can be fatal. A new mathematical model sheds light on the often mysterious ways the body regulates this important electrolyte.
Potassium, a common mineral abundant in food like bananas and leafy greens, is essential to normal cellular function. It helps the cardiac muscle work correctly and aids in the transmission of electrical signals within cells.
Using existing biological data, researchers at the University of Waterloo built a mathematical model that simulates how an average person’s body regulates potassium, both in times of potassium depletion and during potassium intake. Because so many foods contain abundant potassium, our bodies constantly store, deploy, and dispose of potassium to maintain healthy levels – a process known as maintaining potassium homeostasis. Understanding potassium homeostasis is essential in helping diagnose the source of the problem when something goes wrong – for example, when kidney disease or medication leads to dysregulation.
“Too much potassium in the body, or hyperkalemia, can be just as dangerous as hypokalemia, or too little,” said Melissa M. Stadt, a PhD student in applied mathematics and the lead author of the study. “Dysregulation of potassium can lead to dangerous and potentially fatal consequences.”
The model could be used for a virtual patient trial, allowing researchers to generate dozens of patients and then predict which ones would have hyper- or hypokalemia based on different controls.
“A lot of our models are pieces of a bigger picture,” said Anita Layton, professor of applied mathematics and Canada 150 Research Chair in mathematical biology and medicine. “This model is one new and exciting piece in helping us understand how our incredibly complex internal systems work.”
The model is especially exciting because it allows scientists to test something called the muscle-kidney cross-talk signal hypothesis. Scientists have hypothesized that skeletal muscles, which are responsible for most of the potassium storage in the body, can directly signal to the kidneys that it’s time to excrete excess when too much potassium is stored, and vice versa. When the math researchers tested the hypothesis in their model, it more accurately reflected existing biological data regarding potassium homeostasis, suggesting that muscle-kidney cross talk might be an essential piece in the puzzle of potassium regulation.
The study was published in PLOS Computational Biology.
Mirrorless Monday campaign on campus today; other notes
The on-campus "Mirrorless Monday" body positivity campaign resumes this year in washrooms across the University campus. The campaign is a partnership between Campus Wellness and Plant Operations.
"Mirrorless Monday is a movement to encourage body positivity through various messages on mirrors and a campaign that seeks to remind everyone that their self-worth is not tied to a reflection in a mirror," says a message from Campus Wellness.
For the one-day campaign today, a portion of washroom mirrors in various locations on campus will be covered with positive messages and supportive resources including Counselling Services, MATES, Good2Talk, and Nedic). The messages will be placed on the mirrors at the beginning of the day and removed by 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 7.
The campaign is the result of collaboration between Plant Operations, the Campus Wellness Health promotion team, and peer health education student volunteers.
For more information or to partner on this campaign, please contact Sandra Gibson at sandra.gibson@uwaterloo.ca.
GreenHouse at United College is hosting a two-part seminar series this month entitled "Finding Funding for your Social Impact Idea."
"Hosted in two parts, this series will help you identify potential sources of funding, understand what has worked for others, and learn to write effective grant applications," says a note from United College.
Part One takes place on February 9 and Part Two takes place on February 16.
"You may join either the lunch sessions (12 noon to 1:30 p.m.) or the dinner sessions (5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.), but you must attend both part 1 and part 2," organizers say.
The event happens at UTD 164 at United College or online via Zoom. Pizza will be provided (presumably for the in-person portion of the event).
The Registrar's Office has announced that the final examination schedule for the winter 2023 term has been posted the Registrar's Office website.
Exam locations will be published by February 17, 2023.