Community perspectives on COVID-19 outbreak and public health: Inuit positive protective pathways and lessons for Indigenous public health theory.

OBJECTIVES: Indigenous public health theory and the voices of Canadian Indigenous communities remain under-represented in the literature despite the Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action, and the perspectives of Inuit are further under-represented in this literature. The goal of this paper is to explore the perspectives of Iqalungmiut (people of Iqaluit), frontline staff, and decision-makers on the management of the COVID-19 outbreak in Iqaluit in April to June 2021 and to identify lessons learned and contributions to public health policy and practice specific to Inuit populations in Canada. METHODS: This study used the Piliriqatigiinniq Community Health Research Model which was developed by Nunavummiut to guide community-based health and well-being research. Interviews were conducted with 44 individuals: 22 community members and shelter users; 17 frontline workers; and 5 decision-makers representing municipal and territorial government. Participants were asked about their experiences during the outbreak, sources of information, and strengths and challenges during outbreak management. RESULTS: Challenges included overcrowding, physical disconnection from family members, and mental health and trauma. Community-identified strengths included strong interagency cooperation, food hamper and COVID-19 care kit deliveries, and travel restrictions. Several Inuit positive health-protective pathways were identified including Ilaginniq; Silativut; Inuuqatigiittiarniq; Piliriqatigiinniq; Ikajurniq; and Pijitsirniq. CONCLUSION: Outbreaks of infectious illness are not new to Nunavut communities and Inuit protective pathways have and continue to be critical avenues to adapt to and mitigate such challenges. This exploratory study provides clear direction for Inuit public health policy and practice in Canada, while contributing to the body of literature on Indigenous public health theory.

RéSUMé: OBJECTIFS: La théorie de la santé publique autochtone et les voix des communautés autochtones canadiennes sont encore sous-représentées dans la littérature scientifique malgré les Appels à l'action de la Commission de vérité et réconciliation du Canada; les points de vue des Inuits sont encore moins représentés dans cette littérature. Notre article vise à explorer les points de vue des Iqalungmiut (les habitantes et les habitants d'Iqaluit), des personnels de première ligne et des décideurs et décideuses au sujet de la gestion de l'éclosion de COVID-19 à Iqaluit entre avril et juin 2021, ainsi qu'à recenser les leçons apprises et les contributions aux politiques et aux pratiques de santé publique propres aux populations inuites du Canada. MéTHODE: L'étude a fait appel au modèle de recherche en santé communautaire Piliriqatigiinniq, élaboré par des Nunavummiut pour orienter la recherche sur la santé et le bien-être des communautés. Des entretiens ont été menés auprès de 44 personnes : 22 résidentes et résidents et utilisateurs et utilisatrices de refuges; 17 intervenantes et intervenants de première ligne; et 5 décideurs et décideuses représentant l'administration municipale et le gouvernement territorial. Ces personnes ont été interrogées au sujet de leurs expériences pendant l'éclosion, de leurs sources d'informations et de leurs forces et leurs limites durant la gestion de l'éclosion. RéSULTATS: Les difficultés rencontrées ont été l'entassement, la séparation physique des autres membres de la famille, les problèmes de santé mentale et les traumatismes. Les forces citées par la communauté ont été la solidité de la coopération interservices, les livraisons de paniers alimentaires et de trousses de soins de la COVID-19, et les restrictions des déplacements. Plusieurs voies inuites de protection de la santé ont été recensées : Ilaginniq; Silativut; Inuuqatigiittiarniq; Piliriqatigiinniq; Ikajurniq et Pijitsirniq. CONCLUSION: Les éclosions de maladies infectieuses n'ont rien de nouveau pour les communautés du Nunavut, et les voies protectrices inuites continuent d'être des moyens essentiels pour ces communautés d'aplanir les difficultés de la sorte et de s'y adapter. Notre étude préliminaire fournit une orientation claire pour les politiques et les pratiques de santé publique inuites au Canada tout en contribuant au corpus de recherche sur la théorie de la santé publique autochtone.

A cross-sectional study exploring community perspectives on the impacts of COVID-19 in Nunavut and recommendations for a Holistic Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit approach to emergency response.

The goal of this study was to examine and address critical knowledge gaps and develop an understanding of both the positive and negative societal outcomes resulting from the public health measures associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in Nunavut and the interventions being undertaken to promote positive well-being. Data collection for this study included narrative, in-person interviews in Iqaluit, Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake, and Cambridge Bay between September 2022 and January 2023. A total of 70 participants were interviewed for this study. Community highlighted challenges, such as crowding and food insecurity, and concern for the collective wellbeing of the community. Strengths included financials supports, food sharing, and maintaining community connections over a distance. Recommendations included a focus on holistic health such as 1) public education and awareness about communicable disease, 2) financial supports, 3) housing, 4) access to healthcare, 5) focus on Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, 6) mental-health and addiction supports, and 7) community spaces. Community members described both strengths and challenges they believe impacted their experiences and service delivery as well as recommendations for the future.

Screen position effects on task performance in a delayed match to sample task.

Studies of working memory have used immediate and delayed recall of lists of items. Serial position effects are the phenomena where items at the beginning and end of a studied list are recalled differentially from items in the middle of the list. In matching versions of the task, study items may be presented serially or simultaneously in a grid. After a delay a single probe item is presented for which the participant determines whether or not it was in the study set. The effects of the position of an item when studied on a screen are currently not well understood and are the focus of the current work. Findings from a delayed match to sample task in 49 healthy young adults with 1 to 9 items presented in a 3 by 3 grid, demonstrate that the column of the studied items affect response time and accuracy. The effects of position on accuracy also significantly interact with task demands. The importance of screen position effects is demonstrated with simulations using the mean accuracies split by task demands and screen locations. Simulations demonstrate the possible range of accuracies based on screen effects when the number of trials presented to an individual is less than 20 for each task demand. This has important implications when a small number of trials are administered using randomly generated stimuli which is often the case in neuroimaging studies where tasks are delivered under constrained time limits.