Nursing

UWindsor students’ experience in Tanzania inspires nursing research publication

A group of nursing students and faculty stand around a table of menstruation kits in Tanzania.University of Windsor nursing students and faculty sourced sustainable menstrual kits prepared for girls attending a leadership and health education program in Tanzania as part of a global health experiential learning initiative. (SUBMITTED BY RACHEL ELLIOTT/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

A group of University of Windsor nursing students have turned a transformative global experience into research, reflection and recognition.

Their manuscript, based on a three-week experiential learning trip to Tanzania last year, has been published in the Global Qualitative Nursing Research journal — marking a significant milestone for both the students and faculty involved.

From setback to success: Nursing student charts interdisciplinary path at UWindsor

Ali Mozafari stands in front of two emergency vehicles during training at CAF base in Windsor.Ali Mozafari during medical first responder training at a Canadian Armed Forces base in Windsor through St. John Ambulance, one of many experiences he pursued beyond the classroom to deepen his understanding of patient care and strengthen his path toward a career in healthcare. (SUBMITTED BY ALI MOZAFARI/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

Ali Mozafari’s path through the University of Windsor has been anything but linear.

A fourth-year nursing student with research experience spanning health sciences and engineering, his story is defined by resilience, curiosity and determination.

“Honestly, it’s been a chaotic journey,” he said. “But I’m proud of how I turned it around and everything I’ve been able to do since.”

Canada’s first cohort of RNs with prescribing authority graduates from UWindsor

Dr. Sherry Morrell pictured with RN Prescribing studentsProfessor Sherry Morrell, one of the faculty leaders behind the creation and development of UWindsor’s RN Prescribing program, leads nursing students through an experiential learning exercise. Canada’s first cohort of registered nurses with prescribing authority will graduate this spring. (MICHAEL WILKINS/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

As Canada continues to confront longer wait times and growing pressure across a strained health-care system, the University of Windsor is preparing to mark a national milestone that reflects both urgency and innovation in care delivery.

New national nursing text led by UWindsor dean champions Indigenous and equity content for first time

Dean Sheppard-LeMoine stands outside on campus holding the new textbook she co-editedDean Debbie Sheppard-LeMoine co-edited Giddens’s Concepts for Canadian Nursing Practice, a new national textbook featuring contributions from experts across the country, including several UWindsor nursing faculty. (RONAK DOOWD/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

At the University of Windsor Faculty of Nursing, classroom concepts have moved into print.

A new national publication featuring several faculty contributors is doing more than filling a gap in academic literature — it’s helping define how future nurses across Canada will learn, think and practise.

A daughter's grief, a nurse's reckoning: UWindsor researcher calls for system-level reform in cancer care

Natalie Giannotti pictured with her fatherDr. Natalie Giannotti, pictured with her father, says her work has taken on new meaning through her personal experience supporting him through his cancer journey. Her research examines gaps in the Canadian healthcare system and the need for reliable, patient-centred care. (SUBMITTED BY NATALIE GIANNOTTI/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

Dr. Natalie Giannotti’s research has always focused on improving patient safety and healthcare systems.

But it wasn’t until she found herself navigating the system as a daughter, supporting her father through his cancer diagnosis and treatment, that the gaps she had long studied became personal.

From pediatric patient to professor: Rebecca Balasa on nursing, research and why Windsor felt like home

Rebecca Balasa stands outside in a green spaceThe Faculty of Nursing welcomes Professor Rebecca Balasa to the University of Windsor. Her experience in nursing and public health, along with her research on child health equity, brings valuable insight to our community. (SUBMITTED BY REBECCA BALASA/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

For Dr. Rebecca Balasa, the path to nursing didn't start in a classroom.

Her own experiences as a pediatric patient introduced her to the role nurses play, not only in delivering treatment, but in providing comfort and connection.

“I was really inspired by my own healthcare team,” she said. “It was through my relationships with nurses and seeing everything they do that I decided to go into the profession.”

That sense of purpose continues to guide her as she joins the University of Windsor’s Faculty of Nursing.

UWindsor nursing professor leads cross-border study highlighting lung transplant care

Jane and her team of colleagues and students stand with their poster at the WESPARK conferenceJane Simanovski (left) and her team of colleagues and students stand with their research poster at the WE-SPARK conference in March, highlighting a cross-border study on caregivers supporting lung transplant patients. (SUBMITTED BY EDWARD CRUZ/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

It takes more than medical expertise to support a patient after a lung transplant.

As April marks Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Month, a new cross-border study examines an often-overlooked part of the transplant journey — the family members and friends who provide care after surgery.

UWindsor doctoral student shaping policy in correctional nursing

Corina Makore stands in a graduation cap and gown among other graduatesCorina Farai Makore, now a University of Windsor doctoral student researching correctional healthcare policy, is pictured at her 2015 MPH graduation from the University of North Texas Health Science Center. (SUBMITTED BY CORINA FARAI MAKORE/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

When Corina Farai Makore began her PhD at the University of Windsor, she wasn’t just pursuing a long-held personal goal, she was equipping herself to change a system.

As healthcare manager at the South West Detention Centre in Windsor, Makore leads 50 nurses and oversees a 10-bed infirmary providing 24/7 care for incarcerated patients.

At the same time, she is a scholar using her doctoral research to guide policy reform and strengthen correctional nursing in Ontario.

Campus swab drive centres on search for stem cell match for Daphne

photo of Daphne smilingThis “Get Swabbed!” stem cell registration drive is centred on Daphne, a Windsor-area mother and grandmother diagnosed with a rare blood cancer. A stem cell transplant is her only potential cure — and you could be the match she’s waiting for. (SUBMITTED BY KATELYN BEDARD BONE MARROW ASSOCIATION/University of Windsor)

By Victor Romao

Fill out a form and have your cheek swabbed.  It’s only eight minutes of your time that could lead to saving a life.  Daphne’s life.

The Windsor-area grandmother has been diagnosed with a rare blood cancer, and doctors say a stem cell transplant is her only potential cure.  

More than 45 million potential donors on a worldwide stem cell registry have already been searched, but no suitable match has been found.

Nursing research at UWindsor drives conversation on improving healthcare access for rural seniors

Dr. Noeman Mirza stands in front of a living wall in the faculty of nursingDr. Noeman Mirza led the ROAR study, advancing research focused on improving healthcare access for rural seniors. (CHERRY THERESANATHAN/University of Windsor)

By Sara Meikle

As winter loosens its grip and the first signs of spring emerge, many Canadians are welcoming the change.

But for vulnerable older adults, particularly those living in rural communities, the most pressing challenge exposed by the colder months does not disappear with the thaw.

For Dr. Noeman Mirza of the University of Windsor’s Faculty of Nursing, winter is more than a backdrop of snow and ice — it is a magnifier. The deeper issue is transportation.