QSpace: Queen's Scholarship & Digital Collections
QSpace is an open access repository for scholarship and research produced at Queen's University. QSpace offers faculty, students, staff, and researchers a free and secure home to preserve and present their scholarship.
Recent Submissions
Item Revisiting Equalization Again: RTS vs. Macro Approaches(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 2002)Equalization is a very common policy instrument around the world. Virtually all federations have formal equalization systems, with the notable exception of the USA. Many unitary states with multi-level governments have sophisticated equalization systems, such as Japan, the Scandinavian countries, and South Africa. As well, forms of equalization exist between provinces and their local governments. The design of equalization systems differs according to circumstances. Many are based on some variant of a needs-based formula, especially in countries where sub-national governments have relatively limited revenue-raising ability and rely on the system of equalizing transfers to finance their expenditures. The Canadian case is relatively unique in basing equalization on revenue-raising capacity alone. Nonetheless, the principles on which the needs-based approaches are calculated parallels the logic of the representative tax system (RTS) approach. That is, entitlements are calculated according to the amount of money that would be required to finance the representative set of public services at a common set of costs, where the services are those actually provided by the provinces.Item The Case for Switching to a Macro Formula(Queen's University Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, 2002)Today, the provinces' entitlements to equalization payments are determined in accordance with what is called "the representative tax system". Over the years, a number of critics have proposed a switch to what is called "the macro formula". The proposal is now under consideration by the Ministry of Finance. My concern here is not with the pros and cons of the equalization program per se, but with the pros and cons of the two formulas for determining each province's entitlement. There are problems with both formulas, but I believe that the macro formula is preferable on balance.Item Quarantine and Mental Health During COVID-19: Exploring the Impact on Depressive Symptoms and Suicidal Ideation Among Adults in Canada(2024-10-09)Background: The COVID-19 pandemic led to significant public health measures, including mandatory quarantine, which had potential mental health implications. This thesis investigated the association between mandatory quarantine and mental health outcomes, specifically depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation, among adults in Canada. Objectives: The primary objective was to assess whether mandatory quarantine due to close contact with a COVID-19 case was associated with increased odds of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Secondary objectives included identifying key demographic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial factors that may act as effect modifiers or confounders to these associations. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from a national survey by Mental Health Research Canada. The study sample included 3012 Canadian adults who participated in the sixth poll conducted in April 2021. Logistic regression models were used to examine the associations between quarantine and the mental health outcomes, adjusting for potential confounders such as age, prior mood disorders, and resilience. Results: Quarantine was not significantly associated with depressive symptoms after adjusting for confounders (AOR = 1.25, 95% CI: 0.90 to 1.73). Similarly, no significant association was found between quarantine and suicidal ideation (AOR = 1.07, 95% CI: 0.69 to 1.65). However, strong associations were observed for other factors. Having a history of a prior mood disorder was significantly associated with both depressive symptoms (AOR = 5.02, 95% CI: 4.07 to 6.20) and suicidal ideation (AOR = 5.97, 95% CI: 4.05 to 7.92). Older age was consistently protective against both outcomes, with the 65+ age group showing the lowest odds of depressive symptoms (AOR = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.19 to 0.39) and suicidal ideation (AOR = 0.25, 95% CI: 0.14 to 0.42). Conclusions: While quarantine itself was not a significant predictor of depressive symptoms or suicidal ideation after adjusting for confounders, the findings underscored the importance of considering pre-existing mood disorders and demographic factors in understanding mental health risks during public health crises. Targeted interventions for high-risk populations, particularly those with a history of mood disorders, remain crucial in mitigating the mental health impacts of such crises in the future.Item Constructing Identity: Elena Luksch-Makowsky, Motherhood, Nationalism, and Women Artists in Germany, 1900–1947(2024-10-09)The artist Elena Luksch-Makowsky (1878–1967) is one of the earliest modern women artists to create a self-portrait pregnant (1901). However, in the painting, she presents herself in the midst of creating another artwork, highlighting her artistic identity above her imminent role as a mother. The struggle between these two identities was central to her work throughout her career. Elena Makowsky was born and received her academic training in Saint Petersburg. In 1900, she married Richard Luksch and moved to Vienna, where she was invited into the Viennese Secession by Gustav Klimt. Her unique artistic talent applied to themes of renewal and rebirth, as well as her unique Russian inspirations, fortified her presence in Vienna. However, after a move to Hamburg in 1908, she gradually lost her connections to her artistic circle, and, after World War I and the Russian Revolution of 1917, to her family and homeland. She was further ostracized from Hamburg society because of her fervent Russian nationalism through the war, and divorce from her husband in 1921. Most recent scholarship suggests that her career ended shortly after her move to Hamburg, ignoring her continued artistic production through the Weimar, Nazi, and Post-World War II periods, until her passing in 1967. However, as a single mother, Luksch-Makowsky continued to work to support herself and her three children, adapting her relationship with motherhood and her Russian identity to the artistic trends and ideals of the times. This thesis traces key works in the artist’s later German production with a focus on the theme of motherhood, from pre-World War I discourse on the Woman Question, to post-Russian revolution nationalism, to the construction of the German mother and an Aryan bloodline through the late Weimar Republic and Nazi regime, to a return to Russian iconography after World War II. By presenting the methods of Luksch-Makowsky’s constructed identification, this project shows how marginalized women artists in Germany negotiated the increasingly hostile and oppressive environment of fervent nationalism, sexism, and fascist dictatorship.Item Factors Associated with Wean Duration Length as a Measure of Iatrogenic Withdrawal Syndrome in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Chart Review(2024-10-09)Background: Neonates admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) receive opioids and benzodiazepines for reasons including surgical procedures and mechanical ventilation. Neonates who are exposed to high doses of opioids and benzodiazepines for prolonged periods of time, are at an increased risk of iatrogenic withdrawal syndrome (IWS). There is currently little research to document which patient, process, or system factors are associated with longer wean duration to guide clinical and policy decision-making. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed using data collected through a chart review of NICU admissions at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2022. Univariate and multivariable linear regressions were used to estimate associations between patient, process, and system level variables and wean duration length. Results: Patient, process, and system level variables were associated with wean duration length on univariate analysis. Neonates with younger gestational age, lower birth weight, an immune-related admission problem, intubated for longer durations or greater frequency, experienced longer wean duration. Receipt of hydromorphone, midazolam, lorazepam, and ketamine were associated with longer wean duration, as was receiving more than one medication. Larger cumulative doses of hydromorphone, lorazepam, clonidine, methotrimeprazine, and gabapentin were also associated with longer wean duration. Documentation of ethnicity was associated with longer wean duration. In the multiple regression model that included gestational age at birth, birth weight, sex, and whether ethnicity was reported, documentation of ethnicity was associated with longer wean duration. In the multiple regression model that included type of surgery intubation occurrences and sepsis, a greater number of intubations and being tested for sepsis were associated with longer wean duration. In the multiple regression model that included the type of medications administered, receipt of hydromorphone, lorazepam, and ketamine were associated with longer wean durations. Conclusions: This was the first study of its kind in a Canadian NICU to examine the association between wean duration and key covariates to inform the reduction of IWS. This study provided exploratory evidence of patient-, process-, and system-level factors associated with wean duration among neonates receiving opioids and/or benzodiazepines which can be further validated through future studies.
Communities in QSpace
Select a community to browse its collections.