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Access status: Open Access ,
“It's a low-key thing of eugenics”: Disability reproductive injustice in barriers to cervical cancer screening during the COVID-19 pandemic
(Elsevier BV, 2025-02-03) Evans, Meredith; Liu, Kyara J.; Rego, Alexandra; Ogbonna, Nkem; Zafar, Sidrah K.; Brown, Hilary K.
Cervical cancer screening (CCS) is a critical component of preventative sexual and reproductive healthcare, yet there are disparities in access to CCS for people with disabilities. This qualitative community-engaged study uses the disability reproductive justice framework to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted people with disabilities' experiences with CCS in Canada. From May 2022 to March 2023, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 40 women and gender-diverse people with physical, sensory, cognitive, and/or mental health disabilities. Results from a thematic analysis indicate that barriers to CCS before and during the COVID-19 pandemic were characterized by inaccessibility, ableism and intersecting forms of oppression, provider distrust, the deprioritization of people with disabilities' sexual and reproductive healthcare, and the disregard for disabled people's autonomy. Grounded in these findings, this article situates preventative sexual and reproductive healthcare like CCS as a disability reproductive justice concern. Amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, barriers to CCS enacted disability reproductive injustice through everyday ableism and micro-eugenics that devalued people with disabilities. Barriers to CCS must be addressed in collaboration with disability communities. Guided by participant insights, recommendations include making preventative sexual and reproductive health services like CCS more accessible and available to people with disabilities, especially in the aftermath of public health emergencies that disproportionately impact disability communities.
Access status: Open Access ,
S-ETEG Addressing Alternate Format Theses Release 1.0
(2026-01-15) Breton, Carrie; White, Nicole
This report provides considerations and guidance for managing alternate format theses and was prepared by the Alternate Format Theses sub-group of the Scholaris Electronic Theses and Dissertations Expert Group (S-ETEG). The report is informed by feedback shared by Canadian institutional repository teams in the 2024 Scholaris ETD Needs Assessment Survey, and includes recommendations for repository administrators and the Scholaris service team.
Access status: Open Access ,
The Global Saga of Alkali Aggregate Reactions. Endeavour - Achievements – International AAR-Conferences (ICAAR) and RILEM Technical Committees
(Canadian Science Publishing, 2025-07-16) Wigum, Borge Johannes
This paper presents a historical overview of the endeavours of international engineers and scientists to understand, control and prevent damage from Alkali Aggregate Reactions (AAR) in concrete. It is now 85 years since AAR first were reported as a deleterious deterioration mechanism in concrete, and it is 50 years since the first International Conference on AAR (ICAAR) was organised in Denmark in 1974. In 1988, the first Technical Committee (TC) on AAR in concrete was established by RILEM (The International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Construction Materials, Systems and Structures). Part of RILEM performance-based testing concept is planned, adopted and implemented as new European standards and guidelines. Eventually, this paper presents a summary of where we are today in AAR research, identifies key milestones and addresses some specific topics for future research.
Access status: Open Access ,
Maternal Disability and Emergency Department Use for Infants
(American Medical Association (AMA), 2025-05-05) Brown, Hilary K.; Lunsky, Yona; Fung, Kinwah; Santiago-Jimenez, Maria; Camden, Andi; Cohen, Eyal; Ray, Joel G.; Saunders, Natasha R.; Telner, Deanna; Varner, Catherine E.; Vigod, Simone N.; Zwicker, Jennifer; Guttmann, Astrid
Importance Infants have among the highest rates of emergency department (ED) visits of all age groups. Women with disabilities experience significant social disparities, may experience barriers accessing child primary care, and may seek care in the ED. Objective To compare ED use among newborns and infants (hereafter infants) of women with or without disabilities, overall and by timing and acuity of the ED visit. Design, Setting, and Participants This population-based cohort study analyzed data for all live-born infants in Ontario, Canada, born to women with or without a disability from April 1, 2008, to March 31, 2021. Data were analyzed March 2023 to October 2024. Exposure Maternal physical, sensory, or intellectual or developmental disability or multiple disabilities status was ascertained using diagnostic algorithms applied to health care encounters before delivery. Main Outcomes and Measures The main outcome was any ED visit between an infant’s hospitalization discharge date and their first birthday, and by timing and acuity. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to generate hazard ratios (HRs) for the association between maternal disability and the main outcome, adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and infant sex and year of birth. Results Of 1 596 932 total infants, there were 139 698 (8.7%) born to women with a physical disability, 48 112 (3.0%) to women with a sensory disability, 2547 (0.2%) to women with an intellectual or developmental disability, and 10 312 (0.6%) to women with multiple disabilities. The remaining 1 396 263 infants (87.4%) were born to a woman without a recognized disability. Among women without a disability, 558 965 infants (40.0%) had an ED visit in the first year of life (incidence rate, 1.11 per 1000 person-days). Compared with this referent group, infants born to a woman with a disability of a physical (46.9%; 1.30 visits per 1000 person-days; adjusted HR [AHR], 1.14 [95% CI, 1.13-1.15]), sensory (45.2%; 1.25 visits per 1000 person-days; AHR, 1.09 [95% CI, 1.07-1.10]), or intellectual or developmental (55.4%; 1.55 visits per 1000 person-days; AHR, 1.24 [95% CI, 1.17-1.30]) nature or with multiple disabilities (51.0%; 1.42 visits per 1000 person-days; AHR, 1.18 [95% CI, 1.15-1.22]) were more likely to have an ED visit. Similar patterns were observed for ED visits at fewer than 28 days from delivery, from 28 to 365 days, and for ED visits for high-acuity, moderate-acuity, and low-acuity reasons. Conclusions and Relevance In this population-based cohort study, infants of women with disabilities were more likely to use the ED, indicating a need for accessible family supports and improved early child primary care access.
Access status: Open Access ,
Development of Quality Indicators for Pregnancy Care of People With Disabilities Using a RAND-Modified Delphi Method
(Elsevier, 2025-09-10) Liu, Kyara J.; Pituch, Evelina; Barrett, Kathryn; Berndl, Anne; Graves, Lisa; Lunsky, Yona; Vainder, Marina; Camden, Andi; Evans, Meredith; Tarasoff, Lesley A.; Brown, Hilary K.
Objectives This study aimed to develop quality indicators (QIs) for pregnancy care of people with disabilities. Methods We used a RAND-modified Delphi method. We first conducted a scoping review of Medline, Embase, PsycInfo, and CINAHL (2004–2024) to identify candidate QIs related to the structures, clinical processes, and interpersonal processes of pregnancy care for people with disabilities. Draft QIs were then validated in a 3-round Delphi study from June 2023 to October 2024, with an expert panel of 17 pregnancy care providers and 10 birthing people with disabilities. In round 1, panellists rated draft QIs on importance and feasibility in a survey. New QIs and QIs requiring rephrasing were identified. In round 2, QIs were discussed and refined in focus groups. In round 3, panellists rated new and revised QIs on importance and feasibility. The final list of QIs was created on the basis of panel consensus on importance. Results The review identified 98 studies, from which 44 candidate QIs were created for structures (n = 12), clinical processes (n = 22), and interpersonal processes of care (n = 10). In round 1 of the Delphi survey, consensus on importance was achieved for all QIs, 5 of which were identified as requiring rephrasing. Panellists suggested 10 new QIs. In round 2, the new and revised QIs were discussed in focus groups. In round 3, the new and revised QIs achieved consensus on importance, resulting in a final list of 54 QIs (n = 43 achieving consensus on feasibility). Conclusions These QIs can assist health care providers, administrators, and policymakers in optimising the quality of pregnancy care for people with disabilities.