OPUS: Open Ulethbridge Scholarship

Open ULeth Scholarship (OPUS) is the University of Lethbridge's open access research repository. It contains a collection of materials related to research and teaching produced by the academic community.

Self-archiving your research in OPUS is one way to meet Open Access policies of granting agencies. It is important to retain your final, post-peer-reviewed drafts for submission to OPUS, as this is often the only version publishers will allow to be archived. Click here for information on the U of L Open Access Policy.

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Data-sharing practices in publications funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research: implications for health sciences librarians
(University of Alberta Library, 2025) Scott, David R.; Ayers, Sheilah C.; Read, Kevin B.
Objective: Funding bodies such as Canada’s Tri-Agency have implemented requirements for grant recipients to encourage improved research data management (RDM) practices and data sharing. Consequently, RDM and data sharing have become a higher priority for researchers and stakeholders supporting the research process, including librarians. Health sciences research can present special challenges to those wishing to share and use research data, as access to sensitive data must be restricted. This study examines the data sharing practices of researchers funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) in recent years. Methods: We ran a search of PubMed Central to identify papers funded by CIHR that were published between 2020 and 2023 and had associated data. From the resulting records, we drew a sample of 368 articles. Using Qualtrics, for each article, we recorded if and how data was shared and what types of documentation were provided alongside the data. Results were exported to and analyzed using Microsoft Excel. Results: We found that 69% of papers included a data availability statement. 34% of articles made at least some data readily accessible, while 31% indicated that some data was available via request or application. Only 9% of articles supplied the kinds of documentation that would support reuse of the data. Conclusions: Those seeking to reuse Canadian health sciences research data continue to face significant hurdles. We offer ideas for health sciences librarians looking to support researchers in their efforts to make data available and usable while respecting restrictions required due to ethical considerations.
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Patterns and predictors of cultural competence practice among Nigerian hospital- based healthcare professionals
(SpringerNature, 2023) Ogunlana, Michael O.; Oyewole, Olufemi O.; Aderonmu, Joseph A.; Onyeso, Ogochukwu K.; Faloye, Ayobamigbe Y.; Govender, Pragashnie
Background Being culturally competent would enhance the quality of care in multicultural healthcare settings like Nigeria, with over 200 million people, 500 languages, and 250 ethnic groups. This study investigated the levels of training and practice of cultural competence among clinical healthcare professionals in two purposively selected Nigerian tertiary hospitals. Methods The research was a cross-sectional study. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to recruit participants who completed the adapted version of Cultural Competence Assessment Instrument (CCAI-UIC). Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation, ANOVA, and multivariate linear regression. Results The participants were mainly women (66.4%), aged 34.98 ± 10.18 years, with ≤ 5 years of practice (64.6%). Personal competence had a positive weak correlation with age (p < 0.001), practice years (p = 0.01), training (p = 0.001), practice (p < 0.001), and organisational competence (p < 0.001). There were significant professional differ- ences in the level of training (p = 0.005), and differences in training (p = 0.005), and personal competence (p = 0.015) across levels of educational qualifications. Increasing practise years (p = 0.05), medical/dental profession relative to nursing (p = 0.029), higher personal (p = 0.013), and organisational (p < 0.001) cultural competences were significant predictors of the level of training. Male gender (p = 0.005), higher years in practice (p = 0.05), local language ability (p = 0.037), rehabilitation professionals relative to nursing (p = 0.05), high culturally competent practice (p < 0.001), higher training opportunities (p = 0.013), and higher organisational competence (p = 0.001) were significant predictors of higher personal competence. Conclusion About a third of the participants had no formal training in cultural competence. Incorporating cultural competence in the Nigerian healthcare professionals’ education curricula may enhance the quality of care in the multicultural setting.
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Radiographers’ knowledge, attitude and adherence to standard COVID-19 precautions and the policy implications: a national cross-sectional study in Nigeria
(Taylor & Francis, 2023) Ezema, Charles I.; Erondu, Okechukwu F.; Onyeso, Ogochukwu K.; Alumona, Chiedozie J.; Ijever, Andrew W.; Amarachukwu, Charity N.; Amaeze, Amaeze A.
Background: We investigated the knowledge of COVID-19 pathogenesis and prevention, attitude, and adherence to safe clinical practices among radiographers during the pandemic and made some informed policy recommendations. Materials and methods: The study was an online cross-sectional survey. The questionnaire captured data on respondents’ demographics, knowledge of COVID-19, attitudes, practices, and standard precaution adherence during the pandemic. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation and one-way ANOVA tests. Results: Of the 255 respondents, 17.3% were actively involved in the management of COVID-19 cases. Participants had high scores regarding their knowledge of COVID-19 pathology (82.46 ± 8.67%), prevention (93.43 ± 7.11%) and attitude (74.11 ± 11.61%), but low compliance to safety precautions (56.08 ± 18.56%). Knowledge about COVID-19 prevention strategies differed significantly across educational qualifications, F(3, 251) = 4.62, p = .004. Similarly, levels of compliance with safety precautions differed across educational qualification (F[3, 251] = 4.53, p = .004) and years-in-practice (F[4, 250] = 4.17, p = .003). Conclusion: Participants’ adherence to standard COVID-19 precautions was low. The level of professional qualification influenced participants’ knowledge and safe practices during the pandemic. Upgrading the aseptic techniques and amenities in practice settings and broadening the infectious diseases modules in the entry-level and continuous professional education may improve radiographers’ response to COVID-19 and future pandemics.
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COVID-19 social and economic disruptions, mental health, and coping behaviours among young Canadians: a structural equation model
(Taylor & Francis, 2025) Onyeso, Ogochukwu K.; Boco, Adebiyi; Islam, Md Kamrul; Darku, Alexander; Hallstrom, Lars K.
The COVID-19 pandemic increased the prevalence of mental health disorders among youths. This study explored the association between COVID-19’s social and economic disruptions, mental health disorders, and coping behaviours among youths using Statistics Canada’s COVID-19 and Mental Health data. The study included 895 participants aged 18–24 years (52.9% women). Social and economic disruptions, healthy and unhealthy coping behaviours, and mental health severity (MHS) latent variables were delineated through exploratory factor analysis. Structural equation modelling revealed that social disruptions significantly increased the MHS (β = 0.77, p < 0.001), as well as healthy (β = 0.25, p < 0.001) and unhealthy (β = 0.54, p < 0.001) coping behaviours. Similarly, economic disruption was associated with an increase in healthy coping behaviours (β = 0.14, p = 0.043). Healthycoping behaviours (β=-0.08, p = 0.047) and positive coping skills (mastery) (β = -0.26, p < 0.001) were associated with a reduction in MHS. Positive coping behaviours mediated the social impact of COVID-19 on youth MHS; negative behaviours (substance use) had no significant mediation effect.
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Pain intensity, physical activity, quality of life, and disability in patients with mechanical low back pain: a cross-sectional study
(Springer, 2024) Ekediegwu, Ezinne C.; Onwukike, Chukwuneke V.; Onyeso, Ogochukwu K.
Background Poorly managed mechanical low back pain (MLBP) and its sequelae, such as severe pain, physical inac- tivity, and disability, negatively impact patients’ quality of life (QoL). The study aimed to determine the pain intensity (PI), physical activity (PA), QoL, and disability, the association between selected sociodemographic variables and PI, PA, QoL, and disability, and the relationship between PI, PA, QoL, and disability among Nigerians with chronic MLBP. Methods This cross-sectional study employed a consecutive sampling technique. Outcome measures included the Numeric Pain Scale, International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form, WHO Quality-of-Life Brief, and Oswestry Disability Index for PI, PA, QoL, and disability, respectively. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize participants’ sociodemographic variables. Chi-square, Spearman’s correlation, and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used for inferential analyses. Results Two hundred and fifty chronic MLBP patients comprising 154 females and 96 males, completed the study. The mean PA, PI, QoL, and disability levels were 1118.03MET ± 615.30, 5.97 ± 2.69, 73.45% ± 14.21, and 21.7% ± 18.94, respectively. There was a significant correlation between PA and QoL (rho = 0.36, p = 0.001), PA and disability (rho = −0.42, p = 0.010), QoL and disability (rho = −0.21, p = 0.008), QoL and PI (rho = −6.72, p = 0.025), PI and dis- ability (rho = 0.90, p = 0.022). Aside from age and PA (χ2 = 8.52, p = 0.045), there was no significant association between the sociodemographic variables and PI, PA, QoL, or disability. SEM showed a strong positive association between PI and disability (β = 0.80, p < 0.001). Conclusion Individuals with chronic MLBP had a low PA, moderate QoL, and significant disability. Incorporating PA, QoL, and disability assessments may enhance the evaluation and management of MLBP.