Browsing by Author "Wilson, Warren M."

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    Biosocial Complexities of Antimicrobial Use in Dairy Farming in Alberta, Canada
    (2020-07-24) Ida, Jennifer A.; Barkema, Herman W.; Wilson, Warren M.; Gerlach, S. Craig; Adams, Cindy L.; Kutz, Susan J.
    Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), or the ability of a microbe to withstand treatment with antibiotics, is an emerging health issue that has been largely attributed to the inappropriate use of antimicrobial treatments. Many of the current research and policy initiatives focus on knowledge translation and behavioral change mechanisms as ways to achieve absolute reductions in antimicrobial use across all health sectors. However, the current approach fails to address underlying drivers of practice and is narrowly focused on achieving a numeric goal. Given the failure to understand the underlying drivers of decisions made by dairy farmers concerning antimicrobial use (AMU), this study sought to understand one community’s perceptions surrounding AMU, AMR, and regulation in the dairy farming industry in Alberta via the use of ethnography. Specifically, this included participation in on-farm activities (i.e., milking) and observations of relevant interactions (i.e., herd health exams) on dairy farms in Central Alberta for a period of 3.5 months. Interviews were conducted with 25 dairy farmers. Nine of these interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Thematic analyses resulted in four key takeaways. Farmers: 1) feel that AMU policies implemented in other contexts are impractical and are concerned that such policies, if implemented in Alberta, would constrain their freedom to make what they perceive to be the best decisions about AMU for their animals; 2) believe that their first-hand knowledge is undervalued by both consumers and policy-makers; 3) do not believe that the public trusts them to make the correct AMU choices and, consequently, worry that AMU policy will be guided by what they believe are misguided consumer concerns; 4) farmers are skeptical of a link between AMU in livestock and AMR in humans. Based on these findings, a better understanding of the sociocultural and political-economic infrastructure that supports such perceptions is warranted and should inform future policy.
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    Constructing the Past: Monumentality of the Bagaces and Sapoá Periods at the Site of El Rayo Granada, Nicaragua
    (2020-06-09) Rice, Shaelyn Jae; McCafferty, Geoffrey G.; Paris, Elizabeth H.; Wilson, Warren M.
    Monumentality in the Intermediate Area has been a poorly explored avenue of analysis in favour of the more structurally impressive, vertically standing examples from Mesoamerican and Andean societies. Though specific countries in the Intermediate Area, such as Costa Rica, have been discussed in terms of architectural achievement and present examples of monumentality, Nicaragua, and by extent the Greater Nicoyan subregion, has been overlooked. This thesis looks to the lake shore site of El Rayo, on Lake Nicaragua, to overview the architectural features represented at the site over the course of four field seasons during the PAGN project. Differentiation between monument, memorials, and monumental memorials are discussed, and the known built forms at El Rayo, including structures, shrines, cache boxes, and standing stones, are detailed and evaluated. In total, 13 architectural features are detailed, dating from the Bagaces (500-800 AD) period to the Sapoá (800-1300 AD) period. Included in this thesis is an architectural energetics assessment of the four structural remains excavated at El Rayo.
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    Geographic Origins, Status, and Identity at Paquimé, Northwest Chihuahua, Mexico
    (2018-04-27) Offenbecker, Adrianne M.; Katzenberg, Mary Anne; Wilson, Warren M.; McCafferty, Geoffrey G.; Wieser, Michael E.; Wright, Lori Ellen
    This thesis examines migration at Paquimé, an important prehistoric site in northwest Mexico that is widely recognized for its mix of Mesoamerican and Southwestern traits. The presence of foreign objects and ideology has stimulated debate over whether Medio Period (A.D. 1200-1450) culture change was due to the arrival of foreign elites in the Casas Grandes region or to local developments. A crucial step in addressing this debate is to determine if high status immigrants were indeed present at Paquimé, which is the goal of this study. This is accomplished by using radiogenic strontium and stable oxygen isotope analyses to determine the geographic origins of a large sample of individuals from Paquimé and the Viejo Period Convento site. Comparative samples from sites within and outside the Casas Grandes region were analyzed to identify potential geographic origins of non-local individuals. Mortuary analyses were then conducted to assess social status and identity. Finally, two bioarchaeological case studies from mortuary contexts with suspected human sacrifices are presented to examine the relationship between geographic origins and ritual violence, and to explore the impacts of migration on Medio Period social dynamics. The results indicate that ~87% of Paquimé individuals were born locally or came from within the Casas Grandes region, while 13% migrated from neighbouring regions, including the American Southwest and other parts of northwest or west Mexico. At Convento, ~92% were local to the Casas Grandes region. Although the Medio Period was characterized by migration from more distant locations when compared to the preceding Viejo Period, none of the immigrants from neighbouring regions received high status mortuary treatment. Instead, the most elaborate burials at Paquimé belong to locally-born individuals, whose status was likely linked to ritual authority. Furthermore, most of the sacrificial victims were non-locals. These results suggest that Medio Period culture change was driven primarily by internal stimuli, including population aggregation from within the Casas Grandes region and sociopolitical maneuvering by local elites. The results also indicate that social tensions and competition for status, power, and/or resources led to asymmetrical power dynamics between locals and immigrants, which sometimes played out in ritually-charged contexts.
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    Maternal mental health and child allostatic load in rural Nicaragua
    (2018-09-10) Hoehn, Natasha Christine; Wilson, Warren M.; Krentz, Hartmut B.; Madigan, Sheri L.
    Approximately 25% of individuals worldwide will experience a common mental disorder (CMD) in their lifetime, and previous studies have suggested that poor maternal mental health (MMH) is associated with negative child health and development outcomes. However, these studies use individual markers to represent overall child health status. An allostatic load (AL) index may provide a better understanding of overall health status by pooling together multiple markers of intermediary risk to poor health outcomes. Here, I tested for an association between the following variables in a cross-sectional sample of maternal-child dyads from rural Nicaragua: 1) MMH and individual child health measures. 2) MMH and a child AL index. Multiple regression analyses found no significant relationships between MMH and any of the outcome measures. However, a high prevalence of probable cases of CMDs (30.9%) was documented among mothers, indicating that mental health should be prioritized by local and regional health interventions.
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    The Role of Avifauna in Paleodiet Reconstruction : An Arctic Case Study
    (2018-09-19) Edwards, Tu-Kim; Katzenberg, Mary Anne; Dawson, Peter C.; Wilson, Warren M.; Walls, Matthew D.; Darwent, Christyann Marie
    This thesis explores the importance of birds in paleodietary reconstruction based on stable isotope analysis, using faunal remains from Arctic contexts as a case study. In the Arctic, migratory birds and their eggs have been important seasonal resources for hunter-gatherer populations, and while evidence of their utilization in the faunal record is apparent, their use is less clear from the isotopic record. Zooarchaeological analysis was carried out on a large sample of bird remains from Pre-Dorset and Dorset sites located on the Knud Peninsula of Ellesmere Island to assess bird hunting and processing amongst Paleo-Inuit groups. A subset of these archaeological bird remains were analyzed to determine the variation in avian isotopic signatures which was expected to differ from terrestrial and sea mammal isotopic signatures. An experimental study was carried out to test the assumption that the spacing between avian tissues (bone collagen, muscle, fat, and feathers) differs from tissue spacings in mammals. Linear mixing models were then used to estimate diet based on new tissue spacing data and isotope data from archaeological bird bone collagen. These results were compared to previous studies of Arctic paleodiet. Zooarchaeological analysis of the avifaunal remains suggests that Pre-Dorset and Dorset groups on the Knud Peninsula preferentially hunted eider ducks, and birds were heavily processed for human consumption. Bird bones were also used in tool production. Stable isotope analysis of various tissues from ducks fed a controlled diet indicates that avian tissue spacings differ from those of mammals by up to 2‰, especially for stable carbon isotopes. Results from the stable isotope analysis of archaeological avifaunal samples demonstrate that birds have variable isotopic signatures that reflect dietary preferences, migratory routes, and reproductive strategies. Finally, the inclusion of avian-specific tissue spacing values and isotopic signatures for birds and their eggs in linear mixing models for Arctic hunter-gatherers demonstrates that birds and their eggs can be detected isotopically and that these additions can alter our interpretations of the role of birds and eggs in human paleodiet.
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    Why don’t illiterate women in rural, Northern Tanzania, access maternal healthcare?
    (2021-06-28) Matovelo, Dismas; Ndaki, Pendo; Yohani, Victoria; Laisser, Rose; Bakalemwa, Respicious; Ndaboine, Edgar; Masatu, Zabron; Mwaikambo, Magdalena; Brenner, Jennifer L.; Wilson, Warren M.
    Abstract Background In 2017, roughly 540 women in Sub-Saharan Africa died every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. To stem this public-health crisis, the WHO recommends a standard continuity of maternal healthcare, yet most women do not receive this care. Surveys suggest that illiteracy limits the uptake of the recommended care, yet little is understood about why this is so. This gap in understanding why healthcare is not sought by illiterate women compromises the ability of public health experts and healthcare providers to provide culturally relevant policy and practice. This study consequently explores the lived experiences related to care-seeking by illiterate women of reproductive age in rural Tanzania to determine why they may not access maternal healthcare services. Methods An exploratory, qualitative study was conducted in four communities encompassing eight focus group discussions with 81 illiterate women, 13 in-depth interviews with illiterate women and seven key-informant interviews with members of these communities who have first-hand experience with the decisions made by women concerning maternal care. Interviews were conducted in the informant’s native language. The interviews were coded, then triangulated. Results Two themes emerged from the analysis: 1) a communication gap arising from a) the women’s inability to read public-health documents provided by health facilities, and b) healthcare providers speaking a language, Swahili, that these women do not understand, and 2) a dependency by these women on family and neighbors to negotiate these barriers. Notably, these women understood of the potential benefits of maternal healthcare. Conclusions These women knew they should receive maternal healthcare but could neither read the public-health messaging provided by the clinics nor understand the language of the healthcare providers. More health needs of this group could be met by developing a protocol for healthcare providers to determine who is illiterate, providing translation services for those unable to speak Swahili, and graphic public health messaging that does not require literacy. A failure to address the needs of this at-risk group will likely mean that they will continue to experience barriers to obtaining maternal care with detrimental health outcomes for both mothers and newborns.