Browsing by Author "Mohns, Erik"

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    Supervised Consumption Sites in Canadian Neighbourhoods: The Role that Physical Design and Location Play in Community Relations
    (2021-09-08) Mohns, Erik; Patterson, Matt; Haines, Valerie; Tretter, Eliot
    Across Canada, 6,214 overdose fatalities occurred in 2020, with 21,174 overdose deaths recorded from January 2016 to December 2020 (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2021, p5). With the ongoing opioid crisis, supervised consumption sites (SCSs) are becoming permanent fixtures in many Canadian cities. Similarly, we are coming to understand the importance of built forms and their relationship to behaviors in everyday life. Many community members are opposed to having SCSs placed in their communities as they link them to an increase in social disorder, leading to more crime (Wallace, Chamberlain, Fahmy, 2019; Sampson & Raudenbush, 1999). However, this contradicts the literature on SCSs (Wood et al., 2006). In exploring the relationships between built forms of SCSs and their surrounding communities, I found that SCSs do not directly contribute to social disorder. Instead, social disorder in these locations predates the implementation of SCSs. The built forms of SCSs are at a unique intersection of space and public health. SCSs provide a life-saving service through harm reduction practices, but they go beyond this initial purpose and take on new meanings and purposes for those in the community. While those meanings differ SCSs remain an important part of community growth and are essential to healthy urban development. Simply ignoring addiction, poverty, and mental health issues during development/redevelopment in communities places the burden of these issues unfairly on businesses and community members. This results in further stigma and conflict in public spaces.
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    Understanding the experiences of young, urban, Indigenous mothers-to-be in British Columbia, Canada
    (2025-01-20) Catherine, Nicole L.; Leason, Jennifer; Marsden, Namaste; Barker, Brittany; Cullen, Ange; Simpson, Ashley; Berry, Brandi A.; Mohns, Erik; Yung, Donna; Zheng, Yufei; MacMillan, Harriet; Waddell, Charlotte
    Abstract Background Indigenous Peoples comprise the youngest and fastest growing demographic in Canada, with many living in urban-suburban areas. Given higher fertility rates, younger overall ages and higher adolescent pregnancy rates, perinatal research is needed—to inform policymaking and programming throughout pregnancy and childhood. Yet such data remain scarce in British Columbia (BC), Canada. This study therefore aimed to describe the experiences of young, urban, Indigenous mothers-to-be who enrolled in a larger BC early prevention trial designed to reach families experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage. Methods This descriptive study utilized baseline data from a trial that enrolled first-time mothers-to-be who met indicators of socioeconomic disadvantage and who were residing in select urban-suburban areas. These indicators included being young (19 years or younger) or having limited income, low access to education, and being single (aged 20−24 years). We described and compared survey data on girls (n = 109; aged 14−19 years) and young women (n = 91; aged 20−24 years) using Chi-square or Student’s t-tests. Results Of the 739 trial participants, 200 or 27% identified as Indigenous and met trial eligibility criteria: limited income (92.9%), limited access to education (67.0%), and/or being single (90.9%). Beyond this, participants reported associated adversities including: unstable housing (63.3%), psychological distress (29.3%), severe anxiety or depression (48.5%), experiences of childhood maltreatment (59.4%) and intimate partner violence (39.5%). Compared to girls, young women reported higher income and educational attainment (p < 0.001), more unstable housing (p = 0.02) and more childhood maltreatment (p = 0.014). Many had recently received primary healthcare (75%), but few had received income assistance (34%). Most (80.5%) reported experiencing four or more adversities. Conclusions We present data illustrating that a high proportion of pregnant Indigenous girls and young women engaged with public health and consented to long-term research participation—despite experiencing cumulative adversities. The trial socioeconomic screening criteria were successful in reaching this population. Girls and young women reported relatively similar experiences—beyond expected developmental differences in income and education—suggesting that adolescent maternal age may not necessarily infer risk. Our findings underscore the need for Indigenous community-led services that address avoidable adversities starting in early pregnancy.