Jennifer E McWhirter
Biographic Data
| ID | 5410940 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Jennifer E McWhirter |
| GIVEN NAMES | Jennifer E |
| FAMILY NAME | McWhirter |
| SIGNATURE | MCWHIRTER J E |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Guelph |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3924-4873 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 24 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 6 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 24 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2011 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Social media messaging by Canadian health organizations to address indoor tanning during policy and scientific shifts
Indoor tanning (IT) is a modifiable risk factor for skin cancer, including melanoma. Social media provides a large potential audience for messaging to address IT, and incorporating elements of evidence and theory-based message design may be an effective way to impact knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours within these audiences. However, few studies have investigated whether these elements are used in practice. This content analysis explored whethe…
Best practices in public risk communication during enteric illness outbreak investigations
Introduction Public risk communication is intended to inform and protect the health of individuals during enteric illness outbreaks. However, there is limited practical research that assesses the effectiveness of communication during outbreaks. The aim of this study was to identify best practices in public risk communication during enteric illness outbreak investigations. Methods A scoping review of five bibliographic databases and gray literatur…
Evaluating Multi-Jurisdictional Enteric Illness Outbreak Messaging in Canada
Effective risk communication during enteric illness outbreaks requires the provision of clear and consistent information to diverse audiences to reduce risk of exposure, inform behavior changes, and prevent illness. Most enteric illnesses are caused by pathogens transmitted through consumption of contaminated food or water, contact with animals, or person-to-person contact. When multi-jurisdictional outbreaks occur, the Public Health Agency of Ca…
The Public Health Communication Competency Framework
The research has resulted in 18 communication competency statements comprising the Public Health Communication Competency Framework, which are intended to serve as a roadmap for public health professionals whose roles encompass communication, guide curricula development in public health programs, catalyze professional development in communication, and support public health systems to achieve the essential public health functions
A content analysis of government-issued social media posts during multi-jurisdictional enteric illness outbreaks in Canada
Introduction Most Canadians use at least one social media platform regularly, making social media a potentially effective tool for reaching broad audiences. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) uses social media as one tool for rapidly communicating with the public during multi-jurisdictional enteric illness outbreaks. However, the effectiveness of social media in enhancing public risk communication during these outbreaks remains unexplored.…
Developing competencies in public health
Effective and precise public health practice relies on a skilled and interdisciplinary workforce equipped with integrated knowledge, values, skills, and behaviors as defined by competency frameworks. Competency frameworks inform academic and professional development training, support performance evaluation, and identify professional development needs. The aim of this research was to systematically identify and examine trends in the extent, nature…
Communicating about Covid-19 Vaccines
Given the reasonably low COVID-19 vaccine rates (e.g., <60% fully vaccinated) among Canadian young adults (18–29), we sought to understand the factors that motivated this demographic to get vaccinated. Fifteen post-secondary students and graduates participated in semi-structured interviews about the type of health information they received during the pandemic, and their communication preferences. Analysis of interview data revealed four themes: (…
Modernizing public health communication competencies in Canada
Strong agreement with statements indicates support for a modernized communication competency framework among sampled professionals. Research to gather more evidence surrounding the communication demands of the public health workforce and observed variation in strong agreement for the proposed statements is underway
“There was a lot of that [coercion and manipulation] happening and well, that’s not very trustworthy”
Although a large proportion of the Canadian population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, millions of eligible individuals remain unvaccinated. Trust in public health and government impacts the effectiveness of crisis communication and the public’s willingness to follow health recommendations. This qualitative study involved semistructured interviews with 12 COVID-19 vaccine-hesitant adults in Canada. Using thematic analysis, four themes were …
Targeting components of social capital on campus to alleviate Canadian post-secondary students’ academic stress
Covid-19 Vaccine Communications on Instagram and Vaccine Uptake in Young Adults
In Canada, during the pandemic, young adults (18–29 year-olds) represented one of the least-vaccinated age groups against COVID-19. These low vaccination rates, and high infection rates, left young people vulnerable to severe infections and created a risk for transmission to immunocompromised populations. Given young adults’ unique characteristics, to encourage vaccination among this demographic, public health and government officials must adopt …
Exploring medical and veterinary student perceptions and communication preferences related to antimicrobial resistance in Ontario, Canada using qualitative methods
Overall, the study participants felt that AMR is an important issue and emphasized the need to develop different KTT tools for different audiences. This research will help inform the development of future communication materials, and support development of AMR-KTT tools tailored to the needs of different student and professional groups
“I Think There Should Be Photos”
This study explores female indoor tanners' perceptions of the current, text-only Canadian health warning label (HWL) for tanning equipment, as well as pictorial, evidence-based alternative HWLs. We created 10 test HWLs that depicted skin health effects, eye damage, premature aging, and death. Young women who had tanned indoors in the past year discussed these and the current federal HWL in focus groups. Although the current Canadian HWL was seen …
A Review and Analysis of the Literature on Public Health Emergency Communication Practices
Canadian Covid-19 Crisis Communication on Twitter
To foster trust on social media during a crisis, messages should implement key guiding principles, including call to action, clarity, conversational tone, compassion and empathy, correction of misinformation, and transparency. This study describes how crisis actors used guiding principles in COVID-19 tweets, and how the use of these guiding principles relates to tweet engagement. Original, English language tweets from 10 federal level government,…
A content analysis of Canadian influencer crisis messages on Instagram and the public’s response during Covid-19
Successful mitigation of emerging infectious disease requires that the public adopt recommended behaviours, which is directly influenced by effective crisis communication. Social media has become an important communication channel during COVID-19 where official actors, influencers, and the public are co-creating crisis messages. Our research examined COVID-19-related crisis messages across Canadian influencer accounts within news media, politicia…
Examining the influence of human and psychological capital variables on post-secondary students’ academic stress
Purpose We examined the influence of human and psychological capital variables on the reporting of stress affecting Canadian post-secondary students’ academic performances.Methods This cross-sectional study used the Spring 2019 National College Health Assessment-II data collected across 58 Canadian post-secondary institutions from 55,284 respondents. Of this, 31,091 undergraduate students indicated being stressed in the past year and were include…
Social Inclusion in Group Homes
Social inclusion is central to positive life experiences for those with and without intellectual disabilities (ID). Unfortunately, those with ID experience high levels of social isolation. As group homes, one of the most common forms of community living, aim to provide an equitable quality of life for adults with disabilities, significant responsibility of promoting social inclusion falls to them. The intention of this review is to identify the f…
Examining Social Media Crisis Communication during Early Covid-19 from Public Health and News Media for Quality, Content, and Corresponding Public Sentiment
Rising COVID-19 cases in Canada in early 2021, coupled with pervasive mis- and disinformation, demonstrate the critical relationship between effective crisis communication, trust, and risk protective measure adherence by the public. Trust in crisis communication is affected by the communication's characteristics including transparency, timeliness, empathy, and clarity, as well as the source and communication channels used. Crisis communication oc…
Exploration of Factors Affecting Post-Secondary Students’ Stress and Academic Success
A lack of communication and knowledge seems to underlie many factors, highlighting the need to strengthen communication strategies to promote awareness, accessibility, and availability of services and programs on campus. Results also pointed to focusing on proactive, resilience-focused, upstream mental health promotion efforts at post-secondary institutions to reduce stress and improve academic success. This knowledge can help Canadian campuses b…
Assessing a ban on the use of UV tanning devices among adolescents in Ontario, Canada
Coverage of skin cancer and recreational tanning in North American magazines before and after the landmark 2006 International Agency for Research on Cancer report
Despite a modest increase in volume of coverage post-IARC report, key messages from the report were not taken up by the media. While there have been some improvements in magazine reporting, there is a need for more effective dissemination of public health messages about skin cancer and tanning
Skin deep
Public Policy and Aboriginal Peoples in Canada
The health and social conditions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada remain important policy concerns. The life course has been proposed by some as a framework for analysis that could assist in the development of policies that would improve the economic and social inclusion of Aboriginal peoples. In this paper we support the goal of applying a life-course perspective to policies related to Aboriginal peoples but suggest that the …
Public Policy and Aboriginal Peoples in Canada
The health and social conditions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada remain important policy concerns. The life course has been proposed by some as a framework for analysis that could assist in the development of policies that would improve the economic and social inclusion of Aboriginal peoples. In this paper we support the goal of applying a life-course perspective to policies related to Aboriginal peoples but suggest that the …
Modernizing public health communication competencies in Canada
Strong agreement with statements indicates support for a modernized communication competency framework among sampled professionals. Research to gather more evidence surrounding the communication demands of the public health workforce and observed variation in strong agreement for the proposed statements is underway
Public Policy and Aboriginal Peoples in Canada
The health and social conditions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada remain important policy concerns. The life course has been proposed by some as a framework for analysis that could assist in the development of policies that would improve the economic and social inclusion of Aboriginal peoples. In this paper we support the goal of applying a life-course perspective to policies related to Aboriginal peoples but suggest that the …
Coverage of skin cancer and recreational tanning in North American magazines before and after the landmark 2006 International Agency for Research on Cancer report
Despite a modest increase in volume of coverage post-IARC report, key messages from the report were not taken up by the media. While there have been some improvements in magazine reporting, there is a need for more effective dissemination of public health messages about skin cancer and tanning
Skin deep
Assessing a ban on the use of UV tanning devices among adolescents in Ontario, Canada
Social Inclusion in Group Homes
Social inclusion is central to positive life experiences for those with and without intellectual disabilities (ID). Unfortunately, those with ID experience high levels of social isolation. As group homes, one of the most common forms of community living, aim to provide an equitable quality of life for adults with disabilities, significant responsibility of promoting social inclusion falls to them. The intention of this review is to identify the f…
Examining Social Media Crisis Communication during Early Covid-19 from Public Health and News Media for Quality, Content, and Corresponding Public Sentiment
Rising COVID-19 cases in Canada in early 2021, coupled with pervasive mis- and disinformation, demonstrate the critical relationship between effective crisis communication, trust, and risk protective measure adherence by the public. Trust in crisis communication is affected by the communication's characteristics including transparency, timeliness, empathy, and clarity, as well as the source and communication channels used. Crisis communication oc…
Exploration of Factors Affecting Post-Secondary Students’ Stress and Academic Success
A lack of communication and knowledge seems to underlie many factors, highlighting the need to strengthen communication strategies to promote awareness, accessibility, and availability of services and programs on campus. Results also pointed to focusing on proactive, resilience-focused, upstream mental health promotion efforts at post-secondary institutions to reduce stress and improve academic success. This knowledge can help Canadian campuses b…
“I Think There Should Be Photos”
This study explores female indoor tanners' perceptions of the current, text-only Canadian health warning label (HWL) for tanning equipment, as well as pictorial, evidence-based alternative HWLs. We created 10 test HWLs that depicted skin health effects, eye damage, premature aging, and death. Young women who had tanned indoors in the past year discussed these and the current federal HWL in focus groups. Although the current Canadian HWL was seen …
A Review and Analysis of the Literature on Public Health Emergency Communication Practices
Canadian Covid-19 Crisis Communication on Twitter
To foster trust on social media during a crisis, messages should implement key guiding principles, including call to action, clarity, conversational tone, compassion and empathy, correction of misinformation, and transparency. This study describes how crisis actors used guiding principles in COVID-19 tweets, and how the use of these guiding principles relates to tweet engagement. Original, English language tweets from 10 federal level government,…
A content analysis of Canadian influencer crisis messages on Instagram and the public’s response during Covid-19
Successful mitigation of emerging infectious disease requires that the public adopt recommended behaviours, which is directly influenced by effective crisis communication. Social media has become an important communication channel during COVID-19 where official actors, influencers, and the public are co-creating crisis messages. Our research examined COVID-19-related crisis messages across Canadian influencer accounts within news media, politicia…
Examining the influence of human and psychological capital variables on post-secondary students’ academic stress
Purpose We examined the influence of human and psychological capital variables on the reporting of stress affecting Canadian post-secondary students’ academic performances.Methods This cross-sectional study used the Spring 2019 National College Health Assessment-II data collected across 58 Canadian post-secondary institutions from 55,284 respondents. Of this, 31,091 undergraduate students indicated being stressed in the past year and were include…
“There was a lot of that [coercion and manipulation] happening and well, that’s not very trustworthy”
Although a large proportion of the Canadian population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, millions of eligible individuals remain unvaccinated. Trust in public health and government impacts the effectiveness of crisis communication and the public’s willingness to follow health recommendations. This qualitative study involved semistructured interviews with 12 COVID-19 vaccine-hesitant adults in Canada. Using thematic analysis, four themes were …
Targeting components of social capital on campus to alleviate Canadian post-secondary students’ academic stress
Covid-19 Vaccine Communications on Instagram and Vaccine Uptake in Young Adults
In Canada, during the pandemic, young adults (18–29 year-olds) represented one of the least-vaccinated age groups against COVID-19. These low vaccination rates, and high infection rates, left young people vulnerable to severe infections and created a risk for transmission to immunocompromised populations. Given young adults’ unique characteristics, to encourage vaccination among this demographic, public health and government officials must adopt …
Exploring medical and veterinary student perceptions and communication preferences related to antimicrobial resistance in Ontario, Canada using qualitative methods
Overall, the study participants felt that AMR is an important issue and emphasized the need to develop different KTT tools for different audiences. This research will help inform the development of future communication materials, and support development of AMR-KTT tools tailored to the needs of different student and professional groups
A content analysis of government-issued social media posts during multi-jurisdictional enteric illness outbreaks in Canada
Introduction Most Canadians use at least one social media platform regularly, making social media a potentially effective tool for reaching broad audiences. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) uses social media as one tool for rapidly communicating with the public during multi-jurisdictional enteric illness outbreaks. However, the effectiveness of social media in enhancing public risk communication during these outbreaks remains unexplored.…
Developing competencies in public health
Effective and precise public health practice relies on a skilled and interdisciplinary workforce equipped with integrated knowledge, values, skills, and behaviors as defined by competency frameworks. Competency frameworks inform academic and professional development training, support performance evaluation, and identify professional development needs. The aim of this research was to systematically identify and examine trends in the extent, nature…
Communicating about Covid-19 Vaccines
Given the reasonably low COVID-19 vaccine rates (e.g., <60% fully vaccinated) among Canadian young adults (18–29), we sought to understand the factors that motivated this demographic to get vaccinated. Fifteen post-secondary students and graduates participated in semi-structured interviews about the type of health information they received during the pandemic, and their communication preferences. Analysis of interview data revealed four themes: (…
Modernizing public health communication competencies in Canada
Strong agreement with statements indicates support for a modernized communication competency framework among sampled professionals. Research to gather more evidence surrounding the communication demands of the public health workforce and observed variation in strong agreement for the proposed statements is underway
Social media messaging by Canadian health organizations to address indoor tanning during policy and scientific shifts
Indoor tanning (IT) is a modifiable risk factor for skin cancer, including melanoma. Social media provides a large potential audience for messaging to address IT, and incorporating elements of evidence and theory-based message design may be an effective way to impact knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours within these audiences. However, few studies have investigated whether these elements are used in practice. This content analysis explored whethe…
Best practices in public risk communication during enteric illness outbreak investigations
Introduction Public risk communication is intended to inform and protect the health of individuals during enteric illness outbreaks. However, there is limited practical research that assesses the effectiveness of communication during outbreaks. The aim of this study was to identify best practices in public risk communication during enteric illness outbreak investigations. Methods A scoping review of five bibliographic databases and gray literatur…
Evaluating Multi-Jurisdictional Enteric Illness Outbreak Messaging in Canada
Effective risk communication during enteric illness outbreaks requires the provision of clear and consistent information to diverse audiences to reduce risk of exposure, inform behavior changes, and prevent illness. Most enteric illnesses are caused by pathogens transmitted through consumption of contaminated food or water, contact with animals, or person-to-person contact. When multi-jurisdictional outbreaks occur, the Public Health Agency of Ca…
The Public Health Communication Competency Framework
The research has resulted in 18 communication competency statements comprising the Public Health Communication Competency Framework, which are intended to serve as a roadmap for public health professionals whose roles encompass communication, guide curricula development in public health programs, catalyze professional development in communication, and support public health systems to achieve the essential public health functions
Medicine (21 works) · Public health (15 works) · Political science (14 works) · Psychology (14 works) · Nursing (11 works) · Social Psychology (11 works) · Environmental health (10 works) · Public relations (9 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Public Relations and Crisis Communication (7 works)