Despite numerous system interventions, emergency department (ED) wait times at Waterloo Regional Health Network (WRHN) remain a critical challenge. As part of an Innovation Partnership Procurement by Co-Design initiative led jointly with the University of Waterloo under the CareNext Coalition, WRHN is now engaging vendors and internal stakeholders to co-develop novel interventions that improve patient […]

Cardiac conduction disturbances (CDs) are a prevalent complication of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) procedures, which are performed by interventional cardiologists to treat heavily calcified aortic valves. CDs may emerge during or after TAVI, and are typically caused by mechanical injury to the heart’s conduction system, which can be highly challenging to prevent during the […]

This project aims to improve the early detection of pressure injuries (PIs) in children with disabilities who wear casts for long periods. PIs occur when continuous pressure over bony areas damages the skin, leading to pain, infections, and longer hospital stays. Currently, it is difficult to monitor the skin under a cast because it cannot […]

La prématurité constitue un réel problème de santé publique mondiale car approximativement 13,4 millions de nouveau-nés par an naissent dans cet état dans le monde, déterminant ainsi un taux de prématurité estimé à 11%. Cependant, la grande part de ces naissances revient aux pays en voie de développement, avec plus de 43% des cas. Bien […]

This initiative aims to directly apply cutting-edge health research to improve care in long-term and assisted living facilities, bridging the gap between academic insights and practical healthcare delivery. Through a focused two-year project, facilitated by a Mitacs Business Strategy internship, we will embed a specialist intern to translate research findings into actionable improvements within these […]

We propose to develop a microfluidic device that enables the selection of viable sperm directly from semen via a simple dip approach. The device will feature a chamber incorporating a porous membrane. The sperm selection method involves only two steps – users load the device with a semen sample and place the device in buffer. […]

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive, debilitating, chronic respiratory disease that affects 600 million people worldwide and is responsible for 3 million deaths worldwide each year. Given the recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and the availability of large datasets from both the public and private sectors, our project applies AI to analyze […]

Using simplified language understandable to a layperson, provide a general, one-paragraph description of the proposed research project to be undertaken by the intern(s) as well as the expected benefit to the partner organization. (100-150 words) In more than 75% of all Sudden Cardiac Arrests, no one is there to witness the event and call 9-1-1, […]

The long wait for pediatric rehabilitation requires that service providers support families in new and innovative ways while they wait for service. Tiered service delivery is a model where each tier represents a higher intensity of service. The first tier provides Universal Resources; supports that can benefit all children. KidsAbility is building a Universal Resource […]

Normal movements are generated via controlled activation of motor units (MUs), which consist of motoneurons and their innervated muscle fibers. To support the wide range of movements humans perform daily, it’s been suggested that MUs are recruited and fire depending on the direction of applied force. The proprioceptive sense of force, which is the ability […]

Artificial intelligence tools for contrast enhancement in medical imaging often improve visibility but may remove subtle structural details, reducing diagnostic reliability and clinical confidence. This project focuses on validating and preparing for the commercialization of the Edge-Aware Diffusion for Contrast Enhancement framework, which uses an edge-aware diffusion process to improve image contrast while preserving fine […]

Globally, there have been challenges in pulling together data, analyses, epidemiological insights, and unusual infection disease trends into comprehensive and regular reporting, that support pharmaceutical and life sciences organizations with timely intelligence for decision making. BlueDot has the knowledge and expertise to bring together these insights in a highly visual, easily understandable regular reporting format, […]