Fall 2023

CROSH Crew News

The CROSH Members' Newsletter

Welcome to the fall CROSH Members' Newsletter! We hope you enjoy this issue; let us know what you think!


Registration for CROSHCon 2024: Occupational Illness Awareness is open! Register below and join us on January 19, 2024.

Click here to register for CROSHCon 2024

Research is heating up in Dr. Nicholas Ravanelli's Lab at Lakehead University

Research in action in Dr. Ravanelli's Lab. They now have the capacity to simulate ambient temperatures up to 50°C in the lab!

Dr. Nicholas Ravanelli is the CROSH Research Lead in Occupational Environment and Physiology. He's an Assistant Professor in the School of Kinesiology at Lakehead University.


Dr. Ravanelli's overarching research objectives are:


  • to find efficient, safe, and effective evidence-based strategies to reduce the risk of heat-related illness in occupational settings;
  • to identify what factors (e.g., disease, drugs) independently influence thermoregulatory function; and
  • to advance our current understanding of fundamental thermoregulatory control mechanisms.

By understanding the underlying mechanisms for how people respond to exercise and heat, we can:


  • better predict the risk of heat-related illness in heat-vulnerable populations;
  • devise evidence-based cooling strategies to preserve health, quality of life, and performance within occupational or athletic settings; and
  • potentially exploit structured heat exposure to improve individual heat tolerance.

Make these your next reads:



Dr. Ravanelli and his team recently completed the CROSH-funded project, "Does diphenhydramine impair evaporative heat loss during physical activity in temperate conditions?"


He worked with local (Thunder Bay) physician Dr. Mario Nucci and Lakehead University graduate student (and CROSH Student Member) Douglas Newhouse. They've completed data collection and the initial findings are currently under peer-review. Stay tuned for the publication details!


They are following this study up with a larger investigation on other antihistamines and their potential impact on temperature regulation during heat stress.


Dr. Ravanelli and his team also finished data collection in Montreal from the summer when they piloted HeatSuite, their research focused field data acquisition system. It's website (www.heatsuite.ca) is still being curated, but stay tuned for it to become available!


On top of all that, his team has also submitted 4 abstracts (from 2 MSc students and 1 undergrad student) to the American Physiology Summit 2024!


If you're interested in joining Dr Ravanelli's team as a graduate student, you can reach him at nravanel@lakeheadu.ca.

Meet the newest members of the CROSH Crew

Since our last newsletter, the following students have become CROSH members. Welcome to the CROSH Crew!

Raisul Islam Atik

Program: Masters in Engineering - Engineering Science

Apurvkumar Bhatt 

Program: Masters in Applied Science

Melanie Clouthier

Program: Masters in Human Kinetics

Tyanne Ewing-Bui

Program: Kinesiology

Gomin Mathew George

Program: Masters in Computational Science

Md Ferdous Hasan

Program: Masters in Computational Science

Shaantanu Kulkarni

Program: Human Kinetics - Sport Psychology

Zamdazitta M. Kumbakumba Program: Masters in Engineering Science

Congratulations Megan Wickie

Congratulations to student member Megan Wickie on earning the 2023 Mining Diesel Emissions Council (MDEC) Scholarship! Megan's research is on “Evaluating the Healthcare and Economic Burden of High Diesel Particulate Matter Occupational Exposure Limits in Northern Ontario’s Underground Mining Industry.”


“My research aims to fill a gap in our understanding of diesel exhaust exposures, and their link with cardiovascular diseases in the mining industry. It will inform the industry's strategies to mitigate the exposure and associated health risks, leading to a healthier and more productive workforce. By working directly within the industry or in a mining-related service/supply industry, I will be able to apply the findings of my research to real-world situations, driving change, and improvement in the health and safety standards within the industry."

 - Megan Wickie

OHCOW Launches their Silica Control Tool

On November 3rd, Ontario Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW) launched their Silica Control Tool. The goal of the Tool is to reduce risk, protect workers, and improve efficiency for construction companies who work with silica by developing and providing an Exposure Control Plan. Workers and employers in the Ontario Construction Industry can get full access to the Tool.


If you know someone who could benefit from the Tool, you can share this link with them.

New Website Update

The new CROSH website is under development by local firm Design de Plume. We'll let you know when it launches!

Mock-up of the home page of the new website.

Resources for Members

There are a variety of resources for our members on our shared Google Drive, from presentation templates to the lab handbook. And there's more we're adding! If you don't have access to the drive, email croshtech@laurentian.ca.

CROSH Word Search

Play the CROSH Word Search online or print it out below.

fall 2023 word search

Upcoming Events

  • OHCOW Occ|tober Webinar. Exposures & Disease – Making the Link. November 17th 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm. Click here to learn more.


  • OHCOW Occ|tober Webinar. Airborne Hazard Management – Reducing Exposures in Mining. November 24th 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm. Click here to learn more.


  • Lunch and Learn. Key Takeaways from ACE MSD Solutions Lab.November 30th 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm in B-216A. Presented by Melanie Cloutier.


  • Holiday Get-Together. December 7th 11:00 am - 1:00 pm in B-216A. If you wish, you can bring a nut-free holiday treat to share - but very much not required.



  • Meeting ID: 854 5330 7003
  • Passcode: 127186




  • CROSH Annual General Membership Meeting. June 5th at 10:00am. Details to follow closer to the date.

Student Opportunities

Interested in a CROSH student internship? Learn more about our internship program and how you can show your interest by clicking here. You can then submit your completed Notification of Interest form to croshtech@laurentian.ca

Laurentian University's Goodman School of Mines' Mineral Resource Industry Leadership Certificate is an excellent opportunity for students considering a career in the mining industry. Click here to learn more!

Call for Participants

Student member Pranil GC is recruiting participants for a study comparing the effectiveness of virtual reality and video training methods for working at heights safety training. If you'd like to participate (and meet the criteria), you can scan the QR code below. You can also email Pranil for more information at pg_c@laurentian.ca.

Thank you for reading, and stay tuned for the next newsletter in Spring 2024!

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