Social Determinants

572 articles:
Inequity
Indigenous
LGBTQ
Gender
Disability
Racism
by Madelyn Chu

Who will protect workers from AI algorithms?

The use of technology to monitor workers is not new. Take, for example, the use of security cameras, keystroke loggers and screen-time monitoring. Artificial intelligence (AI), however, is introducing new forms of surveillance that are more intrusive and controlling.
by Gabriela Lima de Melo Ghisi Camila Kümmel Duarte

Does the Mediterranean diet have to be Mediterranean? Rethinking heart-healthy eating in multicultural Canada

When someone in cardiac rehabilitation is told to follow a Mediterranean diet, they most likely picture olive oil, salmon, nuts and colourful salads. Maybe tomatoes, chickpeas and whole grains. For some Canadians, these foods are familiar, affordable and readily available. For others, they may bear little resemblance to the foods they grew up eating, the meals their families prepare or what is available at their local grocery store.
by Seema Marwaha

Saved from the cancer, undone by the care.

One in three patients over 70 leaves hospital less able to care for themselves than when they arrived. I am an internist. I have taught that number to my trainees. This fall, I watched it happen to my father. Hospital-associated disability is not a rare complication. It is the expected output of how we run acute care.

by Sudeshna Roy

Beyond loneliness and social isolation: Why belonging matters for public health

Loneliness and social isolation are recognized as severe public health challenges in this age of fast-changing lifestyles, technology and information.
by Sara Al Sharani Mohammad Yasir Essar Mujja Alloba Gabriel E. Fabreau

Refugee youth and the right to learn: An investment that pays dividends

More than 123 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced by war, violence and climate-related disasters between 2016-2025. Now, following sweeping United States policies, many high-income countries are restricting refugee access to asylum, education and work. Against this backdrop, last September we published the Halifax Declaration arguing for a different approach: one that recognizes displaced people not as passive aid recipients, but as partners in building resilient health, education and social systems.
by Niki Soilis

Canada’s health-care workforce is growing. Teaching capacity is not

Lying in a cold operating room surrounded by the health-care team, I watched trainees gather around to observe my surgery. Their presence was anticipated, given the central role hospitals play in health‑professions education. Yet as I lay there, vulnerable and exposed, I felt less like a person and more like a teaching case.
by Sumeet Talwar

Overcoming the insulin taboo

The insulin pen had been sitting on his kitchen table for months. The 46‑year‑old man, a retired Sri Lanka born chef living in the Toronto area, had survived oral cancer, pancreatitis and a lifetime of hard work. But nothing frightened him more than the small plastic pen meant to save his life. On a June morning, during a routine check after his jaw surgery, he finally confessed his fears.
by Sylvia Okonofua

Forty years after the Ottawa Charter, why do we still struggle to act on what we know?

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, one of the most influential public health documents ever written. Adopted by delegates from 38 countries at the World Health Organization's First International Conference on Health Promotion, the Charter fundamentally transformed how we think about health by challenging the notion that health is created primarily in hospitals and clinics. Instead, it argued that health is shaped by the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age.
by Lana Cho

The healing reach of art: Creative insights from participants and practitioners

If we are serious about improving health outcomes, particularly for populations navigating systemic barriers, creative expression should not be treated as an add-on. It should be recognized as a practical, accessible component of care.
by Christen Kong

Beyond attachment: The role of community artists in newcomer primary care

Community artists help humanize both health care and settlement experiences by creating accessible, relational entry points.
by Lynn Ashdown

Embracing disability consciousness: Elevating diverse voices in medical education

As health care is paying more attention to disability education in recent years, it’s important that when including disability voices, we ensure diversity of disabled voices as well.     
by Katie Dorman

CSC policy change endangers health and lives in correctional facilities

The alarming number of overdose deaths in Canadian correctional facilities warrant an urgent, multi-faceted response from the federal government.
by Mehdi Aloosh

From bombed refineries to empty fridges: A faraway war raises health concerns at home

When the Middle East burns, Canadians feel the heat in our gas tanks, grocery bills, clinic waitlists and therapy rooms. Global crises may not stay global; they can become local.

by Devina Maya Wadhwa

The words we use: Mental health literacy is expanding but not always improving

We have more language than ever to describe mental health, but not always more clarity about what those words mean.
by Caroline Ewen

Ethical recruitment of internationally educated health professionals: From principles to action

With one of the highest volumes of migrant intake in the world, Canada has both a responsibility and an opportunity to demonstrate leadership in ethical recruitment and for policymakers to support implementation of WHO code-aligned policies and practices.
by Suman Virdee

Beyond stereotypes: Family doctors’ pivotal role in detecting substance use disorders

Primary care clinics can be the best place for detection because of the stigma patients feel when walking into a specialized clinic.
by Hayley Pelletier

Flawed by design: The case of the Saskatchewan fertility treatment tax credit

Saskatchewan’s fertility treatment tax credit is fundamentally inequitable, exclusionary and revealing of whose access to care is prioritized – and whose is not.
by Abrar Ahmed

I am a new doctor; Ford is wrong about ‘basketweaving majors’

The Ontario Student Assistance Program is more than just taxpayer money. It is the people’s belief in the immense potential of every student to rise above their station and be of service to the public.
by Gabriel Fabreau Annalee Coakley

Alberta can’t rely on immigrant workers while denying them health care

Alberta cannot build a functioning health system by recruiting newcomers to sustain it while denying some of them the care and education that allow them to live, work and stay.
by Lynn Murphy-Kaulbeck Diane Francoeur

A federal bill aimed at protecting women could actually cause harm

"We call on Members of Parliament not to pass Bill S-228 in its current form and focus instead on improving policies and funding that could enhance enforcement of existing laws that prohibit coerced sterilizations."

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