Social Determinants

553 articles:
Inequity
Indigenous
LGBTQ
Gender
Disability
Racism
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."
by Suman Virdee

To improve primary care, ‘think globally, act locally’

Primary care is the foundation not only for individual but also for collective health, and we must mobilize more family physicians to improve it.
by Margot Burnell

Co-payments ‘a step backward’ for refugees and the health-care system

It’s imperative we protect access to health care for refugees and asylum claimants. There is no compromise when it comes to equitable health care.
by Sarah Hobbs

Encouraging signs but retention and recruitment essential for Ontario to achieve primary care goals

The Primary Care Act and the vision that positions primary care as the foundation of Ontario’s health system is the bold thinking our system has needed for many years. But now is the time to act on retention.

by Elliot Goodell Ugalde

The paradox of progress: How medical advancements are expanding the time we spend unwell

Humanity is living longer, yet a growing portion of that extended life is spent in poor health. What if the same forces that prolong life, namely technology and industrialization, are also increasing the percentage of our lives spent unwell?
by Maddi Dellplain

Bill to criminalize forced sterilization sparks debate over reproductive justice and medical practice

Bill S-228, which would criminalize forced and coerced sterilization with an up to 14-year prison sentence, is on its way to becoming law. But is it a step in the right direction? Experts weigh in.

by Biba Tinga

The issue no one wants to address about blood donation and Black Canadians

The issue is not whether Black communities care enough to donate. The issue is whether Canada’s blood system is structured in a way that makes equitable participation possible.
by Joanna Cheek

Instead of pointing fingers, let’s fix the societal problems plaguing us

Rather than worsening our society’s health and safety by spewing hate as we grieve Tumbler Ridge, we need to respond compassionately to our national tragedies by caring for everyone and fixing the societal imbalances that will keep harming us all.
by Saachi Jain

Schooling or suicide: The ethical responsibility of educational institutions

Students are dying silently in the places meant to shape their futures. Schools cannot prevent every tragedy, but they also cannot ignore the role they play.
by Devina Wadhwa

In rural Canada, burnout looks different

Burnout in Northern Ontario is not simply about being tired. It is about being stretched across distance, across roles, and across unmet needs. It reflects the broader challenge of delivering care in a vast country with uneven resource distribution.
by Natalie Brender

Violent extremism is a public health problem

Social polarization and worsening toxic online ecosystems have catapulted a growing range of extremisms, which have pushed well beyond political ideology and into nihilism, misogyny, hate-fuelled and sexually exploitative forms.

by Lori Dunne

The cost of caring: Social worker well-being and fair compensation

As social workers we are often expected to put our needs last, while accepting an income that fails to reflect the true value of our work. We need to change the social work discourse and change the landscape in which we are expected to work.
by Colleen Kelly

Kevin’s story: My journey with my brother, dementia and Down Syndrome

Across the country, we talk about dementia more than we used to, but too often, conversations remain fragmented - and people with disabilities are rarely at the centre of planning.

by Anu Radha Verma

‘Dangerous outcomes’: The limitations of BMI as a diagnostic tool

Researchers, clinicians and advocates have been raising concerns about the BMI, saying it is not a comprehensive indicator of health and using it can have disastrous results, especially for racialized populations.
by Chetan Mehta

From harm reduction to harm production: A frontline physician on the closure of safe consumption sites

The closure of safe consumption sites in Ontario flies in the face of scientific evidence and my experiences as a physician on the frontlines.

by Laura Targownik

Alberta has restricted access to gender based medical care for trans youth. Will the rest of Canada soon follow?

If clinicians cannot demonstrate who is most likely to benefit from pediatric gender-based care, governments may do it for them, with young people paying the price.

by Keerthana Pasumarthi

Where two worlds meet: The importance of cultural sensitivity in medicine

"I felt not like a physician but more like an interpreter – not of language, but of the space between two worlds: Western medicine and the cultural practices that shaped Lakshmi and Prakash’s life."
by Maria Blondin

‘When doctors stop talking, patients fall apart’

When care is fragmented, patients become the glue holding the system together. We carry test results from one office to another, retell our histories again and again, and hope that someone will connect the dots before something important is missed.
by Haya Alnashi

The colonial wounds on Indigenous women’s health

To improve Indigenous women’s health, there must be a drastic change to the health-care system and how we view health.
by Madhumitha Rabindranath

Entschuldigung, ich spreche kein Deutsch! A reflection on my clinical exchange

One medical student's exchange in Berlin taught her not only about German culture, but how language and other support services can be offered in Canadian hospitals.

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