KEYNOTE Speakers
Dr. Elizabeth McGibbon
on The Intersection of Ecological, Structural and Social Determinants of Health
Dr. Elizabeth McGibbon is an applied critical health social scientist. Her focus is on how public policy created oppression “gets under the skin” to deepen disadvantage and create intergenerational health damage. She draws on political economy and critical health perspectives, and related complexity science applications in health. Her current work applies these ideas to build a theoretical foundation for analyzing synergies among the structural determinants of health (e.g., social murder, slow violence), the ecological determinants of health and the social determinants of health. She is one of three leads in establishing the National Collaborating Center, Determinants of Health (Public Health Agency of Canada). She also published the first Canadian books to address anti-racism specifically in health care practice (McGibbon & Etowa, 2009) and oppression as a social determinant of health (2nd Edition, Spring 2021).
Dr. Billie Allan
on Resistance, Refusal and Resurgence: Addressing Indigenous Racism in Healthcare
Dr. Allan is a Two Spirit Anishinaabe from Sharbot Lake, Ontario. She is currently an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Victoria and Chair of the Thunderbird Circle – Indigenous Social Work Educators’ Network (TC-ISWEN), and a past postdoctoral fellow at the Well Living House. Her talk will address anti-Indigenous racism in healthcare with specific attention to the implications for Indigenous women, children and Two Spirit peoples.
Workshop Presenters
DR. AMY GAJARIA
on Race and Mental Health: How Systemic Racism Affects Mental Health Care for Children and Families
Dr. Amy Gajaria is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at the Centre for Addiction in Mental Health in Toronto, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto, and a Clinician-Scientist with the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute. Her clinical and research interests are in health equity and improving mental health care for underserved populations, with a focus on the mental health of racialized children, youth, and families.
YouthREX
on Cannabis Use Among Youth
This workshop, led by YouthREX, will outline the social, epidemiological, and health contexts for cannabis use among youth. Through a series of reflective questions, attendees will be encouraged to challenge their preconceived notions and understanding of cannabis use. Attendees will then be provided with some tools and interactive opportunities in break-out rooms to learn motivational interviewing to support family, friends, and future patients.
IWCH Conference 2023 