Institute for Pandemics

IfP authors include: @benita-hosseini.bsky.social, @andrewpinto.bsky.social, @mishrash.bsky.social, Prof. Notisha Massaquoi , Dr. Sharon Straus, Dr. Fahad Razak, Dr Nav Persaud.

Screenshot of a journal article titled “Unveiling the Impact: A Scoping Review of the COVID-19 Pandemic's Effects on Racialized Populations in Canada” with a list of authors, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

COVID-19 affected racialized communities in Canada more severely, increasing illness, mental health struggles, and barriers to care. Experts say paid sick leave, anti-racism laws, and better data are needed to address these gaps.

🔗 Read more: bit.ly/46SkGBA

Event | Join the BRN for "Graduate Student Lunch Hour: Shaping BRN Programming." The virtual event takes place on Oct. 17 from 12 - 1 p.m. with R. Cassandra Lord, the BRN's acting director.

📢 Calling all #UofT graduate students!

On Oct. 17, join the BRN for a virtual lunch-hour to help shape the future of our programming.

This informal session is your chance to share ideas on how we can better support your academic + professional journey 🤝🏽 buff.ly/GzIARpa #BlackResearchNetwork

Promotional flyer for the Catalyst Seminar Series by the University of Toronto's Institute for Pandemics. It announces Session 1: Long-COVID, scheduled for October 17, 2025, from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm, delivered online. Featured speakers are Kathi Wilson (University of Toronto Mississauga), Andrea Rishworth (University of Toronto Mississauga) and Joseph Munn (Sunnybrook Research Institute). Includes headshots of Wilson and Munn. Registration link: pandemics.utoronto.ca.

Join us Oct 17, 12–1 PM EST, for the Catalyst Seminar on Long-COVID as Joseph Munn (Sunnybrook Research Institute) shares insights from his research on Post-COVID Condition in Ontarians & marginalized communities.

🔗 Register: bit.ly/48xePE4

#LongCovid #HealthEquity #CatalystSeminar #PublicHealth

Event | Join the BRN's Academic Practice Lab for "Strategic Insights and Institutional Support for Effective Grant Writing." The virtual event takes place on Oct. 10 from 12 - 1 p.m.

Launching Oct. 10: The BRN's Academic Practice Lab, a monthly workshop series to support researchers on their academic journey!

Our first workshop will explore how to craft strong applications & proposals at #UofT – including for the BRN IGNITE Grant ✍🏽 buff.ly/f7UwaJO #BlackResearchNetwork

Screenshot of an academic paper titled "Impact of Supply Chain Disruptions and Drug Shortages on Drug Utilization: A Scoping Review." The paper is labeled as an "Original Article" and marked "Open Access." Authors listed are Araniy Santhireswaran, Shanzeh Chaudhry, Martin Ho, Kaitlin Fuller, Etienne Gaudette, Lisa Burry, and Mina Tadrous, each with superscript numbers indicating institutional affiliations.

How do drug shortages affect medication use?

A study by Araniy Santhireswaran & Prof. Mina Tadrous @pharmacy.utoronto.ca reviewed studies on drug shortages & found that drug shortages often lead to significant reductions in drug utilization.

🔗Read more
bit.ly/4nRoc62

Promotional flyer for the Catalyst Seminar Series by the University of Toronto's Institute for Pandemics. It announces Session 1: Long-COVID, scheduled for October 17, 2025, from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm, delivered online. Featured speakers are Kathi Wilson (University of Toronto Mississauga), Joseph Munn (Sunnybrook Research Institute), and Andrea Rishworth (University of Toronto Mississauga). Includes headshots of Wilson and Munn. Registration link: pandemics.utoronto.ca.

📅 Catalyst Seminar 1: Long-COVID

How is Long-COVID impacting marginalized & racialized communities in Ontario?

Hear from experts Kathi Wilson, Andrea Rishworth & Joseph Munn on Oct 17 at 12pm.

🔗 Register: bit.ly/48xePE4

#LongCovid #HealthEquity #PublicHealth @utm.utoronto.ca

The 1st session in our Catalyst Seminar Series focuses on Long-COVID, with an emphasis on impacts to racialized and marginalized communities.

Join us on October 17th to hear from Kathi Wilson (UTM) and Joseph Munn (Sunnybrook).
Registration details here: bit.ly/4gcs13f

#SeminarSeries #LongCOVID

Announcing the launch of our Catalyst Seminar Series, a dynamic series showcasing groundbreaking research funded by the IfP Catalyst and Research Development Grants.

From October through March, there will be six online seminars.
Full details on our website: bit.ly/4gcs13f

Explore the findings: bit.ly/3JPaF00
#HealthEquity #IntellectualProperty #PandemicPolicy

📢 Canada’s pandemic response talked equity—but did it walk the walk?

A new BMJ Global Health article by IfP Studentship Awardee, Daniel Eisenkraft Klein, shows Canada resisted key IP reforms, limiting access to life-saving medicines globally.

@ed4socialchange.bsky.social

Congratulations to IfP member, Jude Kong @dzevela.bsky.social , on being appointed to the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists!
www.utoronto.ca/celebrates/f...

The session will present highlights about health system structures, challenges, and progress across the three countries, offering comparative perspectives to inform policy and reform.

The presentations stem from country-specific reports: eurohealthobservatory.who.int/publications...

On Sept 9th at 12pm ET, watch IfP Resilience Theme Lead Sara Allin in a webinar on key findings from the Health Systems in Action insights featuring Canada, Mexico and the USA.
Register: utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

Our research into historical #pandemics and literature has just been published on the medical humanities platform @the-polyphony.bsky.social - find it here ⬇️ #medhums #hstm #histsci #litsi

📚 Read the Articles:
- In Journal of Health Equity: doi.org/10.1080/2994...
- In Social Science & Medicine: doi.org/10.1016/j.so...

📣 Learn more about the team’s IfP grant projects:
- pandemics.utoronto.ca/2023-catalys...
- pandemics.utoronto.ca/2025-knowled...

Wilson, Galloway, & Adams received an IfP Catalyst and Research Development Grant for their project on structural racism & Long COVID in Peel Region.

Wilson also received an IfP Knowledge Mobilization Grant for a project on co-creating equitable Long COVID interventions.

One, in Journal of Health Equity, explores perceptions around vaccine decision making; the other, in Social Science & Medicine, examines economic and work-related challenges during the pandemic.

📑 IfP members Kathleen Wilson, Matthew Adams, and Tracey Galloway ( @utm.utoronto.ca ) have recently published two articles on the pandemic-related experiences of Canadian racialized and immigrant adults.

Graduate Studentship Award Project Highlight - Institute for Pandemics Virtual Care in Community Pharmacy Services: A Scoping Review and Resulting Recommendations for Practice and Policy Led by Yasmin Aboelzahab, PhD Candidate at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy…

👥 Learn more about Yasmin’s IfP-funded project: pandemics.utoronto.ca/graduate-stu...

📑 Read the full research article in Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy: doi.org/10.1016/j.sa...

The scoping review highlights virtual care tools and technologies, barriers and facilitators to access, & strategies to optimize use—showing that virtual care has a strong potential to enhance pharmacy services.

2023 IfP Graduate Studentship Awardee Yasmin Aboelzahab ( @uoftpharmacy.bsky.social ) has published her IfP-funded research on virtual care in pharmacy, co-authored with IfP members Andrew Pinto and Lisa Dolovich.

The role of trust in engaging community-based task forces and agencies among minoritized communities during a public health emergency - Canadian Journal of Public Health Objectives To investigate how task forces, networks, and community agencies engaged with faith-based, and ethnoracial communities to improve vaccine confidence and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, and to…

📖 Read the full article: doi.org/10.17269/s41...

#CommunityHealth #CommunityEngagement #PublicHealth #PandemicResilience #VaccineConfidence

Research findings reveal that interpersonal & organizational trust are key to public health outreach. 🤝 Community leaders & ambassadors were vital in building trust & boosting vaccine uptake among minoritized communities.

How did community groups work w/ faith-based & ethnoracial communities to build trust & boost COVID-19 vaccine uptake?

IfP’s Shaza Fadel, Sara Allin & Erica Di Ruggiero ( @dlsph.bsky.social @ihpmeuoft.bsky.social) explore this in a new @cjphrcsp.bsky.social article focused on Peel Region & Toronto.

📖 Read the full article: doi.org/10.3390/ijer...

👥 IfP members include: Notisha Massaquoi @utsc.bsky.social, Sharon Straus @ihpmeuoft.bsky.social, Fahad Razak @unityhealthto.bsky.social, Benita Hosseini @uoftmedicine.bsky.social, Nav Persaud @uoftmedicine.bsky.social, Sharmistha Mishra, Azza Eissa, @andrewpinto.bsky.social @upstreamlab.bsky.social

The review found that racialized populations in Canada faced greater COVID-19 morbidity and mortality rates, increased discrimination, worsening mental health, and difficulty accessing healthcare and basic necessities.

📣 A new scoping review funded by the Institute for Pandemics highlights how COVID-19 disproportionately impacted racialized communities in Canada—driven by longstanding structural inequities and systemic racism, worsened during public health crises.