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Research Programs - Neighbourhoods and Health

Centre for Research on Inner City Health - Keenan Research Centre

Access to suitable housing, nutritious food, clean water, safe recreation, and supportive social networks affect our health and our ability to benefit from health care. In cities, these resources are often distributed unequally across communities. CRICH researchers are using methods such as geographic information systems (GIS) and large-scale surveys to study the links between our health and features of the local social, cultural, economic, service, and built environment. Our goal is to produce evidence that can identify (in context) what kinds of population health interventions are likely to be successful, and inform recommendations on where to direct resources.

What We Know

We’ve put together some resources to help you get to know the issues.

CRICH Primers:

 

What We’re Working On

Neighbourhoods Effects on Health and Well-being (NEHW)

For this study, our Survey Research Unit is interviewing 3000 adults across 100 random Toronto neighbourhoods to better understand how neighbourhoods affect mental health in Canadian urban settings. This large, methodologically innovative project will combine survey data with structured observation to describe neighbourhood effects that promote, or diminish, mental health. Our goal is to produce evidence that can inform existing and future neighbourhood-level interventions. Learn more

Toronto Community Health Profiles Partnership

Data on health status, determinants of health, and health care access at the small-area level is scarce, yet essential for planning and delivering community-based services. The “Toronto Community Health Profiles Partnership” is an online, open-access source of detailed health data and maps for each of Toronto’s 140 neighbourhoods, as well as other geographic areas relevant to the delivery of health and social services. CRICH hosts and manages the site, and generates all online maps and tables. Datasets are currently being refreshed and we are consulting with partners and decision-makers about opportunities to produce an online population health observatory. Learn more

Peel Healthy Development Tool

With the Region of Peel and colleagues from municipal planning departments, CRICH scientists are adapting a tool (previously used for environmental assessment) for use in health-oriented urban planning. Municipalities will be able to use this tool to judge the potential health impacts of proposed housing developments, taking into account how street connectivity, land use mix, and population density may encourage physical activity and reduce obesity. Learn more

Effects of the Regent Park Social Housing Redevelopment on Adult Mental Health and Child Development 

Canada’s largest and oldest publicly funded community, Toronto’s Regent Park, is being demolished and redeveloped to include new community, recreational, and cultural services. CRICH is looking at how the neighbourhood’s revitalization is impacting residents’ mental health. This study has the potential to substantially enhance our understanding of how social and physical environments shape health - more specifically, the mental health of low-income adults and their children. The first of its kind in Canada and one of the first in the world, this study will provide an important evidence base for social housing redevelopments and urban planning across Canada. Learn more