Department of Family and Community Medicine and St. Michael’s Academic Family Health Team
Social Determinants Of Health
Social conditions, such as income, employment, education, housing status, gender, race, and early childhood experience have a greater impact on health than genetics or access to health services.
In 2013 the St. Michael’s Hospital Family Health Team created a committee to address these factors. The goal is to improve the health of patients and our community. The Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) committee includes physicians, nurse practitioners, social workers, patient advisors, and other members of the health care team.
Our team has built an approach to social risks to health and social inequities into our clinical programs, education, research, and quality improvement. The story of the unique development of our team is told in the booklet below:
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Download a PDF version of the booklet.
SDOH Committee: COVID-19 Working Group
About
On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic related to coronavirus COVID-19. COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted certain groups and has widened health inequities in Canada and abroad. The SMH AFHT serves many individuals and communities who are socially marginalized and are expected to be highly impacted by COVID and the consequences of the social and economic responses to the pandemic. The SMH AFHT has a strong infrastructure to cater to the needs of its patients, coordinated by the Social Determinants of Health Committee. In order to address the unique threats posed by the pandemic, a SDOH Committee-COVID-19 Working Group was created.
Provider resources
- COVID-19 Social Care Guidance Tool
- Marginalized Patients Resource Drive
- DFCM Grand Rounds presentation – June 11, 2020
CLINICAL PROGRAMSOTHER INITIATIVESWORKING GROUPS |
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RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND QUALITY IMPROVEMENT
Faculty within the department are leaders in research and health provider education on the social determinants of health. Learn more about their quality improvement initiatives.
CLINICAL TOOLS
- Poverty: A Clinical Tool For Primary Care Providers
Simple tool to guide primary care providers in screening for and intervening in poverty
Developed by Gary Bloch, in collaboration with the Centre for Effective Practice, St. Michael’s Hospital, and the Ontario College of Family Physicians.
HIGHLIGHTS
- A prescription for poverty
The BMJ, Feature Article, Jane Parry, 20 June 2016 - Physician activism and prescribing against poverty
Canadian Family Physician, Sarah de Leeuw, April 2016 - Dangerous ideas: Top 4 proposals at the Family Medicine Forum
First place – Prescribing income
Canadian Family Physician, 2015 - St. Michael’s Hospital health team offers prescription for poverty
The Toronto Star, 23 May 2015 - Reach Out and Read program promoting childhood literacy
The Toronto Star, 26 Jan 2015 - Doctors at St. Mike’s launch project to address root causes of health
The Toronto Star, 14 Dec 2014