Presenter: Notisha Massaquoi, Executive Director, Women’s Health in Women’s Hands
Date: January 30th, 2019

Description

There is clear evidence that disparities in access to mental health care and successful outcomes are strikingly different for racialized, immigrant and refugee women. The experience of rapid mental health deterioration post-settlement as well as increasing barriers to accessing care caused by racism, sexism, islamophobia, and other forms of social exclusion are reason for concern as policy changes being made in our current political climate will have enormous impacts on access to care and health outcomes for all women. There is a pressing need for us to consider the specific barriers for racialized, immigrant and refugee women accessing the healthcare system and to develop a sound understanding of the facilitators and solutions that will improve access to and the creation of optimal services. The services and research of Women's Health in Women's Hands Community Health Centre will act as the foundation for the evidence based interventions proposed in this discussion.

Learning objectives:

• Determine optimal service provision, quality of care and access to mental health services in relation to determinants of health for racialized, immigrant, refugee women.
• Explore a more effective and holistic model of mental health service delivery for racialized, immigrant, refugee women.
• This webinar was co-hosted by the Immigrant and Refugee Mental Health Project and the Health Equity Impact Assessment.

Presenter biography

Notisha Massaquoi has been an enthusiastic advocate for advancements in racialized women's healthcare globally for the past 25 years. She is currently the Executive Director of Women’s Health in Women’s Hands Community Health Centre– the only Community Health Centre in Canada that provides specialized primary healthcare for racialized women. She is also a lecturer in the Faculty of Social Work at Ryerson University. Her research and publications have focused on increased access to primary healthcare for racialized women and the impact of systemic racism on the health outcomes of Black women in Canada.