In the News
Cannabis Research Blocked by Policy Hinders Public Health
by Françoise Makanda at The Dalla Lana School of Public Health Are edibles better than vaping cannabis? Is vaping cannabis better than smoking marijuana? Even the experts don't know—yet. Since the legalization of cannabis in Canada, researchers have been very focused on these questions. “You need full documentation on each...
Professors Greg Marchildon and Sharon Straus appointed to the Order of Canada
By Alisa Kim, IHPME Congratulations to IHPME Professors Greg Marchildon and Sharon Straus, who were appointed to the Order of Canada. One of the country’s highest civilian honours, the Order of Canada recognizes outstanding achievement, dedication to the community and service to the nation. Appointments are made by the Governor-General...
Partnering with Faith Communities to Promote Vaccines — What Works?
Across Canada, public health officials are trying new partnerships and approaches to encourage vaccine confidence. DLSPH researchers hope to learn whether these efforts help. By Heidi Singer DLSPH researchers are beginning to study how Canadian public health officials and religious leaders are collaborating to build vaccine confidence in communities and...
Kuan Liu: The Power of Data in Public Health
Kuan Liu is a recent PhD in Biostatistics graduate. She is passionate about the role of biostatistics in clinical and public health research and the potential for using accessible data to inform public health efforts and promote public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. “As public health students, I think...
Farhana Safa: Connecting the Individual with Community Health
Farhana Safa graduated with a Master of Science in Community Health in November. The Bangladeshi-born graduate has always taken a keen interest in addictions and mental health issues within clinical care and research. “In 2018, my husband and I immigrated to Canada, and I was applying to programs with a...
DLSPH Open: Learnings from the Pandemic
Students, Staff and Faculty, I am asked a lot about what I’ve learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. In the coming years, with some distance, space and wisdom, I know that profound insights will emerge about our health systems and public health practices that could vastly improve them – if we...
Students Develop Harm-Reduction Toolkit for U of T Community
by Françoise Makanda, DLSPH U of T students developed a “Know Your Drugs 101” toolkit that will help students returning to campus spot the signs of a drug overdose. The toolkit is comprehensive – it includes information on how to respond to an overdose, and how to access and administer...
Waking Up to the Reasons Behind Chronic Sleeplessness
By Françoise Makanda, DLSPH PhD student Kristie Serota started quilting for a research project on insomnia. Quilting helps her question the ‘sleep industrial complex.’ While she radically accepts her bouts of sleeplessness, her professor in the Social and Behavioural Sciences division, insomnia researcher Michael Atkinson, suggests that it might be...
Training the Next Generation of Applied Health Researchers
New fellowship program places researchers in Ontario Health Teams to improve learning and health outcomes. By Heidi Singer Mulugeta Chala is settling into his new workplace. The newly minted PhD has just moved his family across the province to start a fellowship program in London, Ontario. For the next year,...
Falan Bennett: No Regrets on the Path to Black Health
Before enrolling at DLSPH, Falan Bennett heard one piece of advice over and over from students and alumni: the time goes by in a flash. Make sure to grab the most important opportunities. “I really took that seriously, and now I'm realizing just how fast it went and all the...