Event Details

This PHO Rounds will introduce the newly formed provincial Black Public Health Advisory Committee. This session will contextualize Black health as a public health practice, as well as share preliminary findings of a literature search on engaging with Black communities in Canada. The speakers will also provide examples of promising practises and success stories with regards to Black public health initiatives across the province.

This event is part of a series on Black public health. Stay tuned for more in the series and visit our Events page for upcoming events.

Intended audience: Medical Officers of Health (MOH), Associate Medical Officers of Health (AMOH), public health professionals with interest in equity, policy makers, and decision-makers, public health leadership.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Describe the purpose, scope of work and Guiding Principles of the Black Public Health Advisory Committee.
• Discuss how public health institutions engage with Black communities in meaningful ways.
• Reflect on opportunities and approaches that increase trust, remove barriers and improve health equity for Black communities.

Dr. Onye Nnorom, MDCM, CCFP, MPH, FRCPC, is a distinguished physician, advocate, public speaker and leader in the field of public health and equity. She is a family doctor and public health and preventive medicine specialist. She is Associate Chief Medical Officer of Health for the Province of Ontario; the Chief and Medical Director of Health Equity and Population Health at Lakeridge Health; and the Black Health Faculty Lead in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. She is also a medical consultant at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). Dr. Nnorom has dedicated her career to addressing health disparities and improving health outcomes for marginalized communities, with a particular focus on Black populations. Dr. Nnorom is the co-founder of the Black Health Education Collaborative, which was established to provide online educational resources on anti-Black racism and Black health for health professional students, clinicians and public health practitioners.

Recently, she launched a social media outreach initiative called Healthcaring Differently to encourage diverse youth to explore careers in medicine. Dr. Nnorom’s expertise lies at the intersection of anti-racism, community health and healthcare transformation.

Samiya Abdi, MPH, G.D. Social Innovation, is the Senior Program Specialist leading the Health Equity portfolio at Public Health Ontario. Over the past 18 years, Samiya has been working towards making the public health system more equitable by challenging intersecting forms of oppression and understanding marginalization in knowledge production, research and practice. Prior to returning to her home position with PHO, Samiya served as the Executive Director of the Black Health Education Collaborative (BHEC), a first of its kind Black-Led organization that transforms medical and public health academic and professional education.

Samiya also possesses extensive experience in community engagement work, has co-founded international movements such as the Somali Gender Equity Movement and Famine Resisters alongside local initiatives such as Aspire2Lead and the Toronto Muslim Youth Political fellowship.

The opinions expressed by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies or views of Public Health Ontario, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by Public Health Ontario.

Public Health Ontario Rounds are a self-approved group learning activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC).

Other colleges, including the College of Family Physicians of Canada, Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario and the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors, may accept RCPSC accredited events on a per-hour basis. Please contact your relevant college should you have any questions.

In order to receive written documentation for Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits, please check "Yes" beside the question "Do you require CME credits?" on the registration form.

For more information or for a record of registration for other Continuing Education purposes, please contact capacitybuilding@oahpp.ca.

Public Health Ontario is committed to complying with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). If you require accommodations to participate in this event, please contact 647-260-7100 or capacitybuilding@oahpp.ca.