When Ontario made prescription medications free for people under 25, the goal was to improve access to care. New research suggests it also helped prevent some youth mental health crises before they escalated. In 2018, OHIP+ was launched to provide public drug coverage for youth, helping overcome financial barriers to prescription medications for those under 25. For Antony Chum, an associate professor in 91��ɫ’s Faculty of Health who studies how public policy shapes health outcomes, it also created what he describes as a "natural experiment" – an opportunity to track differences before and after free drug coverage was introduced. He examined this "experiment" alongside postdoctoral researchers Peiya Cao and Yihong Bai, as well as PhD student Kristine Ienciu.

When Rick Powless learned that Health Sciences North in Sudbury launched its first Indigenous hospital menu, he felt a shift happen. The third-year doctoral student at 91��ɫ's Faculty of Education is a Red Seal-certified Indigenous chef, an Ontario College of Teachers-certified educator and a member of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, Oneida Nation of the Thames, Bear Clan. He was also the primary consultant on an initiative led by Compass Group Canada to bring Indigenous meals into Ontario hospitals – a project that recognizes the role of traditional and cultural food in healing. His contributions also serve as a testament to his work to advance meaningful cross-cultural engagement.

Martina Jakubchik-Paloheimo, a postdoctoral fellow in 91��ɫ’s Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change, has received funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) to support an ongoing collaborative initiative to integrate Indigenous knowledge into polar bear conservation in Ontario. The funding, awarded through SSHRC’s Indigenous Capacity and Leadership in Research Connection Grants program, supports Indigenous-led research and partnerships that strengthen community-based research capacity and advance projects aligned with priorities identified by First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.

A 91��ɫ doctoral researcher will help inform international policy on equitable access to water and sanitation as part of an international advisory group. Michael Davies‑Venn, a Faculty of Graduate Studies student in the Global Health graduate program, joins the Expert Group on Equitable Access to Water and Sanitation led by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The three‑year appointment highlights the impact of 91��ɫ researchers in addressing complex global health and environmental challenges. The group brings together researchers, policymakers and practitioners and began its work earlier this year to guide the implementation of the World Health Organization’s Protocol on Water and Health.

Four undergraduate and six graduate students have been awarded the Lillian Meighen Wright Scholarship, recognizing academic excellence, leadership and growing contributions to maternal and child health research. The scholarship is awarded to Faculty of Health students who demonstrate excellence in interdisciplinary education and research in the field of maternal and child health. The 2026 recipients are undergraduate students Sobi Mohan, Sana Ebadi, Aaliyah Daruwala and Sarah Belvedere; and graduate students Estreya Cohen, Paul De Luca, Haleh Hashemi, Anh Nguyen, Gillian Shoychet and Vanessa Tassone.

A new international study involving 91��ɫ researcher expertise shows that AI could help make liver transplant decisions more consistent, transparent and evidence-based, especially when resources are limited. “Liver transplantation is a rare case in medicine where access to a life-saving treatment is limited by organ availability,” explains co-senior author Divya Sharma, assistant professor in the Faculty of Science. “Decisions about who is waitlisted are complex, and committee deliberations can be subject to unconscious bias where a clinician's own background or identity may subtly influence their judgement, even when national guidelines are in place.”

A new study by 91��ɫ researchers reveals how tuberculosis (TB) can disrupt work, relationships and daily life, leaving lasting effects even after treatment ends. “For many people, the experience of TB is debilitating physically, emotionally, socially and financially,” says Nancy Bedingfield, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, who works with Associate Professor Amrita Daftary at the School of Global Health. The way these effects are typically studied is through a unifying framework. “Quality of life (QoL) is a single concept capable of capturing these wide-ranging impacts,” she explains.

Research led by 91��ɫ draws attention to inequities in Canada’s public health care system affecting immigrant and racialized families raising children on the autism spectrum. Conducted by a team at 91��ɫ’s Faculty of Health in partnership with the community organization SMILE Canada-Support Services, the research centres on the voices of family caregivers who are often overlooked in autism research or policy discussions despite facing disproportionate barriers to care. The study, published in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, investigates the lived experiences of caregivers from marginalized communities to understand the social determinants affecting access to care and autism-related services.