Speakers

Dr. Alex Anawati has dedicated his career to advancing social accountability as the equity-oriented strategy for health system change and leads this work in many ways including as the Principal Investigator and Co-Lead for the SAFE for Health Institutions Project. He is an Emergency Physician in Sudbury, Canada who also delivers primary care to people who are unhoused. Dr. Anawati led a call-to-action ending with the academic health sciences centre Health Sciences North (HSN) prioritizing social accountability in their 2018-2024 strategic plan and has been strengthening the institution’s equity-focused strategy as Clinician Lead for Social Accountability.

An Associate Professor at NOSMU, Dr. Anawati’s academic, scholarly and administrative activities include two terms on NOSMU’s Board of Directors, current Deputy Speaker of the Academic Senate and former Global Health Coordinator. He is also the Physician Lead for Policy, Advocacy and Leadership at NOSMU’s first research institute the Dr. Gilles Arcand Centre for Health Equity, which has received a $3M donation from the Temetry foundation. He is a member of the Association of Medical Education of Europe’s ASPIRE for Excellence in Social Accountability Panel and has been a member of the College of Family Physicians of Canada’s Social Accountability Working Group.

Dr. Anawati was recognized as one of Sudbury’s 40 Under Forty for his work on social accountability in medicine. He has delivered over 50 presentations, plenary talks, workshops, has acted as a panelist from local to international forums and authored multiple publications on social accountability in medicine.

As we all travel through the health care landscape, are we not searching for the paths that lead to health equity? Learners, health professionals, educators, researchers and patients all navigate interconnected paths in health education and training, health care service delivery and health research on challenging journeys that may not always be centred on equitable health for all. Over the past 30 years commitments to social accountability in medicine have stretched from a bold strategy in medical education into equity-focused strategies for health care service delivery and ethical approaches for health research. This session will highlight a medical learner’s journey across the health care landscape as they grow into their role as a health professional travelling on paths made possible by socially accountability in medicine – addressing health disparities for their patients and communities with every step along the way.

Dr Shabnum Sarfraz is an accomplished development leader, who has a distinguished track record of leading multi-sectoral multi-country health portfolios, collaborated with global organizations, and contributed to ground breaking gender equity initiatives. She is a government relations specialist with over 15 years of experience shaping and influencing policy at the highest governmental tiers. As the Global Director Gender & Health for the Women in Global Health she led research, advocacy, and policy initiatives across 53 countries in the Women in Global Health network to promote gender equity in health leadership. Prior to this she worked for the Federal Planning Commission, Government of Pakistan, where she was the national policy and planning lead for the health, education, youth and gender portfolios for the Prime Minister. She led Pakistan’s national COVID19 response efforts and was the force behind the launch of the country’s first ever national gender policy framework. She has served as the Senior Technical Advisor for Marie Stopes International UK and Regional Human Resource for Health Advisor for WHO. She is a Harvard University Global Health LEAD Fellow and is recipient of Vice-Chancellor’s Alumni Awards 2021 as conferred by the University of Surrey in recognition of her extraordinary professional achievements.

The gender health gap remains a significant barrier to achieving universal health coverage (UHC), with women disproportionately facing inequities in healthcare access, quality, and outcomes. Rooted in decades of neglect, this disparity is exacerbated by limited research on women’s health, biases in clinical trials, and male-centric health policies. The gaps underscore the urgent need for targeted research to inform equitable healthcare innovations.

Equally pressing is the inequity within the health workforce, where women—who make up 70% of global healthcare providers—remain underrepresented in leadership roles and face significant pay gaps. In low- and middle-income countries, female health workers, often the backbone of health service delivery, are undervalued and underpaid, threatening workforce sustainability and the quality of care.

Addressing these challenges requires transformative policy innovation to ensure gender equity in research, workforce development, and leadership. By prioritizing these areas, we can bridge the gender health gap, improve health outcomes for women, and create resilient, inclusive healthcare systems. This keynote calls for evidence-driven strategies and collaborative solutions to make gender equity a cornerstone of global health policy and practice.

Peggy Swarbrick is a Research Professor in the Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, . ScarletWell Director role and Associate Director of the Center of Alcohol & Substance Use Studies.  She has worked for 27 years at the Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey Wellness Institute Director.  Over decades she has developed and evolved a strengths-based 8-dimensional wellness model that is been used for various populations as strength-based approach for whole health recovery and prevention.  Dr Swarbrick has made significant contributions to the body of literature in occupational therapy, nursing, and community behavioral health care practice, focused on such topics as the 8 dimensions of wellness, wellness coaching, peer support, social determinants of health, financial wellness, employment, and professional self-care. She has created self-care wellness programs for people in recovery, caregivers, families, youth, and professionals including training materials and intervention manuals.

This keynote will highlight an innovative wellness model co-created with individuals possessing lived experiences to foster health equity and reduce disparities in historically underserved and underrepresented communities. By centering community engagement, this approach leveraged collective strengths to address both physical and mental wellness in a holistic, inclusive manner.

The model emerged through collaborative efforts with individuals and community stakeholders, ensuring it is both relevant and adaptable to diverse populations. By integrating the voices of those with lived experiences, the model prioritizes culturally attuned, trauma-informed practices that honor the unique challenges and resilience of participants. It bridges the gap between those seeking services and those delivering care, creating a shared framework for empowerment, and connection.

As the model has been implemented in community-based service programs, it has been instrumental in guiding both program development, staff training and workforce self care. It helps service providers build trust and rapport with participants by acknowledging their strengths. The model promotes shared decision-making, helping to create an environment where both individuals and service providers engage in a collaborative process that leads to better health outcomes and a reduction in health disparities.

Learn about the community-based service programs that have adopted this model to guide programming, as well as the numerous self-management and self-help tools that have been widely disseminated.