Two faculty members at the Centre for Gender & Sexual Health Equity in the UBC Faculty of Medicine (FoM) have been awarded Michael Smith Health Research Scholar Awards aimed at supporting the next generation of scientists and enhancing their potential to make significant contributions to their field.

Dr. Brittany Bingham (she/her), CGSHE Director of Indigenous Research in the UBC FoM and an Assistant Professor in Social Medicine (Department of Medicine) and Dr. Julia Smith (she/her), CGSHE Faculty Member and Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University, were among 26 exceptional early-career researchers who received the 2022 MSFHR Scholar Award.

Dr. Bingham’s Scholar Award at CGSHE/UBC FoM will focus on resourcing and expanding her research program using decolonizing, arts-based and intersectional methods to advance health equity and reproductive justice among Indigenous women and Two-Spirit people and to identify factors that influence access to culturally-safe and trauma informed care. According to Dr. Bingham, the goal is to map and innovate strategies to inform evidence-based actions for the development of structural, community-based and Indigenous-led responses. “We will continue to amplify Indigenous and community voices through this research to inform evidence based actions, facilitate Indigenous led responses and inform system transformation and policy change.”

Dr. Smith’s Scholar Award at CGSHE/SFU will support her research program to develop transformative pandemic response, recovery and preparedness based on her current research on the effects of COVID-19 on women and health care providers. “The response to the pandemic exacerbated gender inequities and this limited the effectiveness of the COVID-19 response. This vicious cycle will recur with future outbreaks unless it is interrupted by an intentionally transformative approach,” explained Dr. Smith. “I’m grateful to receive this award, which provides the freedom to dive deep into this research – and the resources to ensure that research has impact.”

Congratulations to Drs. Bingham and Smith for this very well deserved recognition of their amazing work to advance gender equity and reproductive justice!