Projects

This is a paper- and web-based survey that aims to produce new knowledge about midwives' attitudes and how they might be shaped. This research matters because understanding what shapes Ontario midwives' attitudes towards SGM might help ensure midwives are able to provide quality, inclusive care to all SGM, which could play an important role in reducing health disparities of SGM and creating midwifery care that is inclusive, safe and celebratory of SGM.

This study aims to address a significant gap in employment-related literature among this largely ignored population within the labour market. The purpose of this project is to generate a preliminary evidence base of foundational and transferable employment skills and training, as well as outcomes, 2SLGBTQ+ people in Canada. This project is in response to a request for research that informs programs and policies supported by Employment and Social Development Canada in order to improve employment outcomes for 2SLGBTQ+ people.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and 2-Spirit (LGBTQ2S) youth are overrepresented in the homeless youth population across Canada, but underrepresented in homeless shelters. Although we have known about this issue for over two decades, it has been neglected and inadequately addressed for far too long. This issue has been left out of important dialogue on youth homelessness until fairly recently.

Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in the country, with 9% of Canadians reporting using cannabis in the past year. However, US and Australian studies indicate that 38-60% of bisexual women report past year cannabis use, a rate 3-5 times that of our straight peers.

This research aims to examine food insecurity inequalities among Canadians by their sexual orientation identity, and examine how poverty (measured by several socioeconomic statuses) may explain the health inequalities by sexual orientation (alone and intersection with other social positions), using population-based data in Canada. In this study, we will particularly focus on the analysis of the inequalities among bisexuals vs. gay/lesbian and heterosexuals.

Recent research indicates that rates of depression and suicidality are elevated within transgender/transsexual/transitioned (trans) populations (Grant et al., 2010; Bauer et al, 2013). At the same time, gender minorities report experiencing discrimination from service providers when accessing mental health care. This may lead to the avoidance of necessary psychological support programs.

In fields such as Indigenous health and HIV, the principles of community-based research (CBR) have successfully become ‘mainstream’, where even major research funders expect them to be integrated in research on these topics. In contrast, relatively little research in the areas of mental health or substance use integrates the principles of CBR, and as such, communities of individuals with lived experience of mental health services and/or drug use have less often had opportunities to experience the potential benefits associated with CBR, both in terms of capacity building and research resulting in social change. The goal of this project was to increase meaningful engagement of people with lived experience in research on mental health or substance use, by producing a guidance document for academic researchers working in this field.

An overarching goal of our work in the area of LGBTQ2S+ parenting is to improve the quality and accessibility of health and social services for all LGBTQ2S+ parents and prospective parents. One of our earlier studies addressed this goal by focusing on LGBTQ2S+ adoption: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, and two-spirit adoption in Ontario: Policy, practice and personal narratives. We collected survey data from 44 adoption agencies in Ontario (97 were asked to participate). We found that only 13 agencies had a policy regarding adoption by LGBTQ2S+, most of which were public, secular agencies in larger urban settings; only 16 actively recruited LGBTQ2S+ adoptive parents, i.e., table at community organizations or events (i.e., Pride); and only 3 of 44 agencies/individuals who participated indicated that they had received education about specific needs and concerns of sexual and gender minority prospective parents. We also interviewed LGBTQ2S+ adoptive parents to learn about their stories of adoption, beginning with their decisions to pursue adoption and closing with their experiences since the adopted child(ren) joined their family.

Previous research indicates that bisexual women experience subtle stressors and supports (or microaggressions and microaffirmations), and that these experiences are related to mental health. However, there is not yet a valid way to measure these day-to-day experiences. This project is aimed at developing a validated measure that can be used to assess daily microaggressions and microaffirmations in order to better understand the relationship between these experiences and the mental health of bisexual women. We are approaching this project from a community-based mixed-methods design, in order to ensure that the eventual quantitative measures are rooted in the lived experience of bisexual women.

Funded by CIHR, The Mothering on the Margins (MOMs) project was a research study carried out by researchers at CAMH and the LGBTQ Parenting Network. The goals of this research were (a) to learn about the factors that contribute to emotional well being in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, and Two-Spirit (LGBT) mothers and mothers-to-be, and (b) to learn what services LGBT mothers and mothers-to-be find helpful, and what services they wish existed, to address their emotional needs.