How future doctors see social factors shaping their medical practice

Medical students learn how to manage and treat disease. But once they start meeting patients in clinics and hospitals, they are also confronted with the fact that social factors have a huge impact on health and that their medical interventions might sometimes be limited. Two medical residents, Laura Stymiest and Lita Cameron, and medical student, Chris Harper, explain how they hope to shape their medical practice to include social determinants of health and how they will work with the community to offer the best care possible for their patients. Lita Cameron is a Family Medicine resident at McMaster University. She completed her Masters in Global Health Science at Oxford University. She worked previously for the Public Health Agency of Canada and has been involved in aboriginal health research. Laura Stymiest is a paediatrics resident at Dalhousie University. She previously completed training at the Coady International Institute and has been involved in research in the area of Social Paediatrics. Chris Harper is a medical student at the University of Toronto and camp director in his hometown of Saint John, New Brunswick – two cities deeply affected by child poverty. Interview by Mélanie Meloche-Holubowski, journalist intern at EvidenceNetwork.ca, and journalist with Radio-Canada. The Evidence Network of Canadian Health Policy, commonly known as EvidenceNetwork.ca, is a Canadian healthcare resource designed with the needs of journalists in mind. The project links journalists with health policy experts to provide access to credible, evidence-based information. We also create original OpEds, articles, podcasts, infographics, posters and videos on health policy topics for publication in the mainstream media.