Welcome to Equity, Diversity, Advocacy, and Cultural Safety in the ED

Welcome to our website! We are dedicated to providing culturally safe, trauma-informed care in the emergency department (ED) to address systemic inequities, discrimination, and biases faced by marginalized communities.

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As an entry point into acute care, the ED plays a crucial role for all patients and is frequently the sole point of contact with the healthcare system for the most marginalized members of our society. Members of marginalized communities, such as patients who identify as 2LGBTQI, Indigenous, or Black as well as patients who are newcomers to Canada, precariously housed, or people who use drugs, often have higher rates of ED utilization than comparison groups, despite reporting negative experiences of stigma, discrimination, and racism while accessing acute care.  The provision of culturally safe, trauma-informed care requires knowledge beyond the traditional medical repertoire, including specific skills and practices that must be taught. Practicing emergency physicians have often learned about the social determinants of health (factors leading to systemic marginalization), but this is often taught without the context of how racism, colonialism and other forms of discrimination are embedded within Canadian healthcare structures and the laws that govern them.