Dr. Carolyn Snider’s research and outreach programs in Ontario’s emergency departments are addressing the profound impact of social determinants on health. By focusing on initiatives for vulnerable populations, her work shows promise in improving health outcomes and optimizing healthcare use in the region, emphasizing the need to redefine the role of outreach workers in healthcare. Through her PSI fellowship, Dr. Snider aims to refine these programs, secure sustainable funding, and establish a healthcare environment where ED outreach workers are recognized as essential for delivering patient care and achieving long-term health improvements for Ontarians.
PSI Foundation is pleased to announce Dr. Carolyn Snider as the recipient of the 2024 PSI Mid-Career Knowledge Translation Fellowship.
About Dr. Carolyn Snider
Dr. Carolyn Snider is an Emergency Physician and Clinician Scientist at Unity Health Toronto. She is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Emergency Medicine, and is cross-appointed to the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation (IHPME). To date, Dr. Snider has published more than 42 papers and secured over $8 million in competitive research funding (over $2.5 million as principal investigator). Her work focuses on developing, implementing, and evaluating approaches in providing more equitable emergency department care for those experiencing marginalization.
About the PSI Mid-Career Knowledge Translation Fellowship
The PSI Mid-Career Knowledge Translation Fellowship is intended to provide salary support for a mid-career physician researcher in Ontario, who has demonstrated the ability to successfully complete high impact knowledge translation research. The total amount of the award is $400,000 over two or three years, with the sponsoring institution providing matching funding, contributing to 50% of the total award.
PSI acknowledges that mid-career can be a challenging time for physician researchers. During this phase, there are often additional academic roles and responsibilities including committee work, leadership positions, and mentoring of junior investigators, while clinical work continues. PSI recognizes the importance in supporting this phase of an investigator’s trajectory.
Dr. Snider is well-positioned to leverage the dedicated time afforded by this fellowship, combining her early research discoveries and leadership expertise to advance her research and apply it effectively within the field of emergency medicine. This highlights the significance of mid-career salary support for physician-researchers in maintaining their research momentum and translating their findings into practical applications.
Fellowship Funds to be Used for Redefining the Role of Emergency Department Outreach Workers in Healthcare
Ontario’s emergency departments (EDs) often reveal the profound effects of social issues on health. Dr. Carolyn Snider, a leading emergency medicine physician and researcher, has dedicated her career to creating outreach programs that tackle these social determinants to enhance healthcare in Ontario. These programs, including new ED outreach initiatives for youth affected by violence and people experiencing homelessness (PEH), are showing promising signs of improving health outcomes and optimizing healthcare use.
Dr. Snider’s work emphasizes the necessity of redefining the role of outreach workers in healthcare from “nice-to-have” to essential, backed by careful evaluation and alignment with Ontario’s healthcare performance metrics. With homelessness rising in Ontario alongside increasing violence among youth, the burden on the healthcare system is intensifying. Dr. Snider’s follows the Knowledge-To-Action (KTA) framework to translate research into action.
Dr. Snider’s PSI fellowship aims to refine these outreach programs for Ontario, demonstrate their benefits, develop scalable models, and secure ongoing funding. Through this work, she strives to establish a healthcare environment where ED outreach workers are recognized as vital to delivering patient care and achieving sustainable health outcomes across Ontario.
