Webinar – Striking a Balance Between Decentralization and Centralization in Public Health Systems

This webinar was part of a research project called Platform to Monitor the Performance of Public Health Systems, led by Sara Allin, Andrew Pinto, and Laura Rosella from the University of Toronto, and aimed at comparing and learning from variations in public health systems across Canadian provinces and territories. The NCCHPP has been part of the research project working group since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The webinar, developed in collaboration with the research team, presented results from the research program, and particularly the results of in-depth case studies of provincial public health systems in Alberta, Ontario, and Québec. These case studies were carried out to understand the perspectives of public health leaders on how past system reforms impacted public health practice, and how system structures related to the level of decentralization and integration between public health and acute care impacted provincial COVID-19 pandemic responses.

The NCCHPP is also working with the research team to publish a series of 13 profiles of provincial and territorial public health systems in Canada. To access the profiles that are currently available, click here.

Speakers

Sara Allin
Associate Professor of Health Policy, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Sara Allin is an Associate Professor of Health Policy at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. She is also Director of the North American Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, a collaborative partnership and research centre focussed on sub-national and international health systems research to support evidence-informed policy making. Sara’s research and teaching span comparative health systems and policies, health system performance, and health equity.

Rob Smith
Assistant Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Rob Smith is a second-generation Canadian settler of English and Lithuanian ancestry grateful to live, work, and learn on the traditional territory of Lac Seul First Nation in what is now called Sioux Lookout, Ontario. He is an Assistant Professor (Status-Only) at the Division of Social and Behavioural Health Sciences, Dalla Lana School of Public Health and a public health practitioner. Rob is a social epidemiologist and applied health systems researcher by training, holding a Doctor of Philosophy in Population Health from the University of Oxford. His research interests span the social determinants of non-communicable disease and health system performance, with particular emphasis on human and organizational relationships.