Enhancing nursing capacity to promote equity: Remediating healthcare inequities through collaborative research partnerships

The Canadian health system aims to provide excellent healthcare for all. Yet, unfortunately there remain considerable inequities in healthcare, and as a result, people who experience such inequities face poorer health outcomes. There is dire need for research that identifies new strategies and approaches to achieve this aim – particularly within nursing, as the largest group of healthcare providers in Canada. This program of research centres on enhancing nursing capacity to promote equity, towards remediating these inequities that lead to poor health outcomes. In particular, this program of research focuses on addressing healthcare inequities faced by people who experience mental health challenges, and the Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (2S/LGBTQIA+) community. Working in collaboration with health system leaders and providers, as well as people with lived experience of inequities, the ultimate vision of this program of research is to support more equitable health systems. By doing so, people who currently face inequities will experience safe and inclusive healthcare encounters, and as a result, enjoy improved health outcomes.