Developing a culturally responsive strategy to advance child health equity

There are unfair differences in healthcare for children and families. Specifically, children from racialized and underserved communities are likely to face more roadblocks when trying to get the care they need. This can be particularly challenging for children with serious and life-threatening illnesses that require specialty care. Culture, including what children and their families believe, their languages, and how they adjust to new places, can affect how they understand their diagnoses and communicate with their healthcare teams. The goal of this project is to create and test culturally informed approaches that can improve the healthcare and related experiences for racialized children and families, including those with cancer, eating disorders, and serious neurological conditions. This research will be conducted in partnership with children and families, healthcare providers, and community organizations. Results will be shared in a way that is understandable and usable. A major outcome of this work is to build long-term working relationships with children and families, healthcare providers, and local communities. Ultimately, this research will find more ways to support children and families that come from diverse backgrounds.