Sharon, PA 16146
Biography
Dr. Iffath Syed’s research examines the occupational health, safety and wellbeing of workers in a variety of settings. Her work as a health services and policy researcher advances equitable working and living conditions through the social determinants of health, and highlights health access and outcomes by examining gender, race, and immigrant status. She has authored numerous academic publications and reports, and actively supervises students in research and publication. As an expert in long-term care, Dr. Syed is routinely invited to speak at research and policy conferences, seminars, and colloquia.
Dr. Syed's funded research includes the following:
Co-Principal Investigator 2023
Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).
New Frontiers in Research Fund
Amount: $241,424
Project Title: Training an AI to detect medical bias and unmet health needs through critical race and disability theory and community-generated data
Principal Investigator 2017
York University
School of Health Policy and Management
Amount: $2,225
Project Title: Precarization Outcomes among Workers and Employment Resilience (The POWER Study)
Co-Investigator 2013
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).
Amount: $2,496,974
Project Title: Canadian Chronic disease Awareness and Management Program (C-CHAMP)
Principal Investigator 2013
York University
School of Health Policy and Management
Amount: $3,602
Project Title: The Challenges of Precarious Work and Unsettling Working Conditions of Newcomers, Immigrants, and Members of the New Labor Diaspora in Canada and the Connection to Health
Co-Investigator 2012
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).
Amount: $679,339
Project Title: The Cardiovascular Health Awareness Program (CHAP) for the South Asian Community in York Region: Assessing volunteer participation and the gender and ethno-specific impacts,"
Research Interests
Public Health; Health Equity; Social Determinants of Health
Occupational Health, Safety, & Wellbeing
Aging; Caregiving; Long Term Care
Health Policy, Administration & Management
Publications
Syed, I.U. (2022). Canada's fight against COVID-19: constitutionalism, laws, and the global pandemic, in Morag, N. (Ed.) Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic: International Laws, Policies, and Civil Liberties. p. 339-357. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Gorman, R.D.S., and Syed, I.U. (2022). Connecting the dots in emerging mast cell research: Do factors affecting mast cell activation provide a missing link between adverse COVID-19 outcomes and the social determinants of health? Medical Sciences. 10(2): 29 https://doi.org/10.3390/medsci10020029
Frank, J.W., Anderson, G.M., Miller, F.A., and Syed I.U. (2022). Applying Population Health Principles to Pandemics: A Guide to Effective Public Health Practice to Address 21st-Century Pandemics. HealthcarePapers 20 (2): 8-23. doi:10.12927/hcpap.2022.26791
Frank, J.W., Anderson, G.M., Miller, F.A., and Syed I.U. (2022). Effective Public Health Practice for the 21st Century: Expert Advice Based on Population Health Principles. HealthcarePapers 20 (2): 49-54. doi:10.12927/hcpap.2022.26785
Syed, I.U. (2021). Remittance flows from healthcare workers in Toronto, Canada. Sustainability. 13(17): 9536
Syed, I.U., and McLaren, J. (2021). COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care highlight the urgent need for paid sick leave. The Conversation.
Syed, I. U. (2021). Feminist political economy of health: Current perspectives and future directions. Healthcare. 9(2): 233-242.
Syed, I.U. (2020). Racism, racialization and health equity in Canadian residential long term care: A case study in Toronto. Social Science & Medicine. 265: 113524
Syed, I.U. (2020). Clearing the smoke screen: Smoking, alcohol consumption, and stress management techniques among Canadian long term care workers. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 17(17): 6027-6042.
Syed, I.U. (2020). Diet, physical activity, and emotional health: What works, what doesn’t, and why we need integrated solutions for total worker health. BMC Public Health. 20(152):1-9.
Syed, I.U. (2020, Online First). Hijab, niqab, and religious symbol debates: Consequences for health and human rights. International Journal of Human Rights.
Syed, I.U. and Ahmad, F. (2020). COVID19 and healthcare workers’ struggles in long term care homes. Special Issue: Health of frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Journal of Concurrent Disorders.
Syed, I. (2019). In Biomedicine, Thin Is Still In: Obesity Surveillance Among Racialized, (Im)migrant, and Female Bodies. Societies. 9(3): 59-72.
Syed, I., and Ahmad, F. (2016). A Scoping Literature Review of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders Among South Asian Immigrant Women in Canada. Journal of Global Health. 6(2):28-34.
Syed, I., Daly, T., Armstrong, P., Lowndes, R., Chadoin, M., Naidoo, V. (2016). How Do Work Hierarchies and Strict Divisions of Labour Impact Care Workers' Experiences of Health and Safety? Case Studies of Long Term Care in Toronto. Journal of Nursing Home Research Sciences. 2:41-49.
Syed, I.U.B. (2015). Labour Exploitation and Health Inequities among Market Migrants: A Political Economy Perspective. Journal of International Migration and Integration. 17(2):449-465.
Syed, I.U.B. (2012). Forced Assimilation is an Unhealthy Policy Intervention: the Case of the Hijab Ban in France and Quebec, Canada. International Journal of Human Rights. 17(3): 428-440.
Education
Ph.D. in Health, York University
Master of Public Health, University of Toronto
Honors Bachelor of Science, University of Toronto