Thursday, September 26, 2024

In collaboration with the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and the Canadian Heart Function Alliance, Pfizer is proud to fund research awards that seek to empower Indigenous communities and close gaps in health outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.

Did you know that, according to a 2022 research study, Indigenous peoples in Canada are more at risk of cardiovascular disease compared to non-Indigenous people due to systemic racism, historical oppression, healthcare biases, and various other disparities?

Pfizer is committed to supporting Indigenous communities in Canada. For this reason, we partnered with the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and the Canadian Heart Function Alliance to launch the CCS/Pfizer/CHF Alliance Fellowship Award in First Nations, Inuit and Métis Communities Experiencing Heart Function Inequities.

Dr. Kelsey McLaughlin, Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Toronto and Staff Scientist at Sinai Health System, was the 2023 recipient of this Pfizer-funded research award. The award will support Healthy Pregnant Hearts – an initiative that aims to deliver community-informed, culturally-sensitive cardiovascular disease prevention and management information to pregnant people and their families in Algonquins of Barrière Lake.

At Pfizer Canada, we’re proud to implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action 19, which focuses on establishing measurable goals to identify and close the gaps in health outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.

We are committed to advancing cardiovascular health outcomes for Indigenous communities and committed to health equity for all.

In this video, hear directly from Dr. McLaughlin as she speaks about her research project and what Pfizer’s support means to her: