Last year, SRCHC’s COVID-19 response work expanded to include mobile vaccination. Staff from SRCHC’s Toronto Community Hep C and harm reduction staff who had previously been supporting COVID-19 testing and outbreak management in shelters and group homes could now play a leadership role in in bringing low-barrier mobile vaccine clinics to some of the highest-risk settings across Toronto’s east end. …

A Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) outlines change concepts and sets targets to improve health outcomes for clients and community. COVID-19 has worsened existing health inequities for racialized and vulnerable populations. Intentional and integrated planning is critical because the pandemic has significantly affected how people find and access care. Across the healthcare system, delays in care have resulted in missed routine …

The COVID-19 pandemic had profound, worldwide impacts on people’s physical and mental health. In late 2021, Statistics Canada released findings from its Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health. It found that one in four Canadians over the age of 18 screened positive for depression (19%), anxiety (15%), or post-traumatic stress disorder. As well, 83% of Canadians experienced a negative impact …

SRCHC in Solidarity with Indigenous Peoples and Dedicated to Truth and Reconciliation was this year’s theme of Truth and Reconciliation Day, an event held to acknowledge the brutal history of residential schools in Canada and their impacts on survivors and family members. The legacy of colonization and its effects on current systems and policies are inextricably linked to the current …

Overdoses and overdose-related deaths have been steadily increasing over the last decade. This was especially true during the last two years, during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, community organizers and substance users set up grassroots community-driven Consumption Sites in parks and began saving lives. Harm Reduction staff and community members banded together to teach each other how to better …

Over the course of the pandemic, we have seen a persistent and rising need for access to food across the communities we serve. The pandemic compounded the struggles of those already experiencing food insecurity and also affected many more residents for the first time. Daily Bread’s Who’s Hungry 2021 report revealed that there were “1.45 million visits” to Toronto food …

March 2020 ushered in a perfect pandemic storm, one that trickled down to affect every element of physical, mental, and community health. Our community was faced with shutdowns and limits on the availability of critical services and resources. We were forced to migrate from using conventional ways of providing services to ways that required a certain level of technological savvy. …

The past year has been incredibly challenging for the clients, communities, and staff of SRCHC. The hope of leaving the pandemic behind was dashed by ongoing waves of COVID-19 infections. This required SRCHC and our partners to adapt as things changed so that we could continue to provide a sustained response to COVID-19 while also maintaining the high-quality and accessible …