There is growing evidence of the disproportionate negative economic and health impacts of COVID-19 on immigrant, low-income, Canadian women of colour.
According to the 2016 census, 1/3 of the nurse aides, orderlies, and patient service associates in Canada are immigrants, and 86% are women.
Many of these Canadians are frontline, essential workers in Canada’s health care sector who are particularly vulnerable to infection.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information indicated that as of July 2020, nearly 20% of all those who tested positive for the coronavirus in Canada were health care workers.
At the same time, there are many internationally educated health professionals (IEHPs) in Canada who are licensed to practice in other countries, and wish to support Canada’s COVID-19 response.
In March 2020, internationally educated doctors, Ayesha Mohammad and Ali Mahdi, launched a petition via Change.org indicating that a significant international community of medical graduates in Canada are willing to volunteer, without expectation of pay, to help frontline workers during the pandemic.
The petition gained nearly 35,000 signatures in a matter of weeks and caught the attention of Canada’s media. Read COVID-19 and Canada’s Underutilized Internationally Educated Health Professionals.
Read Employment E-News – December 2020 – We Can Help You Work
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