Progressing Past Awareness & Towards Racial Justice in Physiotherapy

Introduction:

Racism is a human rights issue and a population health issue. This online course explores how the physiotherapy profession can join the fight against racism. 

Course Objectives:

1. What are we doing? Setting intentions.
2. Where are we going? Describing a path towards racial justice.
3. Why me? Highlighting the obligation/duty of physiotherapy as a professional institution, a community of professionals, and professionals who serve, to engage in the fight for racial justice.
4. What should I say? Highlight terminology that is necessary in navigating the path towards racial justice.
5. What should I do? Discussing some of the potential for progress and pitfalls along the path towards racial justice.

Speaker Details: Tracy Blake

Tracy was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on the traditional territory of many nations including the Huron-Wendat, Petun, Seneca peoples, as well as, most recently, the peoples Mississaugas of the Credit.

The only daughter of Trinidadian immigrants, she and her youngest brother were raised in the multi cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-faith, working class neighbourhood of Rexdale. Sport was a powerful source of connection throughout Tracy’s upbringing. The desire to contribute to sport beyond the field of play motivated Tracy’s post-secondary academic journey and clinical training as a sport and orthopaedic physiotherapist via McMaster University and the University of Western Ontario.

Tracy's clinical experience in private practice, sport, acute inpatient hospital care led to questions about how knowledge used by health care practitioners is produced, transmitted, applied, and internalized. She sought to answer those questions while completing her doctorate at the University of Calgary, with a research focus in pediatric sport-related concussion and physical activity.

It was also during this time that the seeds of connection between population health, equity, person-centred care, and the optimization of health and performance in a sport context were sown.

These themes underpin her current work as a clinician, educator, researcher, editor, and author.