Gary Bloch is a family physician with St. Michael’s Hospital, and an Assistant Professor with the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. He holds a BA (Honours) in History from McGill, a MD from UBC, and he completed his postgraduate training in Family Medicine at the University of Toronto. He has a large clinical practice, and focuses on the health of people who live in poverty and without adequate housing.
Dr. Bloch is an advocate, educator and researcher on issues related to poverty and health, and on health provider-based interventions into poverty as a health issue. He regularly teaches health professionals and trainees, as well as community members about these issues. His education program development work has included the design and implementation of a core curriculum on addressing poverty in the University of Toronto medical school training program.
He has been involved in raising public awareness on issues ranging from social assistance reform to housing supports to health benefits for refugees. He has been interviewed extensively in print, radio, online and television media.
Dr. Bloch founded and chairs the Ontario College of Family Physicians’ Committee on Poverty and Health. He is also a founding member of the advocacy group Health Providers Against Poverty. He was instrumental in the establishment of Inner City Health Associates, a group of over 60 physicians working with the homeless in Toronto.
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Commentaries by Dr. Gary Bloch:
A society with no poverty would be healthier, happier and easier to live in — and would save us all money in the end
Why it’s never too late for low income Canadians to file their taxes / / Il n’est jamais trop tard pour produire sa déclaration de revenus
How doctors can tackle the poverty of their patients without leaving the doctor’s office
How an inadequate minimum wage is linked to poorer health outcomes — for everyone //
Un salaire minimum insuffisant conduit à de piètres résultats en matière de santé : un constat universel
Why a doctor prescribes tax returns // Un médecin prescrit des déclarations de revenus
Social assistance reform can lead to better health for all // La réforme de l’aide sociale peut améliorer la santé de tous
Podcasts
Why Canadian doctors should be on the front lines of the anti-poverty struggle: interview with Dr. Paul Goering, Dr. Ryan Meili, Dr. John Millar and Dr. Gary Bloch.
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