Wellesley Institute

Wellesley Institute works in research and policy to improve health and health equity in the GTA through action on the social determinants of health.

Home Topics Health Equity Health Equity Impact Assessment

Health Equity Impact Assessment

Health Equity Impact Assessment is a practical and effective planning tool that analyzes the potential impact of service, program or policy changes on health disparities and/or health disadvantaged populations. It can help to plan new services or initiatives or assess and re-align existing programs; and using it has proven valuable to building awareness of and embedding equity within organizations.  It can be used both within the health sector and in numerous other fields that impact the social determinants of health.

Increasingly, Health Impact Assessments are being used by policy makers to understand and influence how policies, projects, plans, and programs affect health inequities. Often equity issues are overlooked, especially outside of health policy, so applying an equity lens can generate discussion and improve decision making. Improved understanding of equity amongst policy makers may also be beneficial for future projects.

HEIA Resources

Stay Informed

Sign up for our newsletter to receive regular updates on our work.

* indicates required.

Acknowledgement of Traditional Land

We would like to acknowledge this sacred land on which the Wellesley Institute operates. It has been a site of human activity for 15,000 years. This land is the territory of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. The territory was the subject of the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Iroquois Confederacy and Confederacy of the Ojibwe and allied nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes.

Today, the meeting place of Toronto is still the home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work in the community, on this territory.

Revised by the Elders Circle (Council of Aboriginal Initiatives) on November 6, 2014

In the spirit of equity and inclusion, if we can improve on this statement, please contact us. Thank you.