Spotlight on Pride
🌈 June is Pride Month, a time to celebrate the 2SLGBTQIA+ (Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans+, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual and more) members of UVic and our broader community, while also taking steps, as allies, to create a more just, inclusive society.
To honour Pride, the Institute on Aging and Lifelong Health (IALH) is amplifying the work of Research Affiliates who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+, and/or conduct research that advances the health and equity of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities.
IALH Research Affiliates advancing 2SLGBTQIA+ health & equity:
Pride Month
Dr. Allie Slemon, Assistant Professor
Dr. Allie Slemon, PhD, RN (she/they)
IALH Research Fellow
Assistant Professor, School of Nursing
The 2S/LGBTQIA+ Liaison Nurse Project responds to ongoing erosion of human rights and health care support for 2S/LGBTQIA+ communities, exploring a novel 2S/LGBTQIA+ Liaison Nurse role that was piloted within Island Health in Victoria, BC. Our research illustrated that this direct care role offered a range of essential services to community members within the hospital setting, from social support to clinical expertise guiding care planning, to systems-level advocacy for queer and trans health. We continue to advocate for the scale-up of the 2S/LGBTQIA+ Liaison Nurse role across health care settings, to mitigate inequities faced by our community and enhance 2S/LGBTQIA+ health and health care across BC and nationally.
The AdJust Research Collective, co-founded by UVic Nursing faculty Allie Slemon and Ingrid Handlovsky, brings together researchers who share a passion for 2S/LGBTQIA+ health and well-being. With team members drawing from diverse experiences of belonging and allyship with the 2S/LGBTQIA+ community, we are deeply committed to redressing inequities and advocating for justice.
Dr. Slemon and Dr. Handlovsky’s article “Insights From a Novel 2S/LGBTQIA+ Liaison Nurse Role: A Mixed-Methods Single Case Study” was recently published in Advances in Nursing Science, along with co-authors Sage Schmied and Trevor Goodyear. Their findings show how this role supports the social justice mandate of nursing and demonstrates the potential of embedding safe, affirming care for 2S/LGBTQIA+ clients directly within clinical practice.
Kelly S. Davison, PhD Candidate
Kelly S. Davison RN, CPMHN(C), CTSS (he/him)
IALH Student Affiliate
PhD Candidate, School of Health Information Science
The Sex and Gender Working Group (SGWG) is a national collaborative that advances modernized gender, sex, and sexual orientation (GSSO) information practices within Canada's digital health ecosystem. By supporting interoperable, inclusive, and clinically meaningful health information standards, the SGWG contributes to equitable, person-centred care and strengthens the quality of health data used to understand health trajectories, service utilization, and disparities across the lifespan. This work supports healthier aging by enabling more accurate, respectful, and continuous care for diverse populations, including Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary, and gender-diverse people.
Healthy aging begins with being recognized, respected, and appropriately represented within the healthcare system. I am passionate about advancing digital health practices that reduce structural inequities and ensure that everyone can access safe, affirming, and person-centred care throughout their lives. Through the SGWG, we are bringing together researchers, clinicians, policymakers, standards organizations, and communities to build practical solutions that strengthen equity, interoperability, and lifelong health across Canada.
I would like to amplify the work of the SGWG, a national community of practice that has been convening since 2019 to advance modernized GSSO information practices in Canada's digital health ecosystem through collaboration, research exchange, standards alignment, and implementation-focused discussion.
Jess Crawford, PhD Student
Jess Crawford, RN, MN (they/them)
IALH Student Affiliate
PhD Student, School of Nursing
Jess Crawford (they/them) is a queer, trans, non-binary, and neurodivergent human. Their award-winning Master of Nursing thesis on gender inclusive and affirming nursing education advanced new approaches to support trans and gender diverse nursing students and patient care.
As they shift into a PhD in Nursing this fall, Jess is expanding towards the urgency of queering multi-species flourishing. Their work seeks to centre queer and trans folk and nonhuman beings, asking how we might all flourish together on a changing planet. By exploring alternative kinship and collective dreaming, Jess understands this work as both deeply personal and urgently needed to help us move through our shared troubles.
Image: Report cover Jess led with community, entitled Queer Nature, Queer Futures: Reflections from Prairie Kin
Learn more about Jess on their website