A Parisian Salon: creating a culture of intellect around the social determinants of health

Lesley Bainbridge, College of Health Disciplines
Shehneen Dhamani, Jump Start Coordinator, International House
Victoria Wood, Project Manager, College of Health Disciplines
Andrea Ramirez, Visiting Medical Student
Shafik Dharamsi, Associate Director, Centre for International Health
Jim Frankish, Director, Centre for Population Health Promotion Research
Chaya Go, Faculty of Arts
Mehak Tejani, Faculty of Arts
Regina Nyamekye, WAGS and English Literature, Faculty of Arts
Nur Syahidah Binte Esmail, Psychology and WAGS
Azuka Nduk, Agwu, Creative Writing and Film Studies
Julia Lammer, Fine Art and Museum Studies, Faculty of Arts

In an increasingly global society, students from a wide range of disciplines will take on roles in which they will contribute to the health and wellbeing of the world’s diverse populations. An understanding of the social determinants of health (SDH) is integral to this. This project will organize a series of ‘Parisian Salon’ sessions bringing together students from different disciplinary and cultural backgrounds to learn with, from, and about each other and the broader SDH. UBC’s diverse student body offers a wealth of experience and knowledge that can be shared with others on campus in order to help them understand how the SDH affect different communities. Inspired by the Parisian Salons of the 18th and 19th, this project aims to foster a ‘culture of intellect’ around the SDH that will enable students to explore concepts that will help prepare them to contribute to the health and wellbeing of society.

Lesley Bainbridge, College of Health Disciplines
Victoria Wood, College of Health Disciplines
Shafik Dharamsi, Family Practice
Jordana Comazzetto, Student, Occupational Therapy
Sasha Bossley, Student, Occupational Therapy
Julia Lammer, Student, Economics and Arts History
Katie de Camplain, Student, Audiology
Celeste Loewe, Student, Medicine

The College of Health Disciplines received 2010/2011 TLEF funding to support the ‘UBC Parisian Salon' series designed to promote a culture of intellect around the social determinants of health (SDH). In an increasingly global society, students from a wide range of disciplines will take on roles in which they will contribute to the health and wellbeing of the world’s diverse populations. Inspired by the Parisian Salons of the 18th and 19th Centuries, this project brings together students from different disciplinary and cultural backgrounds to discuss topics of mutual concern pertaining to the SDH. Four Salons are planned and a second round of funding is requested to hold an additional four salons with increasing complex discussions and to explore ways of sustaining and embedding this emerging culture of intellect into recognized learning opportunities for students from any program at UBC. Doing so will ensure the Salons find a place amongst the student led initiatives at UBC.