The Black Women’s Institute for Health is breaking new pathways for healthcare in Canada

November 2025

It was 2022 when Kearie Daniel, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Parents of Black Children, became alarmed about the number of struggling Black women among the families they served. She heard stories about the barriers they were facing trying to access health care or about doctors not taking them seriously. “And then we had the other systemic pieces related to child welfare and the education system and housing,” says Daniel. “So, we started [the process of] creating an organization to provide support for Black women.”

Daniel spent much of 2023 and 2024 doing research, talking to experts and community advocates, building a network of allies and laying the foundation for a new initiative. The Black Women’s Institute for Health launched in October 2024 as a collective of Black women dedicated to ensuring that health services, treatments, and support are ethical and respect the cultural values and needs of Black women.

“There really isn’t an organization in Canada that focuses solely on the holistic health of Black women and the social determinants of health, which encompasses everything from housing to access to healthcare, education, and finance,” says Daniel, Executive Director of the Institute. “[Black women] don’t have that direct support and you can see in the little data we have, that [health] outcomes are much poorer, so our goal is to understand what’s going on for Black women and girls across Canada and put in place not just programmatic solutions, but systemic areas of advocacy that can really drive change.”

They hit the ground running. In the first six months, BWIH launched programs that offer supports for mothers and mothers-to-be, connect Black youth and adults struggling with mental health with culturally competent therapists, and provide workshops that respond to the unique experiences of Black women and girls. Pathways to Leadership, another initiative, is a support network for Black health professionals.

Daniel and her two co-workers soon added new mentorship initiatives and health navigators to help people negotiate the system. All the work is supported by partnerships with health professionals and organizations. In the first year, more than 3,000 women connected with their programs. The Catherine Donnelly Foundation was pleased to support this work with two early grants.

The Institute launched the Voices UnHeard: Vital Signs Survey, Canada’s first ever national survey of Black women focusing on their health and the social determinants of health. The comprehensive survey succeeded in collecting 1,300 responses from across Canada on topics ranging from illness and chronic disease, mental health, finances, housing, and employment experiences.

BWIH is in the final stages of evaluating data. In November, they will release results and make a series of recommendations that will shape future policy, advocacy and the allocation of resources.

Among the early results that raised flags were high rates of suicidal ideation among Black women. “Mental health is a great example of where we don’t know the state of Black women’s health in this country, “notes Daniel. “Voices UnHeard has allowed us to gather that information and work in partnership with organizations like Mental Health Research Canada and do the research to support … Black women and girls.”

“When we put out a call for women to come forward and tell their stories, I thought we’re not going to find anyone, but we were inundated with women who wanted to share. Women put their hand up and said, ‘I want to talk more about what I experienced’,” says Daniel. “[Voices UnHeard demonstrated] there is a lack of health data related to Black women [but also] that people feel so harmed by the system and so invisible and ignored.”

That focus on listening and being responsive to what women need is helping to shape other programs as well. Mothering Minds is a community of Toronto-area moms who receive peer support, mentorship and resources ranging from mental health counseling to educational workshops. Demand for Mothering Minds almost immediately led to the creation of a waitlist and interest in expanding the program to Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver.

BWIH anticipated that most mothers would have younger kids, but what they found is most attendees are moms of older children, often ten years and up. Surveying the cohort has helped them recognize that those with babies and toddlers often have support, but as children age that network dwindles and the mental health of mothers can become strained. They’ve adjusted programming accordingly.

“Today, there is more recognition in the healthcare space that the way in which we deliver healthcare for individual communities needs to change or needs to be more tailored,” says Daniel. “There are many great Black women who are leading those conversations in equity and healthcare, whether it’s through the Black Physicians of Canada or at [Toronto’s] Women’s College Hospital, so I think that we fit into that puzzle.”

The Black Women’s Institute of Health’s ultimate goal is to create a thriving organization that provides services catering to Black women’s health needs but also helps build a future where sustainable employment exists, where communities are cared for, and where everyone can access the support necessary to heal and thrive. With so much accomplished after only one year, anything seems possible.

Learn more about the Black Women’s Institute for Health at https://bwhealthinstitute.com/