Sneha Mukherjee, She/Her/Hers
Tell us about yourself:
Hello! I'm a student in the Health Sciences program at McMaster, with an Interdisciplinary Minor in Community Engagement and a Concurrent Certificate in Leadership, Equity & Social Change. I am interested in considering systems-level solutions to improve access to healthcare, and contribute to the evolution of Ontario's healthcare system into a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive space for people with different identities. Through CityLAB SIR, I have further developed my understanding of:
The intersection between housing and healthcare
The importance of municipal politics in advocacy
How to reach out to and have a dialogue with stakeholders
EDI considerations
These skills are highly transferable to my own passions, and I hope that through the CityLAB SIR program, I can become a more informed and compassionate advocate both within and beyond healthcare spaces.
How is your project going so far?
My group is focused on transitional housing, which consists of temporary housing accommodations (stay limits of three months to three years) intended to act as an intermediate step between emergency housing and permanent, stable housing. So far, we have engaged in meaningful dialogue with four stakeholders (The Hub, the YMCA, the YWCA, and the City of Hamilton) – each of whom represent different populations involved in transitional housing. Using their viewpoints and experiences, we aim to consolidate our findings and refine our recommendations to address transitional housing complexities within the city.