Elizabeth Alvarez, MD, MPH, PhD, is a licensed physician in both Canada and the United States, and is an assistant professor in McMaster University’s Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact. After completing her medical degree and family medicine residency at the University of Toledo in Ohio, she earned a master’s degree in public health through the Northwest Ohio Consortium for Public Health, and a PhD in Health Policy at McMaster University. She also holds a certificate in medical cognitive behavioural therapy (CMCBT). She has worked in multiple healthcare settings in Canada, the US, and Honduras, including as the Associate Medical Officer of Health in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and now teaches in McMaster’s Master of Public Health Program.
Her research and collaborations span from the individual to the systems and policy levels in health.
1) Health promotion and chronic disease self-management: Feasibility and implementation of a healthy lifestyles program, role of physician assistants in health promotion, use of patient contracts for health promotion in primary care, use of theories of health behaviour in health promotion interventions, role of exercise and nutrition on mobility in older adults
2) Public health / determinants of health: Defining and classifying public health systems, population and public health, Scientific Advisory Group for the Supervised Injection Site needs assessment and feasibility study for Hamilton, ON
3) Health services research: Defining quality of care in an urban maternity unit in Mexico City, determinants of adherence to HIV treatment and care
4) Knowledge translation and evidence-informed decisionmaking: developing and evaluating the use of a workbook for contextualizing health systems guidance, the role of research evidence and values in policy implementation
