Minutes Confirmed on March 25, 2024

This meeting of the Board of Health was conducted with members participating in person and remotely.

The Board of Health:

1. Requested the Medical Officer of Health develop a strategic plan that:

a. has a length of four years, from 2024 to 2028, to ensure consistency and direction between terms;

b. follows the timeline for development as outlined in Attachment 1 to the motion (January 15, 2024) by Councillor Alejandra Bravo; and

c. prioritizes embedding the Indigenous cultural safety principles (respect, truth, humility, engagement, and reciprocity).

2. Requested the Medical Officer of Health further engage the public, stakeholders, City Divisions and Toronto Public Health staff on the Strategic Plan development between February and April 2024 and share the results of this consultation at the April 24, 2024 Board of Health – Strategic Plan Development Committee meeting.

3. Requested the Medical Officer of Health to report to the April 24, 2024 Board of Health – Strategic Plan Development Committee meeting with recommendations on revising the vision, mission, and principles of Toronto Public Health.

The Board of Health considered Items HL10.1, HL10.3 and HL10.4 together.

At its meeting on January 15, 2024, the Board of Health - Strategic Plan Development Committee considered Item HX1.3, Developing a New Strategic Plan for Toronto Public Health.

The Board of Health:

1. Directed that Confidential Attachment 1 remain confidential in its entirety, as it pertains to the education or training of the Directors.

The Board of Health recessed its public session to meet in closed session to consider this item, as it pertains to the education or training of the Directors.

The Confronting Anti-Black Racism Unit’s Blackness and Belonging training session is a 2 hour training that is designed to introduce participants to the primary concepts, ideas, histories, contexts, and language that are central to understanding and addressing Anti-Black racism at the systemic and institutional levels.

This training will use language, statistics, Canadian history, and selected case studies, to focus on understanding the definition of Anti-Black Racism and identifying the ways Anti-Black racism is shaping our experience of what it means to be a Toronto resident. Learners will examine the social contexts, implications and impacts of identifying and navigating Anti-Black racism. Blackness and Belonging will examine the factors that are impacting the health and well being of Black Torontonians, with a special focus on policies and practices that support and reinforce discrimination towards Torontonians of African decent.

In this session participants will:

- Develop an understanding of some of the primary terms related to Confronting Anti-Black Racism

- Explore the terms and theories for understanding, critiquing, and confronting Anti-Black racism

- Develop skills to identify, analyze examine and explore the manifestations of Anti-Black racism in workplace contexts

The Board of Health will meet in closed session on this item in accordance with the provisions of the City of Toronto Act, 2006 which permits the closing of a meeting for the education or training of the Directors.

The Board of Health:

1. Requested the Medical Officer of Health to consider the comments and suggestions made during public presentations as part of developing the 2024-2028 Strategic Plan and as part of the forthcoming report-back to the April 24, 2024 Board of Health – Strategic Plan Development Committee meeting.

The Board of Health considered Items HL10.1, HL10.3 and HL10.4 together.

The Director, Toronto Public Health gave a presentation on Review of Toronto Public Health to inform Strategic Planning.

At its meeting on February 5, 2024, the Board of Health – Strategic Development Committee considered Item HX2.1, Review of Toronto Public Health to inform Strategic Planning.

The Board of Health:

1. Requested the Medical Officer of Health develop a resource for community organizations to facilitate consultation on and participate in the Toronto Public Health Strategic Plan, and to share the resource online, with stakeholders, and with City Councillors, as part of ongoing consultation on developing the Toronto Public Health Strategic Plan.

The Board of Health considered Items HL10.1, HL10.3 and HL10.4 together.

At its meeting on February 5, 2024, the Board of Health – Strategic Plan Development Committee considered Item HX2.2, Strategic Planning Resource for Community Organizations

The Board of Health:

1. Re-opened Item HL7.4, titled “Toronto Public Health Strategic Planning” with respect to Part 3 of the decision of the Board of Health.

2. Amended Part 3 by replacing "Director Charles Ozzoude" with "Director Stephanie Zhou".

Established by the Board of Health at its meeting on October 23, 2023 through Item HL7.4, the Strategic Plan Development Committee, provides advice and makes recommendations on developing a strategic plan to the Board of Health. The recommended strategic plan will meet the Board's  responsibilities under the Ontario Public Health Standards and guide Toronto Public Health from 2024 – 2028.

Director Charles Ozzoude is currently taking a leave of absence from the Board of Health. In order to ensure that the committee will benefit from a full membership for the remainder of its mandate, I am recommending that Director Stephanie Zhou take his place on the committee. This change has been discussed with both directors in advance.

REQUIRES RE-OPENING:

Item 2023.HL7.4 (October 23, 2023 Board of Health Meeting) only as it pertains to the appointed Board of Health Directors.

Announcements

The Chair acknowledged that the Board of Health was meeting on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. The Board also acknowledged that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 with the Mississaugas of the Credit.

The Chair also acknowledged that today, this meeting place is still the home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work and live on this land. As public health professionals, and members of the Board of Health, we recognize the historical and present-day traumas inflicted upon Indigenous peoples. We stand with communities and families as they mourn the loss of loved ones who were sent to residential schools and never returned. We also acknowledge our complicity in ongoing colonial violence. We commit to supporting the efforts of Indigenous groups toward reconciliation and action-oriented practices, including the equitable use of resources. We strive to learn Indigenous histories and collaborate with communities and families so we can create safe spaces that honour Indigenous cultures and ensure that Indigenous perspectives are present in our work and practices.

The Chair further acknowledged that not all people came to these lands as migrants and settlers and specifically acknowledged those who came here involuntarily, particularly those brought to these lands as a result of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and Slavery.  In support of the City of Toronto's ongoing efforts to confront anti-Black racism, the Chair paid tribute to those ancestors of African, Caribbean, and Black origin and descent.

Where the Directors of the Board of Health listed in the attendance for this meeting participated remotely, they were counted for quorum as permitted by Section 189(4.2) of the City of Toronto Act, 2006, and the Board's Procedures, as amended.