Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Michelle Amri

Dr. Michelle Amri’s research lies at the intersection of public health, global health, and health policy and governance. She is dedicated to advancing the integration of equity into public policy’s health sphere, both in terms of how key stakeholders conceptualize and operationalize health equity in policy and how equity can be improved within policymaking processes. She continues this work at SFU within the School of Public Policy.

Dr. Amri is on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Association for Global Health, co-chaired the Canadian Conference on Global Health in October of 2023, and provides consulting services to the World Health Organization (WHO). Most recently, she consulted for the WHO Regional Office for Africa on private sector engagement in health governance and for the WHO HQ alongside Dr. Jesse B. Bump to provide conceptual clarity on essential public health functions, common goods for health, and the health system performance assessment framework. Before joining SFU's School of Public Policy, she completed the Takemi Fellowship in International Health at Harvard University from 2021 to 2023, pursued an SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship, and taught at both the University of Toronto and the University of Victoria. 

What brought you to Simon Fraser University?

Everything about the School of Public Policy! Making the move from the East to the West coast was a natural decision to take this position at the School of Public Policy. Having the opportunity to work with scholars and students in diverse disciplines who are policy-oriented is a dream come true. The School of Public Policy has a long-standing reputation for training impressive civil servants — in fact, marking 20 years this year — so it is an honour to join such a strong school with fantastic staff, students, and faculty. Notably, one of many good qualities of Simon Fraser University is that it is Canada’s engaged university. Knowing that I will be supported to continue my research that seeks to have a positive societal impact is a cherry on top! I hope to contribute to this mission of fostering an engaged community, so my door is always open to meet colleagues and students from across the university. Please do not hesitate to reach out. 

What inspired your interest in teaching?

This goes back quite a bit! I started coaching figure skating at 13 years old to beginners and this cultivated my interest in teaching. I continued to coach throughout my undergraduate studies, and I took pride in adjusting how I taught techniques to better suit individual student needs and watching my students succeed. In fact, I met my partner coaching, so I remember this time fondly. I also had the fortune of teaching undergraduates at the University of Toronto at both St. George and Scarborough and undergraduate and masters students at the University of Victoria, which further cemented this interest in teaching. I bring all these learnings to my role at SFU. 

What sparked your interest in public policy? More specifically, in public health, global health, and health policy? 

The notion that one’s surroundings greatly impact health is something that I strongly believe and have accordingly dedicated my academic pursuits to. 

My first foray in public health was when I began working for the Middlesex-London Health Unit where I was developing health promotion campaigns, primarily tailored to youth around smoking. Alongside others, I designed, implemented, and evaluated these campaigns from onset to implementation. This experience highlighted two key things for me. First, I saw the strengths of public policy by taking a population-based approach with consequential large-scale benefits versus a short-term program with questionable sustainability. And second, this work demonstrated the role of various sectors in influencing health outcomes, given that health policy does not operate in a vacuum. Thus, these projects inspired me to pursue further studies in policy.

I continued my education by completing a Master of Public Administration as the next step in my path to a career in improving the social determinants of health via policies. My master’s research project, supervised by Don Drummond, explored policy tools for tobacco control. Upon graduating, I consulted for the WHO, having the opportunity to discuss smoke-free cities with mayors of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, evaluate the Healthy Cities initiative in the Western Pacific Region, and design a national multi-sectoral policy in Lao PDR. I also worked at the Ontario Public Service: at the Ministry of Health and Long-term Care, the Ministry of Community and Social Services, and the Ministry of Economic Development. But it was witnessing the rampant inequity on the streets of Manila on my daily commute that struck a chord. How can individuals be healthy if they lack the necessary means to do so? Evidently, one’s health is largely dictated by resources, such as income. This experience ultimately steered me to undertake doctoral studies and shaped my research trajectory to focus on health equity, public policy, and governance. 

What is the most critical issue that your research addresses? And why or how is it important to you in particular?

I think the greatest obstacle to good health outcomes is simply the unequal distribution of power, income, goods, and services, which impacts how a society fares. More unequal societies are believed to result in worse health outcomes for all. This issue is prevalent all over the world, meaning no society is immune. This is in contrast to certain diseases which may be confined to a certain geographic area or demographics, many of which can be overcome with health technologies and innovations. Inequity is not as easily remediable. Unfortunately, there are no quick and easy solutions. We need a concerted and sustained effort from numerous actors across different sectors. 

Thus, my work focuses on health inequities, which can be understood as differences which are unfair, unjust, unnecessary, and avoidable. First, I look at how health equity is conceptualized and operationalized by actors like the World Health Organization and policymakers across countries, to help with gaining conceptual clarity and identifying gaps and opportunities. And second, I look at how equity can be improved within policymaking processes, such as through understanding the dynamics between global actors and policymakers within Ministries of Health in setting policy agendas, characterizing different policy approaches for acting on health inequity, and investigating how health equity can be recentered in multisectoral health policy.  

What are you most looking forward to working at SFU and in the School of Public Policy?

I am most looking forward to being in a multidisciplinary community and working with passionate students! I have had the pleasure of teaching Health Policy to Master of Public Policy students and Introduction to Public Policy at the undergraduate level this term, alongside supervising master’s students to explore diverse public policy areas of interest. This has all been a true joy.  

I am also looking forward to various activities as part of my role on the newly formed Community of Anti-Racism and Equity (CARE) committee at the School of Public Policy. I am excited by the endless possibilities for our committee to promote a more inclusive community.

Do you have any advice to offer students who are considering their future in the field of public policy? 

Absolutely! Public policy is a fantastic field to be in. You are among a community that is interested in improving society and there are diverse issues to tackle, so you both have a lot of opportunities to make meaningful changes and explore different areas as your career progresses. This is my pro-tip: never close a door! Keep exploring different avenues and opportunities.