Reproductive health and mental health are closely connected – one’s reproductive health can impact one’s mental health, and vice versa. Dr. Lucy Barker’s research focuses on the interplay between these two areas, with the goal of improving the quality of and access to reproductive mental healthcare.
During her doctoral thesis, Dr. Barker focused on the critical time following birth, and examined the outcomes of postpartum individuals with psychiatric emergency department visits. She identified key gaps and social inequities in access to mental healthcare for this population. Currently, she is leading work to improve sexual and reproductive health for women, transgender, and non-binary individuals with early psychosis, a group who face substantial barriers to adequate sexual and reproductive healthcare.
PhD, Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research, University of Toronto, 2023
MD, McMaster University, 2013
- Pat Martens Memorial Student Prize in Maternal and Child Health Research, Canadian Association of Health Services and Policy Research (2021)
- Dr. Jack V. Tu Memorial Award for Excellence, Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto (2021)
- Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarships Doctoral Award, Canadian Institutes of Health Research (2020)
- Queen Elizabeth II/Mary Beck Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology, University of Toronto (2019)
- Mental health
- Reproductive health
- Mental health services access