Last November, Brain Canada, the Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health, and the Heart and Stroke Foundation launched the first edition of the Black Researchers Grant.

This program was designed to increase the number of highly qualified Black trainees contributing to heart or brain research in the country.

The awards aim to improve the representation and leadership of Black people within heart and brain health research communities, and in the long term, to promote culturally safe research expansion that meets the needs of Black people.

The scholarship program also aims to enhance the capacity of these research communities to provide mentorship opportunities for future trainees from diverse backgrounds as part of their scientific training.

Samira Omar, a master’s student at the University of Toronto, received this grant and is one of 16 students.

She studies systemic racism and Black experiences in rehabilitation after brain injuries in Canada. Samira seeks to understand the experiences of people with brain injuries, caregivers, and service providers.

This project brings her closer to her goal of becoming a university professor dedicated to teaching, research, and clinical practice in rehabilitation.

She graduated last year with a PhD in Rehabilitation Sciences from the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine, ’Driven by care and curiosity,’ as she says.

Her research lies at the intersection of ’equity, rehabilitation sciences, and racism with a focus on rehabilitation care for Black people living with traumatic brain injuries.’

She drew inspiration for her work from her experience caring for her brother who suffered a brain injury nine years ago.

Samira Omar says: ’My brother was an inpatient for more than three years.’

She added that ’During that time, I spent 18 hours a day by his bedside to make sure his voice would be heard and that people treated him as a human being with a life to look forward to after leaving the hospital.’

While she planned to become a professional therapist, she says she shifted her focus once she saw the possibility of making rehabilitation care more equitable for people identified as Black.

She says she quickly realized there was very little academic literature addressing racism in rehabilitation care or the quality of life of Black people living with traumatic brain injuries.

In one of her early studies, a broad literature review, Omar recalls discovering that Black people were often excluded from research, or included but with a focus on their poor performance.

She says few people interpret these results as racism, pointing only to components of systemic racism and failing to name the causes that perpetuate the problem.

Currently, Samira Omar studies institutional racism and its manifestations in traumatic brain injury rehabilitation research and practice.

In a recent project, Omar looked at qualitative experiences of Black people with traumatic brain injuries and their family caregivers – and how their care can be improved.

In addition to her research, Omar has called for changes to reflect greater justice, diversity, and inclusion in rehabilitation approaches.

She also contributed to a program affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine, which provides high school students of African or Indigenous descent an opportunity to explore health sciences at the University of Toronto.

Omar has received many awards throughout her studies, including the Change-Maker Award from the Canadian Neurological Health Charities in 2021. The award honors individuals or organizations who make meaningful changes to improve the quality of life for Canadians living with brain disorders.