About – Medical Herstory

MEDICAL HERSTORY

Award-winning, youth-led, international not-for-profit organization advancing gender health equity through storytelling, patient advocacy, medical education, and undoing stigma.

Our Portfolios

Medical Education

The Medical Education portfolio aims to bring awareness to healthcare students and professionals about the gender biases that exist within the health system. As well, we educate practitioners about the institutional and structural gender inequalities that exist and shape healthcare today. Our hope is to encourage future and current practitioners across all genders to become more aware of the gender biases they hold, and allow them to reflect and improve their medical interactions with their patients. Through educational mediums, storytelling and outreach events, we seek to highlight marginalized and unheard voices within the medical curriculum to advance comprehensive and compassionate care for all.

Patient Advocacy

The Patient Advocacy portfolio strives to empower and support individuals navigating health, wellness, and medical care within an anti-sexist framework. It looks critically at how advocacy in healthcare is affected by systems of gender inequity. It does so through education initiatives, creating space for storytelling, and providing tools to help folx of all genders advocate for themselves and others. The Patient Advocacy portfolio understands that care is holistic, and therefore advocacy must be as well. For this reason, our projects range from panels to social media campaigns to self-care events.

Undoing Stigma

The Undoing Stigma portfolio seeks to challenge the social processes that label and stereotype women, genderqueer, BIPOC and disabled people’s bodies. Stigma creates self-perpetuating conditions that silence people and make them afraid of vocalizing their lived experiences. Through workshops, storytelling and social media campaigns, our team is dedicated to challenging our society’s stigmatizing beliefs and ending this silence. In particular, we believe that creative expression is a powerful tool through which one can learn to express themselves outside of oppressive norms and therefore liberate their conscience.

The Team

Volunteers

University Representatives

Countries

Join our team tackling gender health inequity

Now accepting applications!

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Tori Ford

Founder and CEO

Tori holds an MPhil in Health, Medicine, and Society from the University of Cambridge and a BA in Gender, Sexuality, Feminist and Social Justice Studies from McGill University. Her award-winning research focuses on young women's experiences of chronic yeast infections. She is passionate about empowering women to speak on their bodies, especially when they are messy, leaky, or in pain, and educating others about sexism within health experiences.

Ashlee Pereira-Buchanan

Director of Operations

Ashlee received a BA in Psychology and Anthropology from McGill University. She met the team working at the Office for Sexual Violence Response, Support, and Education where she facilitated events and promoted consent culture. At Medical Herstory, she participates in the editing of submissions and manages the appointed executive team. She strives to continue to advocate for gender health equity by supporting others in sharing their experiences.

Melissa Kuch

Director of Projects

Melissa is a student at McGill University with a degree in Cultural Studies and the Social Studies of Medicine. She is an outspoken patient advocate and oversees Medical Herstory's three portfolios. Her interest in women's health grew when she had her ovary removed due to ovarian cancer and with her mom acting as a powerhouse advocate by her side. She has combined her passion for language, communication, and health equity by helping others bring their stories to light.

Awards

Exceptional achievement and
commitment to positive social change.

Vice Chancellor's Social Impact Award

University of Cambridge

Demonstrated excellence, leadership,
dedication and perseverance.

Scarlet Key Award

McGill University