Cape Breton Doctor Contributes to International Delegation on Inclusive Healthcare

A family doctor from Inverness, Nova Scotia, is leading efforts to support healthy people and communities around the globe. Dr. Annalee Coakley, Assistant Dean of Student and Resident Affairs at the Cape Breton Medical Campus, is part of an international team of healthcare professionals who authored The Halifax Declaration. Presented to more than 600 delegates at the International Refugee and Migration Health Conference in Halifax in late June, the Declaration is connected to critical themes around refugee and migrant health and presents best practices for health equity. Dr. Coakley explains that the Declaration is focused on protecting health, dignity and human rights and aims to inform refugee and migrant policies and practices.

“The Declaration is made up of foundational statements and a series of recommendations that call upon governments and health systems to remove barriers to healthcare experienced by refugees and migrants,” says Dr. Coakley. “It calls for measures for inclusive healthcare services, meaningful participation in health research and training for healthcare professionals that includes migrant health topics.“

Dr. Coakley, who served as conference co-chair, says the conference provided a platform to allow the Declaration to be refined to ensure it reflects global perspectives.

“We received resounding support for the Declaration, and most important, we received detailed comments in 286 written submissions,” she says. “The level of response is further motivation to continue these collaborative efforts.”

This work builds on Dr. Coakley’s dedication to vulnerable populations. She worked in rural settings across Canada before moving to England in 2009 to complete a Diploma of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene at the London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. She then returned to Canada to support the Calgary Refugee Health Program, where she became a passionate advocate for the quality care of newcomers. Dr. Coakley moved to Nova Scotia in 2024, working as a GP-Oncologist in Cape Breton.

Dr. Coakley recently accepted her position at the new Cape Breton Medical Campus, set to welcome its first students in the coming weeks. Dr. Coakley looks forward to connecting with Nova Scotia’s future doctors around health equity.

“As educators, we have a responsibility to embed the values of health equity, human rights and advocacy for vulnerable communities into our curriculum so that the next generation of health professionals is prepared not only to care for individual patients, but to advance health equity and improve the health of society as a whole,” says Dr. Coakley. “Health equity is the rising tide that lifts all boats – when we lift up the most vulnerable, we lift up everyone.”

Congratulations to Dr. Coakley for gaining recognition as a leading contributor to this important effort!

The Halifax Declaration was published in The Lancet, an open access journal highlighting topics that include health, social and life sciences.  It was founded in 1823 as an independent, international weekly general medical journal.