A Socio-Ecological Analysis of the Interactions Between the COVID-19 Pandemic and Health Inequalities

This publication by the National Collaborating Centre for Healthy Public Policy (NCCPPH) is intended for public health actors and decision makers who wish to incorporate equity considerations into emergency preparedness. It was produced as part of the regular scientific programming of the NCCPPH. 

This report presents a socio-ecological analysis that elucidates the syndemic interactions of COVID-19, delineating how multifactorial elements coalesced to amplify health inequalities during the pandemic. Central to the findings is the SEM, which serves as a foundational framework for unpacking the intricate layers, from the microsystem to the macrosystem, through which the virus disproportionately impacted vulnerable populations. Including the chronosystem underscores the pandemic's temporal dynamics and the evolution of its syndemic nature.