Abstract
Objective
The short report aims to examine differences in self-rated general health across racialized post-secondary students at a university in Ontario, Canada.
Methods
Binary logistic regression analysis was used to examine poor health as an outcome among racialized students as whole, as well as across Asian, South Asian, Afro-Caribbean and Middle Eastern student groups in comparison to white Caucasian post-secondary students.
Results
After adjusting for several covariates, racialized students as a whole had 2.43 times the odds of reporting poor general health compared to white Caucasian students. Asian (OR = 2.77; CI = 1.84-4.18; p < 0.05) and South Asian (OR = 2.52; CI = 1.56-4.08; p < 0.05) students were significantly more likely to report poor health compared to white Caucasian students.
Conclusion
The findings call for further attention to the health needs of racialized post-secondary students living in Canada and creating campuses where diverse student populations feel safe and systemically included.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank the University of Toronto students, faculty and staff who volunteered their time and effort on this project including Alyona Koulanova.
Conflict of interest disclosure
The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of Canada and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of University of Toronto.
Funding
Funding was provided by the University of Toronto Learning and Education Advancement Fund (LEAF), Office of the Vice Provost, University of Toronto.