Dr. Anna Durbin is a public health scientist whose research focuses on improving health and social outcomes for marginalized adults, with a specialization in intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). She holds a PhD in Health Services Research from the University of Toronto and completed her postdoctoral fellowship at CAMH and Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Toronto, with a focus on mental health and developmental disabilities. Dr. Durbin has led and collaborated on numerous CIHR- and SSHRC-funded studies addressing barriers to care, diagnostic overshadowing, and health system redesign for adults with IDD. She is the principal investigator of a CIHR-funded mixed methods study on team-based primary care models for this population.
Dr. Anna Durbin’s research aims to improve care for adults with IDD, who often face complex health needs but receive fragmented or inequitable services. Her work combines population-based data with frontline perspectives to understand gaps in care and design better health system responses. She investigates how social and structural factors like housing instability or immigration intersect with IDD. Dr. Durbin also explores innovative tools, such as administrative data, to identify needs earlier and support better outcomes. Her research is guided by equity, and a commitment to making policy more responsive to the needs of underserved groups. Dr. Durbin holds faculty appointments at the University of Toronto and contributes to cross-sectoral initiatives, including as Chair of Ontario’s Data Improvement Task Force on Developmental Services.
Publications
- Durbin A, Jung JKH et al. PREVALENCE OF INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AMONG NEWCOMERS. PLoS ONE. 2019.
- Durbin A, Lunsky Y et al. EFFECT OF HOUSING FIRST ON HOUSING STABILITY IN LOW INTELLECTUAL FUNCTIONING POPULATIONS. Can J Psychiatry. 2018.
- Durbin A et al. REPEAT ED VISITS AMONG ADULTS WITH IDD AND MENTAL ILLNESS. AJIDD. 2019.