ELORA – Lorraine Greaves has spent years studying the differences between men and women – how they react to drugs, tobacco and alcohol, and how they are treated differently in medical research, health care and in society in general.
Her dedication and groundbreaking research have improved health care for women – for instance, it is now widely understood that women have different symptoms from men when having a heart attack.
For her accomplishments, she was one of 83 individuals appointed to the Order of Canada on June 30.
Greaves divides her time between Elora and Vancouver and is a sought-after speaker at international conferences.
Her member citation on the Order of Canada announcement states she is an “expert in sex and gender-based research specializing in women’s experiences with addiction, tobacco use and violence.
“She notably founded the British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health and co-founded the International Network of Women Against Tobacco.”
The citation adds Greaves’ “leading research and advocacy continue to influence health practices worldwide.”
“It’s been a great week,” Greaves said, smiling broadly during a July 4 interview at the Wellington Advertiser office.
“Lots of people from my past are coming forward offering congratulations.”
But more than that, Greaves said the national honour recognizes the importance of her life’s work, not just to level the playing field between how men and women are diagnosed and treated for illnesses, but how medical interventions intersect with societal norms and expectations.
“When I started out, women were viewed as small men,” she said. “That’s all changed because of the women’s health movement.
“There’s much more awareness. But we’re still playing catch-up in research, figuring out better treatments and diagnoses.”
Greaves is a medical sociologist.
“I look at health care and social issues and how they meet and overlap,” she said.
Her PhD thesis in the 1990s examined the meaning of smoking cigarettes to women and she realized cigarette manufacturers were targeting advertising campaigns at young women in particular.
Greaves said it’s now known that nicotine impacts women differently than men, but the industry had its own research and was well aware of what it was doing back in the day.
“Slim” cigarettes gained popularity with women, and those with long memories might recall the slogan “You’ve come a long way, baby,” which suggested smoking was a symbol of freedom and liberation for women.
Greaves said because nicotine affects women differently than men, smoking cessation programs need to be different too.
Gender differences in smoking led her to explore gender differences in other health outcomes.
She founded the Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children in London, Ontario, as well as the Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health in Vancouver, B.C..
She also co-founded the International Network of Women Against Tobacco.
Greaves has conducted research, compiled data and has lobbied for change in the research, industry and government sectors – culture changes that are often met with resistance, she said.
Most recently she’s been examining a gender-sensitive framework for emergency responders in natural disaster scenarios, like wildfires and floods.
Women, women with children, breastfeeding women and pregnant women all need different emergency facilities than men, she said.
And women who have experienced domestic abuse need to be segregated from men, even in these emergency scenarios.
“We know that after wildfires, domestic violence goes up,” she said.
Greaves explained it’s been an uphill fight, but receiving the Order of Canada indicates her work is breaking through government and institutional walls and leading to better health care for women.
“For that, I’m very grateful,” she said.
