Pablo (Pau) Galvez-Hernandez is an Assistant Professor in Health Professions and Practice in the Department of Health and Society at the University of Toronto Scarborough, and a member of the Graduate Faculty at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME). He was previously a Postdoctoral Fellow at IHPME, an ICES Postdoctoral Trainee in Primary Care & Health Sciences, and a trainee in AI for Public Health.
His research focuses on (i) community-based primary healthcare systems, with emphasis on interprofessional teams, integrated care networks, and Health in All Policies (HiAP) approaches involving intersectoral collaboration across health, social, and community sectors; and (ii) the impact of social, structural, and environmental determinants of health, such as social connection, community context and neighbourhood resources, and climate change, on older adult population health.
Dr. Galvez-Hernandez applies diverse methods, including quantitative analysis, machine learning, natural language processing, realist evaluation, and multi-method designs rooted in implementation science. He worked for more than a decade in clinical, educational, and policy roles in Canada and Catalonia, including as an advanced practice RN in interprofessional primary care teams. He aims to generate actionable evidence to strengthen equitable and effective primary care and public health strategies for older adults and marginalized populations.
Research Projects
Identifying Patterns of Social Connection and Their Links to Cognitive Health
Social connection is a key determinant of healthy aging. This project examines diverse patterns of social connection among older adults in a large national cohort and investigates how these patterns relate to early indicators of cognitive change. Using advanced analytic techniques, including machine learning clustering and multilevel modeling, the study aims to uncover how different connection profiles may influence cognitive health over time and across population groups. The findings will deepen our understanding of social connection as a modifiable factor for dementia prevention and healthy aging.
Optimizing Interprofessional Primary Care Team Configurations
Interprofessional Primary Care Teams bring together diverse health professionals, such as physicians, nurse practitioners, social workers and pharmacists, to deliver coordinated, comprehensive care. While these models can improve access and outcomes, their composition and organization vary widely across regions, which can lead to differences in how well team resources align with patient and community needs. This project uses population-level health data to explore how variations in team structure relate to patient outcomes and health system performance.