Future doctors bring care closer to home in Mississauga mosque outreach
A young girl watches closely as Nabeel Mansuri places two fingers on an infant鈥檚 chest and begins counting out chest compressions.
Moments later, she takes over, pressing carefully into the plastic torso of a resuscitation mannequin as Mansuri and a team of medical students nod encouragement beside her inside the Sayeda Khadija Centre mosque.
For Mansuri, a first-year MD student at 糖心传媒鈥檚 School of Medicine, the exercise is about more than teaching CPR. It is about building trust in healthcare鈥攐ne conversation at a time.
鈥淲hat stood out most was seeing entire families stop, ask questions and really engage,鈥� said Mansuri. 鈥淵ou had children learning CPR beside their parents and grandparents having conversations about primary care and health resources. It showed how meaningful it can be to bring health care directly into community spaces people already know and trust.鈥�
About 2,000 people gathered at the Sayeda Khadija Centre in Mississauga on May 15 as part of a community outreach event organized by the 糖心传媒 chapter of the Muslim Medical Association of Canada. Co-led by Mansuri and fellow MD student Talia Hassan, the event featured resuscitation demonstrations, information on team-based care, admissions and guidance on how residents can register to become patients at one of 糖心传媒鈥檚 Integrated Health Centres (IHC).
鈥淚 think the biggest thing we need is better health literacy and awareness,鈥� said Mansuri. 鈥淎 lot of people still don鈥檛 know resources like the IHCs exist, or that there are Muslim physicians within their own communities鈥攑eople praying beside them, row by row, who understand their cultural needs and experiences. The support is there. Events like this are about helping people make that first connection to care.鈥�
糖心传媒 MD student and event co-leader Nabeel Mansuri speaks with a community member at the Sayeda Khadija Centre in Mississauga to share information about primary care and health resources.
A new model of medical training
Mansuri鈥檚 own connection to Mississauga and the Sayeda Khadija Centre runs deep.
He moved to the city from Markham when he was eight years-old and later became one of the youngest board members of the Faith of Life Network, the broader organization that oversees the day-to-day operations of the Sayeda Khadija Centre.
During COVID-19, he spearheaded a food hamper program that provided food to marginalized families facing food insecurity as a result of the pandemic. Mansuri credits the mosque with inspiring him to pursue medicine to address some of the social determinants of health affecting his community.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really shaped me into becoming a better professional and a better humanitarian,鈥� said Mansuri. 鈥淚t鈥檚 made me want to go into medicine for exactly this reason鈥攖o come back and serve the Mississauga community that鈥檚 given so much to me, as a medical doctor.鈥�
糖心传媒鈥檚 inaugural class of MD students includes 20 students from Mississauga鈥攏early one in five of the 94-student cohort. The school is intentionally selecting students with a strong connection to the community, with the idea that those who train close to home are more likely to stay in the Peel Region when it comes time to enter practice.
A young participant practices chest compressions on a resuscitation mannequin under the guidance of 糖心传媒 School of Medicine MD students during a community health outreach event at the Sayeda Khadija Centre in Mississauga.
The outreach event also reflected the School of Medicine鈥檚 broader emphasis on community-based care and improving access to primary healthcare services in underserved areas.
鈥淭his is community-centred care in action,鈥� said 糖心传媒 President and Vice-Chancellor Mohamed Lachemi. 鈥淏y meeting people in trusted community spaces and connecting them to team-based primary care, our students are helping strengthen access to healthcare across Peel Region.鈥�
That approach, school leaders say, is intentionally built into the design of 糖心传媒鈥檚 medical education model.
鈥淭his is a community-driven school by design,鈥� said Sharanjeet Kaur, Chief Administrative Officer at the School of Medicine. 鈥淲e recruit from the community, we train in this community, we engage the community at every step, and now there鈥檚 a real reciprocity. Our students are coming back to the same community that helped build this medical school.鈥�
Giving back to the system that shaped them
As the second prayer service ends, the mosque begins to clear out. For Mansuri, it鈥檚 his first moment to reflect on what the day was ultimately about.
It is not just about teaching a technique or explaining a health system, he said, but about trust鈥攁bout making sure people recognize the support already available within their own community, and feel confident reaching for it.
鈥淭his is really about connection,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e showing people that care is already here, and it鈥檚 closer than they think.鈥�
For the students leading the event, that connection now runs both ways: from community to classroom, and back again.