Meet researcher, Dr. Alexa Yakubovich
Dr. Alexa Yakubovich is an assistant professor and PhD researcher in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology at Dalhousie University, whose research program is dedicated to uncovering the causes and prevention of violence—especially violence against women and gender-based violence. Her work addresses the most common and harmful forms of gender-based violence, including domestic and sexualized violence, which have major impacts on mental and physical health. With Nova Scotia reporting the highest self-reported rates of intimate partner violence against women among all Canadian provinces, Dr. Yakubovich’s research is both timely and vital.
Her approach is equity- and action-oriented, involving close collaboration with policy makers, organizations, community partners, and people with lived experience. As the inaugural Eastern Canada Award recipient in CIHR’s Health System Impact Embedded Early Career Research program, Dr. Yakubovich leads two streams of research: one focused on designing and evaluating interventions to prevent violence and reduce health inequities, and another on understanding the burdens, measurement, and risk factors of violence to inform effective policy. She employs a wide range of research methods, from epidemiology and mixed methods to community-based participatory research and implementation science, ensuring her work is rigorous and relevant.
Q: What inspired your career in violence prevention and health equity?
I’ve always been interested in human behavior and social justice. Violence sits at the intersection of health and social sciences, which is what I’m really interested in. When I was in grad school completing my master’s, I studied how violence predicts respiratory health outcomes, but I found myself much more interested in violence itself and how to prevent it. Gender-based violence has such an obvious social justice component and is so important for health equity that it became my natural focus.
Q: How did your academic journey—from Manitoba to Oxford—shape your research interests and approach?
I did my undergrad in psychology and philosophy at the University of Manitoba, and I was born and raised in Winnipeg. After finishing my undergrad, I wanted international experience, so I applied for a Rhodes Scholarship and selected a program in evidence-based social intervention at Oxford. Although I didn’t get the scholarship initially, I found alternative funding and completed my master’s degree. Exposure to research that was directly impacting policy and practice inspired me to pursue a research career. The following year, I received a Rhodes Scholarship to complete my PhD at Oxford, where I continued to learn from researchers working closely with policy partners. That was pivotal for me—prior to that I’d only seen research go into peer-reviewed journals and stay there. Seeing research inform policy and practice was novel and inspiring, and it’s shaped how I develop and carry out my work.
Q: What are the main streams of your research, and how do they complement each other?
My research has two main streams. The first focuses on the design and evaluation of interventions and policies to prevent and respond to violence. I consider all three levels of prevention in my work primary prevention (preventing violence before it occurs), secondary prevention (preventing recurrence), and tertiary prevention (preventing negative consequences). The second stream examines causes and measurement of violence, informing what interventions should target and how outcomes should be measured. These streams complement each other by ensuring that interventions are evidence-based and tailored to real-world needs.
Q: How do partnerships and survivor voices shape your research?
Collaboration is central to everything we do. We use an integrated knowledge translation approach, partnering with those who will use the knowledge from start to finish. This includes women with lived experience of violence, service providers, and policymakers, co-creating knowledge and interpreting findings together. Survivors are involved as team members, through advisory groups, and as participants, providing feedback and sharing experiences throughout the projects. Their voices are included at every stage, ensuring that interventions are relevant and effective.
Q: What are the key gaps in housing policy and support systems for women experiencing violence and homelessness?
Intimate partner violence is the leading cause of women’s homelessness, which is often hidden. Data collection and policy are based on men’s experiences, overlooking women’s needs. Shelters and interventions often don’t address the unique needs of women experiencing violence. Stronger collaboration and coordinated action between the homelessness and anti-violence sectors are needed, including long-term housing solutions. Health systems are important entry points, but support must extend to community, housing, and social services. Stronger referral pathways and coordinated action are needed across the spectrum of risk.
Q: What advice do you have for those working at the intersection of research, policy, and advocacy?
Success in academia doesn’t always align with impact in policy and practice. Academia rewards publishing, but meaningful partnership and co-creation take time. Focus on work that matters and build relationships, even if it slows publication. If your work starts to feel insignificant to you, don’t be afraid to pivot. I mentor students and early career researchers to ask questions that matter to themselves and to knowledge users, and to communicate their findings clearly. I support them in exploring career options within and beyond academia, focusing on values and impact goals.
Q: Are you optimistic about the future of health system responses to gender-based violence in Nova Scotia and Canada?
It feels like an important policy moment. The provincial government has recognized intimate partner violence as an epidemic, and recent inquiries have led to significant recommendations for health systems. The challenge now is to implement these changes, which will be an ongoing process. I hope all healthcare providers understand the health impacts of domestic and sexualized violence. There should be champions within the health system with expertise to support complex cases and connect patients to services. Intersectoral collaboration is key.
Q: Can you share a moment when your research directly influenced policy or practice?
One of my PhD papers was cited in the UK’s Domestic Abuse Act (2021), and I consulted with the UK Home Office. That was my first experience seeing work that I led influence policy. There's been a lot of important work that's come out of the UK, in terms of responding to domestic violence, and I often look to UK policy and practice for inspiration.