leaders in health: dr. latif murji inspires social change through deeds and lyrics
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dr. latif murji is a family and emergency doctor. “medicine is sitting at this intersection of advocacy, compassion, intellectual curiosity, and real-world impact. i thought that would be a great place to be. so that became my goal.”
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the song “placebo” is a provocative take on the simple fixes we hope will help us stay healthy. like, if we could just swallow a sugar pill for all that ails us, including the pressures on our overstretched health-care system, wouldn’t that be something? the lyrics are even more interesting when you know that the songwriter is a doctor (with a gorgeous voice) looking to make social change.
dr. latif murji is a family and emergency physician at scarborough health network (shn) and scarborough centre for healthy communities (schc) in scarborough, ont. he’s also the lead vocalist of parachute thieves, an indie rock band that has headlined toronto festivals and captured a growing fan base with its intensity and socially driven sound.
his music, like the work he does as a physician, is fueled by creativity and innovation, and he says it’s where he finds his quiet moments.
“i’m writing melodies and some guitar parts and other instruments in tandem with my band. but lyrics are really personal to me. and when i’m in my quiet space, i can think. there are some songs where i want to send a message, something i’m thinking about and mulling over and i want to poetically convey that in a way that will tickle the listener’s brain musically, but also intellectually,” dr. murji says, explaining one of the themes in placebo is that health-care providers think they’re the solution to achieving health. people go to hospital to get treated and get well, for example, but hospitals are just one of the solutions to a complex problem.
public health policies drive population health
“the idea of a placebo is something that’s posing as a solution and maybe tricking someone into believing it’s a solution. but we need to think differently if we’re truly going to solve problems,” dr. murji says, pointing toward public health policies.
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“so this is making sure our patients, which is literally our community, having safe housing and affordable housing, thinking about them having social connections, familial connections, livable spaces like outdoor parks and recreation facilities that are accessible, job security, and working conditions that are safe and sustainable.”
he also talks passionately about reducing disparities in gender and race gaps, where biases that people have are implicit in the way that they treat each other—whether that’s in health care or just in society. “these are all connected, and that’s how we can achieve health.”
his songs and his energy on stage reflect who dr. murji is and how he wants to move health equity forward. he’s 35, with a whirlwind of accomplishments under his belt, a daily meditation practice, and a bedtime gratitude journal. he has a kindness and humility that people warm to, giving him an ideal bedside manner for patients in distress. well, how can they not? he’s the kind of person who gives back to his community with generosity and a sense of purpose.
program offers free phone conversations with doctors
he leads health equity initiatives in a big way, founding the acclaimed vaxfacts+ clinic with the support of schc, a groundbreaking program that addresses vaccine hesitancy through physician-led phone conversations (no provincial health card necessary), and has now expanded to cover a range of other preventive health topics. it’s become a blueprint for engaging communities and advancing health literacy across canada.
he’s also a lecturer at the university of toronto, where he created a novel health equity curriculum for resident physicians so they can launch their careers knowing the challenges of newcomers and marginalized populations, “helping to meet people where they’re at.” then there’s his not-for-profit organization stand up for health, which delivers immersive learning to train health-care providers in health equity and advocacy.
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and for a one- or two-week stint several times a year, dr. murji works as an emergency doctor in northern ontario communities like moose factory, where he landed with his best friend just out of residency in christmas 2018.
connecting with communities and giving back
“they had a shortage of physicians at that time, and we were new grads and suddenly responsible for this very busy emergency department in a remote region serving primarily indigenous patients in the coldest time of the year. it was like -50 degrees celsius. it was a very challenging, humbling, and meaningful experience all at once,” he says, adding that the patients were grateful and he valued connecting with the community. people invited him and his friend to share holiday meals. as a keepsake, he has a soapstone polar bear from a local carver that commemorates that first service to a hospital he’s returned to several times since.
dr. murji grew up in scarborough, a diverse, multicultural community, where his peers had different socioeconomic backgrounds and experiences that influenced his understanding of the world.
“i took all of that in, and i was just kind of this sponge at that time. what i had was a lot of curiosity and this drive to give back to the community, something that was instilled in me from a young age,” dr. murji says. he credits his family for their support and inspiration. his mom was a refugee from uganda, coming to canada during the crisis in 1972 with several thousand people who didn’t have anywhere else to go. his dad was an immigrant from tanzania. both were grateful to make a home in canada, and dr. murji is their only child. while he lives in downtown toronto, he’s often in scarborough for work and to see his parents.
“i had no idea what i was going to do for a career when i was a kid. i really wanted to be a baseball player for a long time,” he laughs. when he was 15, he bought himself a guitar and taught himself how to play, setting a path for the creative spontaneity that he pursued. now he records albums in los angeles with the band’s producer, where he gets to enjoy the amazing surfing.
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from improv to physician and performer
in the early days, though, he also formed an improv group called the four niners (they were in grade 9 when they started) to do some good.
“i tried to pair an innovative approach to something that i thought was just cool and important to the community. one of the really fun things i did was i really liked improv comedy, and i took my troop on a tour of the feeder schools in scarborough around my high school. we had this message of empowering the students.” his improv riffed on breaking down the insecurity of young teens and the need to fit in and not ruffle any feathers.
“our idea was you actually should be unique, be confident in who you are and get involved and participate in things. that’s where you really grow and shine.”
which, you could say, is what dr. murji still does today, once he set the course.
“medicine is sitting at this intersection of advocacy, compassion, intellectual curiosity, and real-world impact. i thought that would be a great place to be. so that became my goal.”
learn more about the life-saving work dr. murji is supporting at the scarborough health network foundation.
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