91´«Ã½

Roger Chafe

Professor of Health Services Research and Evaluation MA, PhD (91´«Ã½), Postdoctoral Fellow (U of Toronto)

Division of Population Health and Applied Health Sciences

Roger Chafe (MA, PhD) is a Full Professor of Health Services Research and Evaluation in the Division of Population Health and Applied Health Sciences (PHAHS), Faculty of Medicine, 91´«Ã½. His research focuses on the conceptual and methodological foundations of health research and on applied health services and policy research.

Roger has more than two decades of experience in health services, policy and research methodology. His work examines both how health research is conceived and conducted and how evidence can contribute to improving healthcare policy and delivery. He has published in journals including Nature, Lancet Oncology, CMAJ, Healthcare Policy and the International Journal of Qualitative Methods, and is the author of (2026) and (2009)

Before joining PHAHS in 2024, he was a Professor in the Discipline of Pediatrics and the founding Director of 91´«Ã½â€™s Janeway Pediatric Research Unit.

Research Interests

My research has two closely related areas of focus. The first concerns the conceptual and methodological foundations of health research. Drawing on my background in both philosophy and health services research, I am particularly interested in clarifying the concepts, theories and methodological assumptions that shape how research is conceived and conducted, and in translating this work into practical guidance for researchers. My current work focuses particularly on the nature and role of theory in research and on qualitative description and applied qualitative methodology.

My second focus is applied health services and policy research. I am particularly drawn to applied research that has the potential to improve the care people receive or inform healthcare decision-making. My applied research has addressed questions related to resource allocation and healthcare decision-making, patient and public engagement, health technology adoption, healthcare access, and transitions in care.

These two areas of research are directly connected. Conducting applied research across diverse health problems has led me to broader questions about how research problems are conceptualized and how methodological choices are made. In turn, my conceptual and methodological work aims to provide researchers with clearer and more practical ways of thinking about, designing, and conducting high-quality applied health research.

Selected Publications

Conceptual and Methodological Research

Chafe, R. (2026) Developing Qualitative Descriptions. Routledge.

Chafe, R. (2023) Rejecting choices: The problematic origins of researcher-defined paradigms within qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 22, pp. 1–10.

Bonisteel, I., Shulman, R., Newhook, L.A., Guttmann, A., Smith, S. and Chafe, R. (2021) Reconceptualizing recruitment in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 20, pp. 1–12.

Chafe, R. (2017) The value of applied qualitative description for health services research. Healthcare Policy, 12(3), pp. 12–18.

Applied Health Services and Policy Research

Smith-Young, J., Pike, A., Swab, M. and Chafe, R. (2025) Parents’ and guardians’ experiences of barriers and facilitators in accessing autism spectrum disorder diagnostic services for their children: A qualitative systematic review. JBI Evidence Synthesis, 23 (1), pp. 6–68.

Darmonkow, G., Chafe, R., Aslanova, R., Twells, L., Barter, O.J. and Newhook, L.A. (2021) A multi-intervention campaign lowers pediatric diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalizations in a Canadian province. Canadian Journal of Diabetes, 45 (8), pp. 792-797.

Dobrow, M., Hagens, V., Chafe, R., Rabenick, L. and Sullivan, T. (2018) Consolidated decision principles for screening: A systematic review of 45 years of evolving guidance for population-based screening decisions. CMAJ, 190(14), pp. E422–E429.

Chafe, R., Born, K., Slutsky, A. and Laupacis, A. (2011). The rise of people power. Nature, 472, pp. 410–411.

Chafe, R., Dhalla, I., Dobrow, M. and Sullivan, T. (2009). Accessing unfunded cancer drugs in publicly funded hospitals Lancet Oncology, 10(4), pp. 307–308.

Chafe, R. (2009). Allocating Health Care Resources in Canada: A Comparison of Nine Case Studies (Verlag). 

Education

Roger holds a PhD in Medicine (Community Health / ARTC stream) and an MA in Philosophy from 91´«Ã½. He completed a CHSRF-CIHR postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation at the University of Toronto and in the Cancer Services and Policy Research Unit at Cancer Care Ontario. He was also a postdoctoral Research Associate of the Comparative Program on Health and Society with the Munk Centre for International Studies at the University of Toronto.

Current Teaching

MED 6220 – Introduction to Community Health

YouTube channel

View Roger’s  for videos related to research.

Publications

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