Description:

This session is organized in response to the precarious health and working conditions faced by grassroots waste pickers in Ecuador. They play a crucial role in waste management but face barriers to accessing health and social protection services. Public policies are homogeneous and do not consider the specificities of this population. This situation underscores the need to explore innovative approaches to address health inequities in this vulnerable population, using the social determinants of health as a framework for analysis.

Participants will understand the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) as a tool to predict vulnerability in this population, using a clustering-based machine learning approach that allows for the identification of distinct profiles based on their social determinants. Based on these profiles, the session aims to demonstrate how AI can guide the development of more effective and targeted public health interventions.

Specific vulnerability profiles within the waste picker population are expected to be identified, demonstrating the need to design actions or policies for each identified group. Additionally, the importance of health education and how AI can help understand and predict the influence of social factors on the health of this population will be addressed. The session format will include a presentation of the study using the RUMBOS research project database: The Work and Health of Women Waste Pickers in the Context of COVID-19, and simulation models to predict future scenarios.

Integrating AI with a focus on social determinants allows for addressing health inequities in a more contextualized and effective manner. This approach can be key to reducing gaps in healthcare and promoting more equitable and inclusive access for the waste picker population. This project was funded under the Women RISE initiative with support from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Universidad de Cuenca.