Allyson Ion

Allyson Ion is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work at McMaster University. Her scholarship centres on community-engaged, feminist, and intersectional research with women living with HIV, investigating perinatal care experiences, stigma, surveillance, and the impacts of Canadian criminal law on HIV non-disclosure. She also leads projects on cannabis-related stigma in pregnancy and on Indigenous housing policy for people affected by HIV/AIDS. Prof. Ion teaches qualitative and community-based research methods to both Master’s and PhD students.

Education and Training
While specific degrees are not detailed in the source text, Prof. Ion’s extensive publication record and course instruction in advanced research methods at McMaster University indicate doctoral-level training in social work or a related health-social-science discipline.

Research Interests
Her research integrates three major streams:

• Perinatal care and reproductive justice for women living with HIV, using institutional ethnography and community-based participatory approaches.
• Intersectional stigma and surveillance experienced by pregnant and parenting women who use cannabis or live with HIV.
• Policy-oriented work on Indigenous housing, child welfare involvement of HIV-positive mothers, and integrated mental-health-care evaluation.

Across more than 30 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and co-edited volumes since 2010, Prof. Ion’s work has consistently applied qualitative, participatory, and arts-based methodologies to illuminate the social organization of health services and to advance equity-oriented policy change.

Scientific Awards and Recognition
While no formal awards are listed in the provided text, her research has been widely cited: multiple articles appear in clinical guidelines and policy documents, and her work has been referenced in Wikipedia, news outlets, and clinical practice sources.

Teaching, Advising & Service
Prof. Ion has designed and taught graduate courses in:

• Child Welfare (SOCWORK 4W03)
• Qualitative Methods for Social Work (SOCWORK 772)
• Critical Approaches to Community-Based Research (SOCSCI 701)
• Doctoral Research Seminars (SOCWORK 773A/B)
• Critical Evidence & Evaluation in Social Services (SOCWORK 743)

She supervises Master’s and PhD students through Research Experience Seminars (SOCWORK 744A/B) and directed reading courses, and serves on thesis committees as evidenced by her mentorship of doctoral research titled “The Social Organization of Perinatal Care for Women Living with HIV in Ontario” (2019).

Labs & Teams
Prof. Ion leads or co-leads several community-engaged initiatives: the Women HIV/AIDS Initiative, the WATCH HIV (Women, ART and Criminalization of HIV) project, and Women, Art and Cannabis. These multi-province collaborations partner with Indigenous organizations, women with lived experience, and frontline service providers to co-create knowledge, arts-based interventions, and policy recommendations.