Search

Copyright of Canadian Studies in Population is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Canadian Studies in Population is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of International Migration & Integration is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Author-supplied Abstracts.)

Given the increase in the number of Canadian jurisdictions with school nutrition and/or physical activity policies, there is a need to assess the effectiveness of such policies. The objectives of this paper are to 1) provide an overview of key issues in monitoring and evaluating school nutrition and physical activity policies in Canada and 2) identify areas for further research needed to strengthen the evidence base and inform the development of effective approaches to monitoring and evaluation. Evaluation indicators, data sources and existing tools for evaluating nutrition and physical activity are reviewed. This paper has underscored the importance of identifying common indicators and approaches, using a comprehensive approach based on the WHO framework and ensuring that research capacity and funding is in place to facilitate high-quality evaluation efforts in the future.

Rates of child and youth obesity and associated chronic diseases are rising worldwide, in part as a result of inadequate physical activity (PA) levels. Environmental change is needed in multiple settings to encourage the adoption of healthy lifestyle behaviours at an early age. Schools are an ideal setting in which to incorporate a variety of interventions in order to improve student PA levels and healthy eating environments. This paper reviews effective and promising policies for increasing PA levels in the school setting and introduces other untested interventions that could become the basis of future well-designed studies. Policies outlined in this review should be considered by a range of stakeholders and be carefully monitored and evaluated. These policies should include daily, quality, safe physical education and physical activity; extracurricular physical activity; training of physical activity leaders; active transportation to and from school; adequate facilities; and community outreach. Successful school initiatives and stakeholders should also be recognized formally for their contribution.

This paper outlines the history and rationale of the six National Collaborating Centres for Public Health program, established by the Public Health Agency of Canada in 2004. The Centres are not focused on primary research, but rather on synthesizing the global scientific evidence relevant to public health policies, programs and practices--and its translation into useful "knowledge products" for public health professionals, policy-makers and community groups to inform public health decision-making. The broad principles of knowledge synthesis and translation/exchange (KSTE) for public health applications are reviewed, as are recent publications and websites describing international projects in this burgeoning field. Finally, some best practices for public-health-oriented KSTE derived from experiences in Canada and elsewhere are described.

Background: A mounting body of evidence indicates that lone mothers and their children are at higher risk of a variety of health problems. The dynamics of the relationship between social assistance, poverty and health are not well understood, and the study of this population presents substantial challenges. The purpose of this paper is to present an analysis of the state of research on lone parents, social assistance and health in an effort to make recommendations that will move the research forward., Methods: Reviews of the relevant literature and social policies were conducted to identify (1) trends in social assistance policy and the extent of interprovincial variation in policy, and (2) research gaps. A series of interviews were conducted with key informants in government, non-governmental organizations and academia to gather information regarding research obstacles, opportunities and priorities. Finally, a consensus-building workshop was held to form research recommendations., Results: A substantial degree of variation exists among provinces and territories with regard to social assistance policies. The nature of the variation, however, is complex and does not fall into tightly defined categories. This variation creates the possibility for "natural experiments" to examine the health implications of policies and practices. The pace of policy change, however, creates problems with respect to evaluation of specific policy initiatives. Interviewees and workshop participants recognized substantial impediments to research in this area, particularly regarding the availability of appropriate data., Conclusion: A research agenda, data development and dissemination activities were proposed to increase the research activity; these would be based upon multi-disciplinary, multi-sectoral collaborations using multiple methodologies. The creation of a multi-disciplinary, multi-sectoral national consortium in social assistance and health, reflecting the appropriate mix of urban, rural, anglophone, francophone and First Nations communities, is proposed.

Background: In 2002-2003, a Needs, Gaps and Opportunities Assessment (NGOA) was conducted to investigate relationships between socio-economic dimensions of housing and health. Recent reviews of the literature point to a dearth of research on the socio-economic dimensions of housing and health, despite its potential for promoting health., Methods: The NGOA sought to identify research needs and gaps, and future opportunities for research in housing, socio-economic status and health. The methods used included a literature scan, a scan of research capacity, eight regional stakeholder workshops across Canada, and an open-ended e-mail survey of stakeholders. In this paper, we report the findings of the stakeholder consultations., Findings: The main finding of the NGOA was that there is a significant dearth of research on housing as a socio-economic determinant of health but enormous potential for conducting high-impact, longitudinal and quasi-experimental research in the area. Of particular interest to stakeholder participants in the NGOA were the economic aspects of housing and health; the impact of housing on health for vulnerable subgroups (e.g., Aboriginal peoples, immigrants, children, seniors); the role of socio-economically and ethnically mixed communities; and the interaction between socio-economic aspects of housing and biophysical hazards in the home., Conclusion: The NGOA demonstrated that there is a substantial audience eager for knowledge on housing as a socio-economic determinant of health and that such knowledge could make an immediate impact on policy decision-making and program operation. Although knowledge gaps are substantial, the NGOA clearly identifies opportunities for high-impact, longitudinal and quasi-experimental research. Recently signed federal-provincial funding agreements for housing make the findings of the NGOA timely. Moreover, the NGOA results demonstrate how research on housing as a socio-economic determinant of health could be a strategy for improving our understanding of the effects of social environments on health and for reducing health disparities.

From a holistic perspective, health literacy is a requirement for the well-being of entire populations. It moves beyond the focus on individuals to consider the role of organizations and systems. This perspective offers a context for discussing best practices in health literacy, and implications for research and policy development. This paper offers an overview of the best practices that were presented at the Second Canadian Conference on Literacy and Health. It discusses clear writing in some detail because it was emphasized at the conference. It also considers practices that were addressed less emphatically, such as oral communication between patients and health care professionals, training for health care professionals, non-written means of communication (such as video), and building capacity through action-research. The paper critiques some practices. It also notes the lack of research on the links between health literacy and oral understanding, on the impact of verbal and non-written interventions, and on the effectiveness of these practices on the health outcomes of the population. It briefly discusses policy issues and suggests some future directions.

This is a summary report of the Aboriginal content of the Language and Culture theme at the Canadian Public Health Association's Second Canadian Conference on Literacy and Health. Our key premise is that Indigenous conceptualizations of literacy need to build on Indigenous understandings and perspectives. We support this premise through a review of the relevant literature in the disciplines of Aboriginal literacy, Indigenous education, health literacy, health promotion, and knowledge translation and our synthesis of the presentations, workshops, and discussions at the meeting. Key emergent themes include: the unique and culturally determined ways in which Aboriginal peoples and their languages conceptualize learning, education, and health; and the recognition that self-determination of language and learning are human rights. Aboriginal concepts of and approaches to literacy naturally link to and overlap with Aboriginal concepts of and approaches to health. The paper includes an overview of gaps in the field and an example of the way that research and practice can be brought together in the context of one First Nations community.

The goal of this article is to outline the analytical perspectives of the concept of social capital regarding health and health management. Social capital, as defined in terms of social networks and resources, has a positive impact on a number of areas, notably the health, well-being, and social and economic development of communities. It is also a useful tool for implementing social policy, especially for marginal populations, the elderly, social assistance payments, etc. An action strategy based on the support and development of networks is the key to achieving the social development, health, and well-being of populations. The social ties promoted by these networks provide people with social, cognitive, and emotional support. This has a direct impact on their self-esteem and sense of personal achievement. They also facilitate access to social resources, including social advancement opportunities. In this paper, we examine the vitality, determinants of health, and health management of Canada's minority Francophone communities.

Canadians are increasingly being asked to become involved in international health research and intervention projects. Recently, Quebec clinicians were asked to support a project to build and run a tertiary and highly-specialized hospital for women and children, in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. The goal of this paper was to analyze the challenges raised by participation in such a project. The major lesson learned was the need to resist the temptation to provide aid when it involves an attractive but ineffective intervention. The current public health priority in Afghanistan is to provide as much of the population as possible with access to a nearby health centre, for primary health care and safe deliveries. When analyzing the implications of Canadian clinicians' commitment to this project, we considered three major public health challenges: public health priorities, hospital care organization and health care financing. The results indicated that, given the current Afghani context, this project was neither relevant nor appropriate and had undesirable repercussions on the population and the health care system.

Psychosocial environment at work is now considered a health determinant. The National Population Health Survey (NPHS) of 1994-95 is the first study in which psychological demands and decision latitude at work were measured in a random sample of the Canadian population. However, psychometric properties of the scales used in NPHS to measure these factors are not known. The objective of the present paper was to evaluate some validity parameters of the scales used in the NPHS by comparison to the original scales recommended by Karasek to measure these factors. Results of the current study support the validity of the decision latitude scale. However, validity of the psychological demand scale is more limited.

This paper reviews key public health aspects related to surveillance, transmission and primary prevention of hepatitis C. Hepatitis C is now a reportable disease in all Canadian provinces and territories. Although prevalence in Canada is estimated at under 1%, that associated with injection drug use (IDU) approaches 90%. The epidemiology of new HCV infections in Canada is now primarily defined by IDU behaviour, with annual incidence rates among new drug injectors exceeding 25%. HCV is less efficiently transmitted through other routes of exposure. An effective vaccine against HCV remains elusive. Some jurisdictions offer hepatitis A and hepatitis B vaccine to HCV-infected persons. An array of harm reduction strategies targeting IDU has been implemented but underdeployed across Canada, and has been ineffective to date in controlling the HCV epidemic. Public policy alternatives, such as legalization and regulation of injection drugs, are being debated. Improved HCV preventive strategies are urgently required and need careful evaluation.

This paper describes the survey results reporting demographic profiles, behaviours, opinions, beliefs, attitudes, and intentions related to condom use for three Canadian ethnocultural communities (Latin American, English-speaking Caribbean and South Asian) participating in the Ethnocultural Communities Facing AIDS Study. Specific recommendations are presented for HIV-prevention programming based on the research results.

The aim of this study was to understand the intention to use a condom for each instance of sexual intercourse with a new partner in three of Canada's non-dominant ethnocultural communities: Latin American (N = 346), English-speaking Caribbean (N = 358), and South Asian (N = 355). All respondents were recruited from multiple ethnocultural venues using predetermined sampling frames and quotas for each community. Anonymous questionnaires assessing culturally specific theoretical constructs were completed. This paper presents the methodology and the main findings. The high quality of the results of this study demonstrate the advantage of establishing strong partnerships with members of communities being studied.

This paper reports on issues identified in conversations held between one of the Ethnocultural Communities Facing AIDS Study (ECFA) investigators and five stakeholders associated with this experiment in collaborative and participatory research. The stakeholders reflect on their experiences in partnering with university-based researchers, resistance in ethnocultural communities to being researched, and the next steps implicated by the research in question. The problem of HIV/AIDS in ethnocultural communities in Canada is, relative to the mainstream, also viewed as a symbol of disadvantage in these communities. The stakeholders suggest that to address these deeper concerns, there must be vital, dynamic, and enduring communication between researchers, community representatives, and government at all levels, in the process of identifying solutions and implementing them in the present.

This paper presents the results of Phase II of the Ethnocultural Communities Facing AIDS Study, the sociocultural investigation of factors contributing to risk behaviour associated with HIV/AIDS in six ethnocultural communities in Canada in three urban sites. In Vancouver, the South Asian and Chinese communities were studied, the Horn of Africa and English-speaking Caribbean communities in Toronto and the Latin American and Arabic-speaking communities in Montreal. Results demonstrated that there are common elements across these ethnocultural communities that increase the risk for HIV transmission. HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention in ethnocultural communities must address sociocultural differences, particularly sex role differences between men and women in terms of power within relationships to negotiate for safer sexual practices.

Out of a comparative research conducted on the training of first respondents to car crash injuries, this paper identifies four major factors influencing the way in which a country designs its prehospital emergency system. The paper also discusses elements pertaining to the organization of these systems in Canada and presents relevant interprovincial variations.