Search

The article offers information on a paper of the Society of Rural Physicians of Canada, focusing on the issue of the rural health service closures. It explores the main causes behind the hospital closures including quality concerns, economic matters and highlights the impact of the step. After studying different aspects of the topic, it concludes that the decision of closing rural hospitals is not backed by proper reasons.

Presents a call for papers for the 27th NATO/CCMS International Technical Meeting on Air Pollution Modelling and Its Application on October 25-29, 2004 in Canada.

Building information modeling (BIM) is emerging as a potential solution for facility owners to address the challenges of poor information fidelity, interoperability, and usability in project delivery to support the lifecycle of their assets' information. Despite the many benefits offered by BIM, its use for facility operations remains significantly limited. The reality is that implementing BIM in large owner organisations is a complex challenge. In particular, a significant barrier to BIM adoption for owners is the challenge of identifying and formalizing the information requirements needed to support model-based project delivery and asset management. This paper presents the results of a longitudinal research project that investigated two large owner organisations in Canada to better understand the process of developing and formulating BIM requirements to support the lifecycle of their assets. Specifically, the objectives were to formalize an iterative approach to the identification and characterization of owner requirements and to develop a conceptual framework that would relate digital and physical products to owner requirements and organisational constructs, to underpin the formalization process. As part of this research an array of requirements documentation were analysed, interviews were performed with numerous facility management personnel, and BIMs from four projects were analysed. A methodology is introduced to support a rigorous and detailed analysis of BIM requirements. The investigation of the owner requirements helped to develop an understanding of the required information content, and its alignment with BIM. Finally the relationships between organisational constructs, owner requirements, and BIM were mapped. As the construction industry shifts towards model-based project delivery, this research will inform owners about how to think about handover of digital facility models, and what to require in models based on their specific needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines policy issues related to information literacy in Canada. It provides some background on the information literacy concept, reflecting on popular definitions offered by American, British, and Australian library associations, before advocating for a broader definition that views information literacy as a human right. Information literacy is also considered in relationship to the proliferation of other "literacies," such as digital, web, media, and information technology, that are the subject of increased advocacy and attention from interest groups and educators. The ongoing need for improved information literacy levels is analyzed not only in the context of inputs (the increasing complexity of the information environment) but also in terms of potential personal, social, and economic outcomes that can be realized through widespread information literacy education efforts. The paper argues that information literacy must become a priority not only among academic librarians but also school, public, and special librarians, as well as others outside of the library sector, if significant improvements in information literacy levels are to be realized. Such a coordinated approach can only be achieved in the context of policies that require, and adequately support, widespread efforts at improving information literacy levels. After a review of the ad-hoc state of information literacy education in Canada today, this paper analyzes information literacy-related policy development efforts in Canada to date in the four arenas where one would expect to see such activity: the Government of Canada, provincial governments, library associations, and other stakeholder groups. This article aims to start a wide-reaching discussion about information literacy and associated policy issues in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1978 the Canadian Chiropractic Association recognized the need to establish an organization that would prepare chiropractors to treat athletic injuries and promote these services to sports organizations. Dr. Adrian Grice approached three chiropractors to establish such an organization. The Canadian Chiropractic Sports Academy (CCSA) was established in 1978. This was the start of the chiropractic sports movement which has seen chiropractors playing prominent roles as team doctors to professional and amateur teams and athletes and in the delivery of care at major national and international competitions. This paper will show the work done by the original founders of the CCS A which has helped to pave the way to the present level of acceptance of chiropractic sports injury management and performance enhancement and as the progenitor of the Royal College of Chiropractic Sports Sciences Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the development of the 2004 Canadian Standards Association (CSA) A23.3 shear design provisions for reinforced and prestressed concrete structures. These methods are similar to the 1994 standard in providing a simplified and general shear design method. They differ from previous standards by providing a direct link between these two methods and simple equations for the calculation of β and θ used in the general method rather than providing these values in a table. The paper explains the basic assumptions behind the new shear provisions, provides a derivation of the new equations, and compares designs made with the new equations to designs obtained from previous standards. In general, the new shear provisions require slightly less shear reinforcement than that required by the previous standard. The new general method is significantly easier to use, particularly with spreadsheets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whereas social accounting has been strong in its critique of conventional accounting, to date it has not been as effective in developing accounting frameworks consistent with its principles. This is particularly true for nonprofit organizations. The costs of nonprofits can be easily measured; however, not captured by conventional accounting is the value of their nonmonetized resources such as volunteers. This paper argues that social accounting for nonprofits would benefit by creating accounting statements that combine the economic and social impact of an organization (referred to as an integrated approach). After discussing some historic examples of integrated social accounting, the paper presents a Canadian case study in which the value added by volunteers of a nonprofit organization is combined with its financial statements in an Expanded Value Added Statement. By combining social and economic information, a very different performance story of the organization emerges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper defines two key core concepts in the field of public policy: co-production and co-construction. It first examines the role of the third sector in the co-construction of two public policy initiatives, the Voluntary Sector Initiative and the Social Economy Initiative, developed under the responsibility of the federal state. Then it turns to the participation of the third sector in co-constructing public policy under the responsibility of the Quebec provincial state in six policy areas: policy to recognize autonomous community organizations, policy to recognize the social economy, daycare policy, home care policy, social housing policy and Quebec legislation to combat poverty. The policy initiatives of both the federal state and Quebec state are compared and analysed from a co-construction perspective [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the key issues regarding the Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) policies on increasing the economic well-being of Canadians that was presented through four papers. The first paper examines the impact of universities on the living standards in Canada. Labor and well-being are discussed in the second paper. The third paper tackles on the new social policy, based on the importance of human capital. The last paper focuses on adult benefits.

Firearm-related injury and death continue to be a significant problem in Canada. Since the 1990s Canadian emergency physicians (EPs) have played an active role in advocating for gun control. This paper updates the Canadian Association of Emergency Physician's (CAEP's) position on gun control. Despite a media focus on homicide, the majority of firearm-related deaths are a result of suicide. Less than 40% of firearm-related injuries are intentionally inflicted by another person. Since the implementation of Canada's gun registry in 1995, there has been a significant reduction in firearm-related suicides and intimate partner homicides. Proposed weakening of gun laws in Canada will have a significant impact on firearm-related mortality and injury. There must be instead an expansion of programs focused on prevention of suicide, intimate partner violence and gang-related violence. The majority of intentional or unintentional firearm-related injuries involve a violation of safe storage or handling practice. The potential for future harm because of unsafe storage or handling or through gang conflict retribution supports our position that health care facilities report gunshot wounds (GSWs). Moreover, a nationwide surveillance system is necessary to support research and to guide future public policy development and legislation. As EPs we must advocate for injury control. All firearm injuries and deaths are preventable, and we must advocate for a multifaceted approach in order to minimize this risk to our patients. CAEP POSITION The Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians recommends the following measures: 1. Continued support for the original provisions of Bill C-68 and the gun control law, and active opposition to any attempt at repealing the national firearms registry (including the long gun registry). 2. Advocacy for the implementation by the government of a nationwide surveillance system for firearm-related injury and mortality. 3. Expansion of programs focused on the prevention of suicide, intimate partner violence and gang-related violence. 4. Support for legislation mandating that health care facilities report GSWs, but not knife injuries or other violent injuries. 5. Continued support for research into firearm-related injury and death in order to guide further public policy development and future legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses various research projects by the Association of Canadian University Teachers of English (ACUTE) in Canada. It indicates that the society was founded in 1882 with the intention that it should serve as a focus for the intellectual life of the nation in both the arts and the sciences. It suggests that the primary role of the organization is to organize annual conference and giving of papers.

This paper presents the first multivariate analysis of the combined effects of region and language on voluntary association membership in Canada. National survey data from 2000 indicate that Quebecers have the lowest average number of memberships, with Western Canadians highest and Atlantic and Ontario residents in between. Preliminary results also confirm that francophones report fewer memberships than anglophones. Findings from Poisson regression models, however, indicate a significant interaction between region and language: francophones have lower membership levels only in Quebec, and in Western Canada have higher levels than anglophones or allophones. These results hold even with controls for a number of possible explanatory factors suggested in the literature, including religious and socioeconomic differences across the regions and language groups. The implications for understanding patterns of voluntary association activity in Canada are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports exploratory data from a broader study that examines media representations of the voluntary sector in Canada. It specifically identifies the resources and organizational attributes of Canadian voluntary groups that appear to be important for receiving mainstream news coverage. The data identifies four sets of characteristics of more than 500 voluntary organizations: demographic variables, association type, noneconomic resources, and economic expenditures. These characteristics are examined in terms of their relationship to news coverage. The data suggest that area of activity is significantly related to the amount of media attention that organizations receive. However, the amount of media attention that an organization receives is most strongly influenced by its yearly budget. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to both current debates about advocacy in the voluntary sector and important contextual developments that are transforming the communication environment in which charities and nonprofit organizations in Canada operate. We also draw comparisons to news coverage of the voluntary sector in other liberal democratic countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fifty-sixth annual conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) was held at the Hilton Montreal Bonaventure in Montreal, Quebec on May 17 to 20, 2001. The conference theme was Making Connections. Some eight hundred public opinion researchers accepted the invitation to meet colleagues and friends and to participate in the interdisciplinary program. The special character of the annual conference clearly distinguishes it from other professional meetings. Despite steady growth in attendance over recent years, it is a relatively small conference. Its limited duration, its submission review process and its carefully variegated slate of paper session topics constrain the number of opportunities for being on the program. With the traditional meals and social events, the AAPOR conference presents a higher quality, more intimate and more interdisciplinary experience than can be found at many academic, governmental, or commercial meetings. The structure of the meeting limits, among other things, opportunities to attract new AAPOR members, the willingness of exhibitors and publishers to display their wares, the range of topics covered in the program and the conference revenue that AAPOR could employ for worthwhile purposes.

Announces the 95th annual meeting of the Poultry Science Association, Inc. slated in July 16 to 19, 2006 at Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. Program chairmen; Papers and Presentation; Participants.

The article offers information on the editorial policy implemented by the "Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering." The journal, which is intended to reflect and stimulate the practice of civil engineering in Canada, is said to be recognized as the official technical journal of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering and is published monthly by the National Research Council. It is not claimed to publish papers that are clearly in the domain of the "Canadian Geotechnical Journal" or the "Canadian Surveyor."

This article presents a commentary on a paper by Robert A. Stebbins in a previous issue of The American Sociologist which provided an account of professional and amateur sociology in the U.S. The British organization, Mass Observation existed in a relatively nonintrusive society with (as compared to the U.S.) greater concern for one's own and other people's privacy. Canada and Great Britain may in this respect have more built-in defenses against the risks of some kinds of amateur sociology that the U.S. would have. However, according to the commenter, Stebbins already anticipates this objection by requiring amateurs to be supervised and to start with a certain amount of instruction and proper cautionary comments. By engaging primarily in the use of unobtrusive measures and observations, the amateur will avoid the risks of harm to which Stebbins is already sensitive. The commenter relates that one of the public areas in which he has encouraged such unobtrusive observations is in churches, where the observer in outward appearance is similar to the congregation and hence not seen as an intruder. According to him, he has had a fair amount of experience with undergraduate amateurs of the sort described.