Links to Curated Resources
‘Health’ and the foundations of health systems within an inter-professional connected environment
My Role in the Canadian Health System
Health Care for Indigenous Peoples
Health care for Indigenous Peoples (First Nations, Inuit and Metis), federal and provincial and territorial governments have some degree of jurisdiction. Indigenous Peoples are included in per capita funding from the federal government and as such are entitled to provincial and territorial health services as any other resident of a province or territory. Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) also funds or directly provides certain health care services to First Nations Communities.
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Indigenous Services Canada. (2022). Indigenous health care in Canada. Retrieved May 27, 2022, from https://www.sac-isc.gc.ca/eng/1626810177053/1626810219482
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First Nations: Environmental Public Health Program
A healthy environment includes safe water and food supplies, properly designed, constructed and maintained housing and community facilities, as well as suitable treatment and disposal of wastewater and solid waste. To maintain a healthy environment, it is also necessary to plan for and respond to emergencies and work to prevent and control communicable diseases.
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Health Canada. (2008). First Nations: Environmental Public Health Program. Retrieved May 27, 2022, from https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/hc-sc/migration/hc-sc/fniah-spnia/alt_formats/fnihb-dgspni/pdf/pubs/promotion/2009_env_prog-eng.pdf
Professional Identity
Professional Identity Definition
Professional identity includes both personal and professional development and it involves the internalization of core values and perspectives recognized as integral to the art and science of health care.
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National League for Nursing. (2014). Practical/Vocational Nursing Program Outcome: Professional Identity. Retrieved May 30, 2022, from https://www.nln.org/docs/default-source/uploadedfiles/default-document-library/professional-identity-final.pdf?sfvrsn=a6c6df0d_0
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Inter-professional Responsibility
Health care professionals are trained to their own regulatory body’s professional standards to be able to perform their own roles, and carry out profession-specific tasks in line with their healthcare organizations' requirements.
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Joynes, V.C. (2018). Defining and understanding the relationship between professional identity and interprofessional responsibly: implications for educating health and social care students. Advances in Health Sciences Education. Retrieved May 30, 2022, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5801384/#CR33
Continuing Professional Development
CIPHI ensures professional development of its members by requiring EPHPs to demonstrate continued competency following certification.
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CIPHI. (2022). Continuing Professional Development. Retrieved May 30, 2022, from https://ciphi.ca/professional-development/
Health of Canadians - Understanding Health and Determinants of Health
Health
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Government of Canada. What is Health?
There are many broad factors in our lives that influence our health. These factors include:
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Income and Social Status
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Social Support Networks
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Education and Literacy
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Employment/Working Conditions
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Social Environments
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Physical Environments
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Personal Health Practices and Coping Skills
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Healthy Child Development
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Biology and Genetic Endowment
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Health Services
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Gender
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Culture
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Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion: An International Conference on Health Promotion
A response to growing expectations for a new public health movement around the world.
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Health How Should We Define it?
The WHO definition of health as a complete wellbeing is no longer fit for purpose given the rise of chronic disease.
https://0-www-jstor-org.aupac.lib.athabascau.ca/stable/23051314?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents
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The Definition of Health: Towards New Perspectives
“health may be conceptualized as the capability to react to all kinds of environmental events having the desired emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses and avoiding those undesirable ones”
Leonardi, F. (2018). The Definition of Health: Towards New Perspectives. International Journal of Health Services, 48(4), 735–748. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48513032
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Determinates of Health
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Social Determinates of Health – an introduction
Let’s Learn Public Health. (2017, June 25). Social Determinants of Health – an Introduction [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PH4JYfF4Ns
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National Collaborating Centre for Determinants of Health – NCCDH
…the interrelated social, political and economic circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live, work and age. The social determinants of health (see below) do not operate as a list or in isolation. It is how these determinants intersect that causes conditions of daily living to shift and change over time and across the life span, impacting the health of individuals, groups and communities in different ways.
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disability
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early child development
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education
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employment and working conditions
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food insecurity
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gender
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geography
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globalization
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health services
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housing
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immigration
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income and income distribution
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Indigenous ancestry
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race
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social inclusion/exclusion
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social safety net
NCCDH. (2022). National Collaborating Centres for Determinants of Health. Retrieved June 8, 2022, from https://nccdh.ca/
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Social determinants of health: the Canadian facts
Canadians are only now becoming more aware that our health is shaped by how income and wealth is distributed, whether we are employed, and if so, the working conditions we experience. Furthermore, our well-being is also determined by the health and social services we receive and our ability to obtain quality education, food and housing, among other factors. And contrary to the assumption that Canadians have personal control over these factors, in most cases these living and working conditions are – for better or worse – imposed upon us by the quality of the communities, housing situations, our work settings, health and social service agencies, and educational institutions with which we interact.
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Raphael D, Bryant T, Mikkonen J, Raphael A. Social determinants of health: the Canadian facts. 2nd ed. Oshawa (ON): Ontario Tech University, Faculty of Health Sciences; 2020 . Retrieved June 8, 2022, from https://www.thecanadianfacts.org/The_Canadian_Facts-2nd_ed.pdf
Multilevel Approaches to Understanding Health - Beyond the Individual
Multilevel Approaches to Understanding Health - Beyond the Individual
Swiss Cheese Model of Causation
Holes holes in the cheese slices representing errors that if they line up they can lead to an accident.
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Roberts, S. (2020, December 5). The Swiss Cheese Model of Pandemic Defense. The New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/05/health/coronavirus-swiss-cheese-infection-mackay.html
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Social-Ecological Model
The social-ecological model understands health to be affected by the interaction between the individual, the group/community, and the physical, social, and political environments.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2015, June 25). Chapter 1: Models and frameworks. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/communityengagement/pce_models.html
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Chronic Disease Prevention and Management
Housing and Respiratory Health Outcomes in Indigenous Populations
FNIGC reports that a higher percentage of First Nations adults with chronic health conditions lived in houses that had mould or mildew compared to those without chronic conditions. A higher proportion of First Nations adults with asthma, as well as dermatitis/atopic eczema, also reported living in homes with mould or mildew. This finding points to the importance of access to safe, adequate housing. Indeed, on-reserve housing faces a number of challenges, one of which is a crisis of mould contamination.
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First Nations Information Governance Centre, National Report of the First Nations Regional Health Survey Phase 3: Volume One, (Ottawa: 2018). 181 pages. Published in March 2018.
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Mould or mildew in the home has been associated with respiratory health outcomes and has been found to be a significant determinant of chronic bronchitis among First Nations adults.
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Pahwa, P., Karunanayake, C.P., Rennie, D.C. et al. Prevalence and associated risk factors of chronic bronchitis in First Nations people. BMC Pulm Med 17, 95 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12890-017-0432-4
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Signs of mould and mildew in the home have been shown to be significant risk factors for respiratory diseases and allergies in children and youth.
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Karunanayake CP, Rennie DC, Ramsden VR, Fenton M, Kirychuk S, Lawson JA, Henderson R, Jimmy L, Seeseequasis J, Abonyi S, Dosman JA, Pahwa P; The First Nations Lung Health Project Research Team. Bronchitis and Its Associated Risk Factors in First Nations Children. Children (Basel). 2017 Nov 24;4(12):103. https://doi.org/10.3390/children4120103
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Vulnerable Populations
Vulnerable Population Definition
Vulnerable populations are groups and communities at a higher risk for poor health as a result of the barriers they experience to social, economic, political and environmental resources, as well as limitations due to illness or disability.
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National Collaborating Centre for Determinants of Health. (2022). Vulnerable populations - Glossary of Essential Health Equality Terms. Retrieved July 19, 2022, from https://nccdh.ca/glossary/entry/vulnerable-populations
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Addressing Social and Economic Inequalities
Reducing COVID-19 among those most vulnerable begins with addressing the social and economic inequalities that made them more likely to fall ill from the virus or suffer other consequences during the crisis that contribute to poor health.
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CBC/Radio Canada. (2020, June 12). As covid-19 restrictions are loosened, Canada must do more to protect vulnerable groups, doctors say | CBC radio. CBCnews. Retrieved July 19, 2022, from https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whitecoat/as-covid-19-restrictions-are-loosened-canada-must-do-more-to-protect-vulnerable-groups-doctors-say-1.5606545
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Vulnerable Populations
The authors classify vulnerable populations as those that experience adverse health outcomes compared with the general population by virtue of both internal and external factors. They don’t want to stigmatize the vulnerable but shine a light on vulnerability in health care and help to reduce it by empowering and giving voice to those who are vulnerable.
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Patrick, K., Flegel, K., & Stanbrook, M. B. (2018, March 19). Vulnerable populations: An area cmaj will continue to champion. CMAJ. Retrieved July 19, 2022, from https://www.cmaj.ca/content/190/11/E307
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Future Directions
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
94 Calls to Action
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Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. (2015). Truth and reconciliation commission of Canada: Calls to action. Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/british-columbians-our-governments/indigenous-people/aboriginal-peoples-documents/calls_to_action_english2.pdf
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Opportunities for environmental public health action on the social determinants of health and health inequity
EHO and PHI response to health equity issues, and ways we can support collaboration and tackle barriers facing vulnerable populations, including operators and the public.
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Rideout, R., Oickle, D., Scarpino, J., Chang, H., Ness, T., Vecchiarelli, V., & Ma, L. (2015, December 18). Opportunities for environmental public health action on the Social Determinants of Health and Health Inequity. Environmental Health Review. Retrieved July 15, 2022, from https://pubs.ciphi.ca/doi/full/10.5864/d2015-027
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