Health

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by level of life satisfaction, by gender and other selected sociodemographic characteristics: age group; immigrant status; visible minority group; Indigenous identity; persons with a disability, difficulty or long-term condition; LGBTQ2+ people; highest certificate, diploma or degree; main activity; and urban and rural areas.

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by level of sense of meaning and purpose, by gender, for Canada, regions and provinces.

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by level of sense of meaning and purpose, by gender and other selected sociodemographic characteristics: age group; immigrant status; visible minority group; Indigenous identity; persons with a disability, difficulty or long-term condition; LGBTQ2+ people; highest certificate, diploma or degree; main activity; and urban and rural areas.

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by frequency with which they have a hopeful outlook, by gender, for Canada, regions and provinces.

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by frequency with which they have a hopeful outlook, by gender and other selected sociodemographic characteristics: age group; immigrant status; visible minority group; Indigenous identity; persons with a disability, difficulty or long-term condition; LGBTQ2+ people; highest certificate, diploma or degree; main activity; and urban and rural areas.

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by frequency with which they feel lonely, by gender, for Canada, regions and provinces.

Description: Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by frequency with which they feel lonely, by gender and other selected sociodemographic characteristics: age group; immigrant status; visible minority group; Indigenous identity; persons with a disability, difficulty or long-term condition; LGBTQ2+ people; highest certificate, diploma or degree; main activity; and urban and rural areas.

Description: Self-perceived general health of First Nations people living off reserve, Métis and Inuit by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Disability status, global disability severity class and labour force status by First Nations people living off reserve, Métis and Inuit, age group and gender, population aged 15 years and over, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Food security status of First Nations people living off reserve, Métis and Inuit by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Number and percentage of persons by household food security status, age group, sex, visible minority group, Indigenous group and immigration status, Canada and provinces.

Description: Number and percentage of persons aged 16 years and over with unmet health care needs by sex (Canada and provinces) and age group (Canada only).

Description: Differences in the number and proportion of persons with and without disabilities, by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Differences in the number and proportion of persons with disabilities with either mild, moderate, severe, or very severe disabilities, by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Differences in the type of disabilities persons with disabilities have, by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Differences between persons with and without disabilities in terms of those who are employed, unemployed, or not in the labour force, by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Differences in highest level of educational attainment between persons with and without disabilities as well as how it varies by level of severity of disability, by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Differences in total income (after taxes) between persons with and without disabilities, aged 25 years and over, by severity, by age group and gender, Canada, provinces and territories.

Description: Differences in the number and proportion of persons with disabilities who are employed in full-time or part-time employment, by age group and gender, Canada.

Description: Differences in the number and proportion of persons with disabilities in terms of those who are employees or self-employed, by age group and gender, Canada.

Description:

This aritcle analyzes abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) surgery rates by sex for inpatients of Canadian hospitals. Possible reasons for the observed gender differences in surgery rates are discussed.

Description: This article examines the characteristics associated with getting or not getting a mammogram, focusing on women aged 50-59.

Description: This article updates recently published information on Canadian breast cancer mortality, highlighting a lower rate in 1995, a marked decline in the rate since 1990, and possible factors contributing to this trend.

Description:

Using Canadian mortality data from 1974 to 1995, this article examines seasonal and daily patterns of death by cause.

Description:

Context : Lung cancer has been the leading cause of cancer deaths in Canadian males for many years, and since 1994, this has been the case for Canadian femalesas well. It is therefore important to evaluate the resources required for its diagnosis and treatment. This article presents an estimate of the direct medical costsassociated with the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer calculated through the use of a micro-simulation model. For disease incidence, 1992 was chosen as thereference year, whereas costs are evaluated according to the rates that prevailed in 1993.Methods : A model for lung cancer has been incorporated into the Population Health Model (POHEM). The parameters of the model were drawn in part fromStatistics Canada's Canadian Cancer Registry (CCR), which provides information on the incidence and histological classification of lung cancer cases in Canada.The distribution of cancer stage at diagnosis was estimated by using information from two provincial cancer registries. A team of oncologists derived "typical" treatment approaches reflective of current practice, and the associated direct costs were calculated for these approaches. Once this information and the appropriatesurvival curves were incorporated into the POHEM model, overall costs of treatment were estimated by means of a Monte Carlo simulation.Results: It is estimated that overall, the direct medical costs of lung cancer diagnosis and treatment were just over $528 million. The cost per year of life gained as aresult of treatment of the disease was approximately $19,450. For the first time in Canada, it was possible to estimate the five year costs following diagnosis, bystage of the disease at the time of diagnosis. It was possible to estimate the cost per year of additional life gained for three alternative treatments of non small-cell lungcancer (NSCLC). Sensitivity analyses showed that these costs varied between $1,870 and $6,860 per year of additional life gained, which compares favourablywith the costs that the treatment of other diseases may involve.Conclusions: Contrary to widespread perceptions, it appears that the treatment of lung cancer is effective from an economic standpoint. In addition, the use of amicro-simulation model such as POHEM not only makes it possible to incorporate information from various sources in a coherent manner but also offers thepossibility of estimating the effect of alternative medical procedures from the standpoint of financial pressures on the health care system.

Description:

In 1994, an estimated 6% of Canadians aged 18 and over - 1.1 million adults - experienced a Major Depressive Episode (MDE). Although depression is amenable to treatment, fewer than half (43%) the people who met the criteria of having experienced an MDE in the past year (approximately 487,000) reported talking to a health professional about their emotional or mental health. Furthermore, only 26% of those who had an MDE reported four or more such consultations. As expected, depression that was not chronic was more likely to be untreated. In addition, MDE sufferers whose physical health was good and those who had not recently experienced a negative life event were less likely to be treated. However, after controlling for these factors, a multivariate model suggests that lower educational attainment and inadequate income acted as barriers to treatment. Relatively few contacts with a general practitioner substantially reduced the odds of being treated. Also, men and married people who were depressed were less likely to receive treatment. With data from Statistics Canada's 1994-95 National Population Health Survey (NPHS), this article examines the characteristics of people who met the criteria for having had an MDE, but who discontinued or did not receive treatment. The selection of explanatory variables was informed by an established theoretical framework of individual determinants of health service utilization, proposed by Andersen and Newman. Logistic regression was used to predict the probability of not being treated among people who experienced an MDE.

Description:

Meeting the need for physician care outside of urban centres has long been a health policy concern. The challenges of providing such services in these areas stem from relatively fewer physicians and greater travel distances. In 1993, nearly all (99%) residents of large urban centres (with one million or more people) were less than 5 km from the nearest doctor. But outside of urban centres, only 56% of residents were situated that close to a physician. As well, proximity to physicians varied with income in less urbanized and rural areas, but not in more urbanized areas. And while Canadians in the southernmost parts of the country enjoyed very short distances to a physician, in northern latitudes, physicians tended to be much farther away. For instance, in 1993, at 65-69o north latitude, with 3,974 people for every physician, nearly two-thirds of the population (64%) was 100 km or more from the nearest doctor. By contrast, below 45o north latitude, which includes Halifax, Toronto and all of southwestern Ontario, the population to physician ratio was 476, and 91% of the population was within 5 km of a physician. Using the Canadian Medical Association's 1993 address registry of physicians, this article analyses the distance to the nearest physician (57,291 physicians) from a representative point within each of Canada's 45,995 census Enumeration Areas. Distance to the nearest physician by their specialty is also considered.

Description:

The period between fiscal years 1986/87 and 1994/95 has seen a reduction in the number of hospitals in Canada and fundamental changes in the way they deliver their services. During this time, the number of public hospitals fell by 14%, and the number of approved beds in these hospitals declined by 11%. As a result, the number of staffed beds per 1,000 population dropped from 6.6 to 4.1. Much of the decrease in approved beds in public hospitals can be attributed to the reduction in the hospital extended care sector. In fact, some hospitals with long-term care units have been re-designated residential care facilities. As well, a common trend emerged in all categories of public hospitals: the number of outpatient visits increased, while inpatient-days decreased. Between 1986/87 and 1991/92, public hospitals' average annual increase in operating expenses (in current dollars) was 8%. However, from 1991/92 to 1994/95, public hospitals posted negative average annual growth in their expenditures (-2.4%), which reflects efforts made by various provinces to control hospital costs. This article presents data from reports compiled by Statistics Canada: Annual Return of Health Care Facilities - Hospitals, 1986/87 to 1993/94 and Preliminary Annual Report of Hospitals, 1994/95.

Description:

In 1997, there will be an estimated 130,800 new cases of cancer and 60,700 deaths from the disease, an increase of one third and one quarter, respectively, over 1987. These increases are due mainly to the growth and aging of the population. (All figures exclude non-melanoma skin cancer.) In 1997, three types of cancer will account for at least half of all new cases in men and women: prostate, lung and colorectal cancer for men; breast, lung and colorectal cancer for women. Lung cancer will be the leading cause of cancer death in 1997, resulting in one-third of cancer deaths for men and almost one-quarter of cancer deaths for women. Among women, overall trends in age-standardized rates of cancer incidence and mortality have remained relatively stable since 1985, as large increases in the rate of lung cancer have been offset by declining or stable rates for most other forms. Among men, the overall incidence rate is rising slightly as a result of the sharp increase in the incidence of prostate cancer. The mortality rate for men peaked in 1988 and has since declined, because of decreases in the rates for lung, colorectal and some other cancers. This article presents information on trends since the mid-1980s in cancer incidence and mortality, adapted from Canadian Cancer Statistics 1987.

Description:

The prevalence of dementia increases sharply in old age and is higher among women than men. Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, affects a greater proportion of women. On average, the number of years lived with dementia is longer for women, and women with dementia are more likely to be living in institutions than men with the condition. This article examines age-standardized rates of dementia among men and women aged 65 and over. The data are from the 1991 Canadian Study of Health and Aging (CSHA), a joint effort of the Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine at the University of Ottawa and the federal government's Laboratory Centre for Disease Control. Life expectancy estimates from Statistics Canada were combined with CSHA data to estimate the average proportions of life that are lived with and without dementia, in the community and in institutions.

Description: The data will be used by Health Canada, the Health Promotion Directorate as well as Researchers for alcohol and other drug use in Canada. Information will be used to inform the decision making and program planning efforts of policy makers, practitioners and researchers.

Description: The main purpose of this survey is to collect data to monitor cigarette smoking in Canada and attempt to measure the effect of cigarette price reductions on smoking behaviour.

Description: The results from this survey will be used to develop new programs to educate and inform the public, and to determine the need for new services.

Description: The main objective of the survey is to provide continual and reliable data on tobacco, alcohol and drug use and related issues, with the primary focus on 15 to 24 year olds.

Description: The two primary objectives of the General Social Survey (GSS) are: to gather data on social trends in order to monitor changes in the living conditions and well being of Canadians over time; and to provide information on specific social policy issues of current or emerging interest. The purpose of this survey is to provide a snapshot of the lives of caregivers and care receivers in today's Canada.

Description: The objective of the survey was to provide information on the experiences of respondents in using some selected health care services. The survey focused on two main topics: waiting for specialized services for a new illness or condition and access to basic health care.

Description: The NPHS Health Institutions Component survey data support national level estimates only.

Description: The National Population Health Survey (NPHS) collects information related to the health of the Canadian population and related socio-demographic information.

Description: The purpose of the Canadian Community Health Survey - Mental Health (CCHS - Mental Health) is to collect information about mental health status, access to and perceived need for formal and informal services and supports, functioning and disability, and covariates.

Description: The Maternity Experiences Survey (MES) is the first Canadian survey devoted to pregnancy, labour, birth and postpartum experiences. It is a core project of the Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System of the Public Health Agency of Canada who sponsored this survey.