Health

Description: Active commuting (AC) to and from work is associated with numerous health benefits, through increased physical activity. This study examined whether occupation types and part-time work, by sex, were associated with AC in a population-based sample of Canadian workers. This study examined the associations between occupational classifications, part-time work, and AC (i.e., walking, cycling) and public transit use, in a nationally representative sample of Canadian adults, while controlling for other relevant sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., education, income, urbanity). This study also explored how associations between occupational classifications and AC differed by sex and how AC rates may have changed over time.

Description: Physical and sexual childhood abuse are associated with suicidal ideation and mental health disorders. However, less is known about non-physical types of maltreatment. This study examined associations between non-physical types of child maltreatment (e.g., emotional abuse, interpersonal aggression, exposure to physical intimate partner violence, emotional and physical neglect) and suicidal ideation, and mental health disorders.

Description:

Health Reports, published by the Health Analysis Division of Statistics Canada, is a peer-reviewed journal of population health and health services research. It is designed for a broad audience that includes health professionals, researchers, policymakers, and the general public. The journal publishes articles of wide interest that contain original and timely analyses of national or provincial/territorial surveys or administrative databases. New articles are published electronically each month.

Health Reports had an impact factor of 5.0 for 2022 and a five-year impact factor of 5.6. All articles are indexed in PubMed. Our online catalogue is free and receives more than 700,000 visits per year. External submissions are welcome.

Description: Monthly indexes and percentage changes for selected sub-groups of the health and personal care component of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), not seasonally adjusted, for Canada, provinces, Whitehorse and Yellowknife. Data are presented for the corresponding month of the previous year, the previous month and the current month. The base year for the index is 2002=100.

Description: This study uses data from multiple waves of the Canadian Social Survey (CSS) to examine trends in three key Quality of Life indicators, namely life satisfaction, experiences of financial hardship, and future outlook. Monitoring these well-being indicators following periods of considerable social and economic change is particularly important. Beginning in the summer of 2021, the CSS, a new quarterly survey, captured the latter part of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the rising cost of living in Canada, allowing for an understanding of how Canadians are coping with these challenges.

Description: This infographic examines declines in Canadians’ well-being over the past few years, and how these downward changes vary across different segments of the population. Life satisfaction, financial difficulty, and future outlook, which are key quality of life indicators, are presented.

Description: Release published in The Daily – Statistics Canada’s official release bulletin

Description: This dashboard presents data that are relevant for monitoring mortality in Canada. The interactive visualization within the dashboard features insights on weekly death trends from the Canadian Vital Statistics - Death (CVSD) database.

Description: This table provides Canadians and researchers with provisional data to monitor weekly death trends by age and sex in Canada. Given the delays in receiving the data from the provincial and territorial vital statistics offices, these data are considered provisional. Data in this table will be available by province and territory.

Description:

This table provides Canadians and researchers with provisional data to monitor weekly death trends in Canada. Given the delays in receiving the data from the provincial and territorial vital statistics offices, these data are considered provisional. Data in this table will be available by province and territory.

Description: Body mass index (BMI), International standard, by age group and sex, household population aged 20 to 64 excluding pregnant women, territories.

Description:

The National Population Health Survey (NPHS) used the Labour Force Survey sampling frame to draw the initial sample of approximately 20,000 households starting in 1994 and for the sample top-up this third cycle. The survey is conducted every two years. The sample collection is distributed over four quarterly periods followed by a follow-up period and the whole process takes a year. In each household, some limited health information is collected from all household members and one person in each household is randomly selected for a more in-depth interview.

The survey is designed to collect information on the health of the Canadian population and related socio-demographic information. The first cycle of data collection began in 1994, and continues every second year thereafter. The survey is designed to produce both cross-sectional and longitudinal estimates. The questionnaires includes content related to health status, use of health services, determinants of health, a health index, chronic conditions and activity restrictions. The use of health services is probed through visits to health care providers, both traditional and non-traditional, and the use of drugs and other mediciations. Health determinants include smoking, alcohol use and physical activity. A special focus content for this cycle includes family medical history with questions about certain chronic conditions among immediate family members and when they were acquired. As well, a section on self care has also been included this cycle. The socio-demographic information includes age, sex, education, ethnicity, household income and labour force status.

Description:

The National Population Health Survey (NPHS) program is designed to collect information related to the health of the Canadian population. The first cycle of data collection began in 1994. The institutional component includes long-term residents (expected to stay longer than six months) in health care facilities with four or more beds in Canada with the principal exclusion of the Yukon and the Northwest Teritories. The document has been produced to facilitate the manipulation of the 1996-1997 microdata file containing survey results. The main variables include: demography, health status, chronic conditions, restriction of activity, socio-demographic, and others.

Description:

Information in this microdata file refers to survey data collected in September - November, 1994 for persons 15 years of age and older in Canada's ten provinces. The survey's main data objectives were to measure the prevalence and patterns of alcohol and other drug use, to assess harm and other consequences of drug use and to evaluate trends in recent patterns of use. Canada's Alcohol and Other Drugs Survey (CADS) also updates and expands upon data collected in the first survey, the National Alcohol and Other Drugs Survey (NADS), conducted in 1989.

Description:

This compendium of vital statistics includes summary data on births, deaths, marriages and divorces. The introduction covers the data sources, data quality, and methods pertaining to each event, and includes a glossary defining the terms used. The first chapter is a brief overview of vital statistics for 1996. Subsequent chapters treat marriage, divorce, birth, fetal and infant mortality, total mortality, causes of death, vital statistics by census division, and international comparisons. Most charts and tables show Canada data for 1986 though 1996, while the charts and tables for causes of death show Canada data for 1979 through1996. Data for the provinces and territories are usually shown for 1995 and 1996. Appendices include population denominator data, age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) calculation methods, and leading causes of death methodology.

Description:

Statistics in the tables of Section B are in two divisions. Series Bl-81 contain data on vital statistics and series B82-543 on health. Data on social welfare, formerly contained in this section, are presented separately in Section C.

Description:

Cycle 11 collected data from persons 15 years and older and concentrated on help given or received during temporary difficult times or out of necessity due to long-term health or physical limitations in daily activities either inside or outside the household. The target population of the General Social Survey consisted of all individuals aged 15 and over living in a private household in one of the ten provinces.

Description:

The National Population Health Survey (NPHS) is designed to enhance the understanding of the processes affecting health. The survey collects cross-sectional as well as longitudinal data. In 1994/95 the survey interviewed a panel of 17,276 individuals, then returned to interview them a second time in 1996/97. The response rate for these individuals was 96% in 1996/97. Data collection from the panel will continue for up to two decades. For cross-sectional purposes, data were collected for a total of 81,000 household residents in all provinces (except people on Indian reserves or on Canadian Forces bases) in 1996/97.

This overview illustrates the variety of information available by presenting data on perceived health, chronic conditions, injuries, repetitive strains, depression, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, consultations with medical professionals, use of medications and use of alternative medicine.

Description:

The statistical tables in the first part of this document relate to the numbers and rates of live births and stillbirths of at least twenty weeks gestation; total, general and age specific fertility rates; live births by age of mother and order of live birth; male and female birth weights by age of mother and gestation period at the time of birth; and live births by census division and counties in the province(s).

In the second part of this document, the statistical tables, for Canada, the ten provinces and the two territories, relate to the numbers and rates of deaths by marital status, age and sex; infant, neonatal, postnatal and perinatal deaths; maternal deaths; and stillbirths of at least twenty weeks gestation at the time of birth.

Description:

The special ten year anniversary edition of Canadian cancer statistics 1997 represents a collaborative effort between Statistics Canada, the National Cancer Institute of Canada, Health Canada, the Canadian Cancer Society, and provincial/territorial cancer registries. This 71 page monograph contains estimates of cancer incidence and mortality for 1997, historical (actual and estimated) data from 1969 to 1997, and selected indicators on the burden of cancer. Estimates were produced by modelling actual cancer incidence and mortality data by province for selected cancer sites. The special topic this year is a comparison of the burden of cancer in Canada in 1997 to that reported in the first edition in 1987.

Description:

Introduction: In the current economic context, all partners in health care delivery systems, be they public or private, are obliged to identify the factors that influence the utilization of health care services. To improve our understanding of the phenomena that underlie these relationships, Statistics Canada and the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy and Evaluation have just set up a new database. For a representative sample of the population of the province of Manitoba, cross-sectional microdata on individuals' health and socio-economic characteristics were linked with detailed longitudinal data on utilization of health care services.

Data and methods: The 1986-87 Health and Activity Limitation Survey, the 1986 Census and the files of Manitoba Health were matched (without using names or addresses) by means of the CANLINK software. In the pilot project, 20,000 units were selected from the Census according to modern sampling techniques. Before the files were matched, consultations were held and an agreement was signed by all parties in order to establish a framework for protecting privacy and preserving the confidentiality of the data.

Results: A matching rate of 74% was obtained for private households. A quality evaluation based on the comparisons of names and addresses over a small subsample established that the overall concordance rate among matched pairs was 95.5%. The match rates and concordance rates varied according to age and household composition. Estimates produced from the sample accurately reflected the socio-demographic profile, mortality, hospitalization rate, health care costs and consumption of health care by Manitoba residents.

Discussion: The matching rate of 74% was satisfactory in comparison with the response rates reported in most population surveys. Because of the excellent concordance rate and the accuracy of the estimates obtained from the sample, this database will provide an adequate basis for studying the association between socio-demographic characteristics, health and health care utilization in province of Manitoba.

Description:

From 1981 to 1994, the annual number of mammograms performed in Canada increased from less than 200,000 to more than 1.4 million. By 1994, about three in five women aged 40 and over reported having had a mammogram at some time in their lives. Most of the increase that occurred between 1985 and 1991 was because of greater use of mammography for breast screening. In the early 1990s, the annual numbers and rates stabilized as the number of mammograms performed on a fee-for-service basis declined slightly, while those conducted by provincial/territorial breast screening programs rose. Mammography is increasingly targeted to women aged 50-69 for whom screening is considered to be most effective. About 30% of Canadian women aged 50-69 have had a mammogram within the past year, although just one-fifth of these mammograms were obtained through provincial/territorial breast screening programs. Most mammography in Canada is provided through the fee-for-service system, although about 80% of fee-for-service mammograms are done for screening purposes, and the remaining 20% for diagnostic assessment. This article is based on administrative data provided by provincial/territorial departments of health and by breast screening programs, as well as on data from the National Population Health Survey. Some implications of mammography utilization for breast cancer incidence and mortality rates are assessed, but because of the long lead time between detection and death, it may be too early to reach definitive conclusions.

Description:

Analyses based on census data, vital statistics, and data from the Health and Activity Limitation Surveys show that immigrants, especially those from non-European countries, had a longer life expectancy and more years of life free of disability and dependency than did the Canadian-born. But while immigrants were less likely than the Canadian-born to be disabled, they were only slightly less likely to be dependent on others for help with activities of daily living. The reasons for immigrants' longevity and good health are likely related to the "health immigrant effect"

Description:

From 1974 to 1994, the number of children Canadian women are likely to have during their lifetime decreased. This downturn in fertility meant that the annual number of live births rose only slightly during this period, even though it marked the prime childbearing years for the baby-boom generation. As they pursued higher education and employment in the paid workforce, women have postponed childbearing. Consequently, the average age of women giving birth has risen. More than a quarter of women over age 30 who have a baby are first-time mothers. And by starting families later in life, women tend to have fewer children. In addition, largely because of the growing number of common-law relationships, over a quarter of all births are to unmarried women. Using data provided by the provincial and territorial Vital Statistics Registries, this article examines national and provincial/territorial trends in births and fertility from 1974 to 1994.

Description:

The increase in life expectancy that would result from the elimination of certain diseases and the resulting change in hospital utilization vary, depending on the disease. In some cases, life expectancy would rise and total days spent in hospital would decline, while in others, the gain in life expectancy would be accompanied by a increase in hospital days. For instance, if mental health disorders were eliminated, the increase in life expectancy at age 45 would be minimal: from 34.9 to 35.3 years, but time spent in hospital would decline from 168 to 151 days. By contrast, if diseases of the circulatory system were eliminated, life expectancy at age 45 would rise from 34.9 to 41.6 years, but time spent in hospital would also rise: from 168 to 290 days. Elimination of not only mental illnesses but also injuries and poisoning and diseases of the nervous system has the potential of both increasing life expectancy and reducing hospital use.

Description:

Abridged life tables centred on 1991 were produced from the 1991 Canadian census, net census undercoverage estimates, and death data from 1990 to 1992. The sensitivity of life table values to differing methods of estimation and population estimates was investigated. The results from four methods by Greville, Chiang, and Keyfitz were compared, and population undercoverage, were used to test the effects of method and type of population estimate on life table values. The results indicate that the method used to derive the estimates had much less influence on the life table values than did the choice of population estimate. The change life expectancy at birth due to the method of calculation chosen was at most 15 days, whereas the change due to the population estimate chosen was about 73 days. Since there are age, sex and provincial variations in net undercoverage rates, life expectancies differed accordingly.

Description: The official 1990-92 detailed life tables show a continuation of the trend toward longer life expenctancy for Canadians. Life expectancy at birth has reached an all-time high: 80.89 years for females and 74.55 years for males. Recent improvements in life expectancy are attributable to many factors, including declines in infant mortality, cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disease, and mortality from accidents and poisoning.

Description:

As the population ages, discussion increasingly focuses on how to keep people in the community and out of health care instituions. But when health fails, the only option may be long-term residential care.

Description:

This paper evaluates the results of the questions related to activity limitation and its impact on labour market activity from the January 1993 Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) test.

Description:

Using data from Statistics Canada's 1988 and 1993 General Social Survey (GSS), this article examines the incidence and consequences of accidents in Canada and the characteristics of respondents aged 15 and over who were involved in them. In 1993, an estimated 3.9 million Canadians reported that they had been involved in 4.8 million accidents in the previous 12 months. Motor vehicle accidents and sports accidents were the most frequent, each accounting for about 27% of incidents, followed by accidents at work (21%) and at home (14%). Accidents were most common among young people, particularly men. However, from 1988 to 1993, there was a decline in the proportion of adults reporting accidents, and the sharpest drop was for the age group most at risk - 15-to 24-year-olds. Most of the downturn was attributable to a decrease in the motor vehicle accident rate. Since alcohol is known to be associated with accidents, reduced consumption during the same period may have been partly responsible for the decline in accident rates. Other factors that may have contributed include stricter enforcement of impaired driving legislation and speeds limits, and improvements in automobile safety. Nonetheless, despite the decline in accidents rates, the toll taken by accidents reported in 1993 was considerable: 80% of accidents caused personal injury, and almost half of these resulted in medical attention in a hospital. Overall, 62% of accidents resulted in activity-loss days, and 29% involved bed-disability days. Hospital utilization costs associated with these accidents in 1993 were about $1.5 billion. As well, about one-third of accidents involved out-of-pocket expenses, totalling $791 million. Moreover, accidents continue to be the leading cause of death among persons under age 44.

Description: The objectives of the BCPCHC Survey are: - To provide more information on how people manage their chronic conditions; - To identify barriers to care for those living with chronic conditions including economic and travel related barriers; - To identify barriers to self-management of chronic conditions.

Description: The health effects reported by individuals living in communities in close proximity to noise sources such as traffic, airports, railways and wind turbine installations are not fully understood due to limited scientific research in this area. The CNHS was developed to address this gap by investigating the prevalence of health effects or health indicators among a sample of Canadians exposed to these noise sources using both self-reported and objective health measures.

Description: This survey collects data on non-acute health care facilities that provide medical or professional nursing supervision or some higher level of care to residents.

Description: The objective of the Canadian National Health Survey (CNHS) is to gather information about the health of Canadians.

Description: The Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth (CHSCY) is designed to paint a portrait of the health and well-being of Canadian children and youth by collecting information about factors influencing their physical and mental health. The survey covers a broad range of topics related to the overall health of children and youth including chronic conditions, injuries, physical activity, nutrition and their social environment (family, friends, and communities).

Description: The purpose of this survey is to better understand the transition to civilian life, its impact on the health of released Canadian Armed Forces members, as well as to provide information that may help to improve Department of National Defence and Veterans Affairs Canada programs and services offered to transitioning Canadian Armed Forces members and their families.

Description: The main objective of the Survey on Opioid Awareness is to better understand the current level of knowledge of the general Canadian population regarding opioids. This survey will also collect information regarding the willingness and ability of Canadians to act in the event of an opioid overdose.

Description: The program collects and disseminates financial operating data concerning government controlled and not-for-profit residential care facilities. Data may be used to develop national and regional economic policies and programs.

Description: The survey will be used in conjunction with other data sources to understand how the planned legalization of cannabis for non-medical use could impact the Canadian economy as well as other health and social services.

Description: Canadian Health Survey on Seniors