Toward improved health for Ontario’s First Nations:
The Aboriginal People’s SurveyA presentation to the Association of Local Public Health Agencies
February 8, 2008
Chantelle Richmond, Ph.D.Post-doctoral Fellow (U of T, Public Health Sciences)
Adjunct Professor (UWO, Geography & First Nations Studies)
2
Outline of topics What is the Aboriginal
People’s Survey?
What does the APS measure?
How can you access the APS data?
3
The Aboriginal People’s Survey (1) A post censal survey conducted by Statistics
Canada (1991, 2001, 2006 underway) The report of the Royal Commission on
Aboriginal Peoples relied heavily on the 1991 APS data
Survey developed in consultation with national Aboriginal organizations, federal departments, provincial and territorial groups
All data collected under the authority of the Statistics Act Data owned by Statistics Canada
4
The Aboriginal People’s Survey (2) The APS respondents represent diverse
segments of the Aboriginal population (who report First Nation, Métis, Inuit ancestry and identity) Geographic levels include on-reserve & off-reserve
First Nations, Métis settlements, Inuit communities, urban, rural, Northern Aboriginal peoples
In total, 217 communities participated (> 120,000)
5
The Aboriginal People’s Survey (3) 22 communities were incompletely enumerated
by the APS (5,455 individuals) Refusal to participate, data collection interrupted
40 other communities incompletely enumerated by 2001 Census
First Nations on-reserve sample not statistically representative or aggregated to the population level
6
Objectives of the 2001 APS To provide data on the social and
economic conditions of Aboriginal people in Canada
To identify needs and priorities within the Aboriginal population
APS Concepts and Methods Guide: http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/89-591-XIE/89-591-XIE2003001.pdf
7
APS Core Survey Content Education Language Health Labour Activity Income Schooling Housing Mobility
8
APS Data Collection Tools Personal and telephone interviews with
residents of private dwellings Four Survey Instruments
1. Children and youth survey (0-14 years old)
2. Adult core survey (all adults 15 and over)
3. Arctic Supplement (Inuit community residents)
4. Métis Supplement (Métis identity/ancestry)
9
Strategies for accessing APS data
1. Perform your own data analysis at a Statistics Canada Research Data Centre
2. Use the 2001 APS Community Profiles
10
Statistics Canada’s Research Data Centres (RDC’s) (1) RDC’s provide researchers with access, in a
secure university setting, to microdata from population and household surveys undetaken by Statistics Canada
StatCan datasets more readily available 14 RDC’s across Canada Staffed by StatCan employees Projects must first be be approved Researchers are ‘deemed employees’ and
must abide by the Statistics Act
11
Statistics Canada’s Research Data Centres (RDC’s) (2) RDC’s in Ontario
1. Carleton, Ottawa, Outaouais Local Research Data Centre (COOL RDC) University of Ottawa, Carleton University
2. Queen's University Research Data Centre3. Toronto Regional Statistics Canada RDC
University of Toronto, Ryerson University, York University
4. McMaster University Research Data Centre5. South Western Ontario Research Data Centre
University of Waterloo, Laurentian University
6. University of Western Ontario Research Data Centre
12
The 2001 APS Community Profiles Web address:
http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil01aps/home.cfm Information on Aboriginal identity population for
select communities where population > 200 Data available at the community level for:
Children General health, health care utilization, medical conditions,
physical injuries, dental care, education and social activities, language, childcare arrangements
Adults Education, language, labour activity, health communication
technology, mobility, housing
13
AN EXAMPLE FROM THE APS COMMUNITY PROFILESGeneral Health Characteristics (Adult)
Garden River 14
Fort William 52
Self-rated health % of adults who say their health is:
Excellent or very good 59 38
Good 31 32
Fair or poor 6 32
% of adults who saw or talked on telephone about physical, emotional or mental health in past 12 months to:
Family doctor or general practitioner 59 78
Traditional healer 16 X
Nurse 31 41
Dentist or Orthodontist 55 54
Other health professional 45 70
14
AN EXAMPLE FROM THE APS COMMUNITY PROFILESChild Education and Social Activities
Child Education: Garden River 14 Fort William 52
% of children (6-14 years) attending school
100 92
% of children (6-14 years) who attended an early childhood development or preschool program
50 38
% of children (6-14 years) who attended Aboriginal specific early childhood development or preschool program
86 X
Average number of hours children watch TV and/or play video games per day
4 4
How often child plays sports per week:
Never or less than once (%) X 25
One or more times (%) 83 75
15
Summary of the APS The APS is a rich source of data on the Aboriginal
population of Canada APS data can be used to inform the health and social
needs of Aboriginal peoples in Ontario and for targeting health care programming
Limitations relate to population or regional aggregation of First Nation on-reserve population Community-level profiles are useful for
understanding local conditions A need to integrate information from other sources
(i.e., the Regional Health Survey) and from other methods as well (e.g., qualitative approaches)
16
Thanks for listening/ Miigwetch!
Comments/questions:
Chantelle Richmond, Ph.D.Department of Geography &
The First Nations Studies ProgramThe University of Western Ontario
1151 Richmond StreetLondon, Ontario, Canada, N6A 5C2
Tel: 519 661-2111, ext. 85324Fax: 519 661-3750
E-mail: [email protected]