Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de santé publique
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Can J Public Health · May 2012
How to ensure that national radon survey results are useful for public health practice.
Exposure to radon gas increases the risk of lung cancer. Preliminary national survey data collected by Health Canada indicate that approximately 10% of households exceed the recommended federal long-term guideline of 200 Bq/m3. ⋯ Here we use data from a survey in British Columbia to illustrate how improved spatial resolution and more refined concentration categories would be valuable for prioritizing the use of limited public health resources. We encourage Health Canada in future to provide more specific, community-level information that can be used to inform local policy and to engage building owners in radon testing and remediation.
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Despite its being deliberated since at least the 1980s, a national vaccine injury compensation program still does not exist in Canada. The omission of such a program stands as a gap in Canadian immunization policy in comparison to many other equivalently developed countries. This article outlines the arguments for a compensation program and the design elements that would be best suited to a program in the Canadian context.
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Can J Public Health · Jan 2012
Randomized Controlled TrialExploring the value of mixed methods within the At Home/Chez Soi housing first project: a strategy to evaluate the implementation of a complex population health intervention for people with mental illness who have been homeless.
This paper is a methodological case study that describes the At Home/Chez Soi (Housing First) Initiative's mixed-methods strategy for implementation evaluation and discusses the value of these methods in evaluating the implementation of such complex population health interventions. ⋯ In general, the approach provides information about both whether and how key aspects of the intervention are implemented effectively across different settings. It thus provides implementation data that are rigorous, contextually relevant and practical.
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Can J Public Health · Jan 2012
Air pollution and emergency department visits for asthma in Windsor, Canada.
The city of Windsor is recognized to have poor air quality in comparison with other Canadian cities. However, relatively few studies have evaluated associations between day-to-day fluctuations in air pollution levels and respiratory health in Windsor. In this study, we examined associations between short-term changes in ambient air pollution and emergency department (ED) visits for asthma in Windsor. ⋯ Exposure in Windsor to ambient air pollution increases the risk of ED visits for asthma, particularly among children.
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Can J Public Health · Jan 2012
Comparative StudySafe cycling: how do risk perceptions compare with observed risk?
Safety concerns deter cycling. The Bicyclists' Injuries and the Cycling Environment (BICE) study quantified the injury risk associated with 14 route types, from off-road paths to major streets. However, when it comes to injury risk, there may be discordance between empirical evidence and perceptions. If so, even if protective infrastructure is built people may not feel safe enough to cycle. This paper reports on the relationship between perceived and observed injury risk. ⋯ Route choices and decisions to cycle are affected by perceptions of safety, and we found that perceptions usually corresponded with observed safety. However, perceptions about certain separated route types did not align well. Education programs and social media may be ways to ensure that public perceptions of route safety reflect the evidence.