Is the Unequal COVID-19 Burden in Canada Due to Unequal Levels of Citizens’ Discipline Across Provinces?

2020 ◽  
Vol COVID-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-François Daoust ◽  
Éric Bélanger ◽  
Ruth Dassonneville ◽  
Erick Lachapelle ◽  
Richard Nadeau
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Empirical Test ◽  
First Year ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Health Agencies ◽  
Canadian Provinces ◽  
Spread Of Infection

The unequal burden from the COVID-19 crisis (e.g., in terms of infection and death rates) across Canadian provinces is important and puzzling. Some have speculated that differences in levels of citizen compliance with public health preventive measures are central to understanding cross-provincial differences in pandemic-related health outcomes. However, there has been no systematic empirical test of this hypothesis. In this research, we make use of an exceptionally large dataset including 23 survey waves (N=22,610) fielded in Canada across twelve months (April 2020 to April 2021) to answer the question: is there evidence of substantial cross-provincial differences in citizen compliance with basic public health measures designed to prevent the spread of infection? We find that regional differences in self-reported behaviour are few and very modest, suggesting that inter-provincial differences in COVID-19 related health outcomes have little to do with differences in citizen compliance, at least in the first year of the pandemic. These results have important implications. While it is crucial that we continue to study regional variations related to the COVID-19 burden, public officials from health agencies, pundits and politicians should be cautious when musing about the role of citizen compliance as the primary explanation of inter-provincial pandemic health outcomes.

Housing Programmes: The Role of Public Health Agencies

Urban Studies ◽  
1965 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-196
Author(s):  
Andrew Semple
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Health Agencies ◽  
Health Agencies

scholarly journals COVID-19 in Southeast Asia: Implications for workers and unions

2021 ◽  
pp. 002218562110000
Author(s):  
Michele Ford ◽  
Kristy Ward
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
First Year ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
The Public ◽  
Market Effects ◽  
Export Orientation ◽  
Health Measures

The labour market effects in Southeast Asia of the COVID-19 pandemic have attracted considerable analysis from both scholars and practitioners. However, much less attention has been paid to the pandemic’s impact on legal protections for workers’ and unions’ rights, or to what might account for divergent outcomes in this respect in economies that share many characteristics, including a strong export orientation in labour-intensive industries and weak industrial relations institutions. Having described the public health measures taken to control the spread of COVID-19 in Indonesia, Cambodia and Vietnam, this article analyses governments’ employment-related responses and their impact on workers and unions in the first year of the pandemic. Based on this analysis, we conclude that the disruption caused to these countries’ economies, and societies, served to reproduce existing patterns of state–labour relations rather than overturning them.

Preparedness and response in Portuguese emergency plans - Interaction with public health

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
G Leiras ◽  
A Martins
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Authority ◽  
Civil Protection ◽  
Emergency Plans ◽  
Emergency Situations ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Protection Authority

Abstract Background Articulation between Civil Protection and Public Health authorities is of paramount importance to control, reduce and prevent threats to the health of the population in situations of crisis or catastrophes. National Civil Protection Authority produces Emergency Plans which describe the role of every stakeholder in emergency situations. Role and importance of Public Health and Public Health Authorities is not always present or well described and known amongst stakeholders. Methods Data was collected from all Districtal Emergency Plans (n = 18). Each document was analysed considering time frame, refences to Public Health and Health Authorities, definition of roles, communication channels, coordination and inclusion of intersectoral communication flow. Quantitative analysis included absolute and relative frequencies and qualitative analysis to all parts related to the terms “Public Health” and “Health Authority”. Each document was reviewed by 2 independent researchers. Results From 18 Districtal Emergency Plans (DEP) analysed, 94,4% (n = 17) had references to Public Health, but none referred the role of Public Health Officers. Only 16,7% referred to Health Authorities, although 94,4% mentioned the law 135/2013, defining the role and attributes of Health Authority. In 72,2%, coordination of Public Health Measures was attributed to the National Medical Emergency Institute. Epidemiological surveillance and Public Health Emergencies were referred in 55,6%, and attributed to the Regional Administration of Health. Conclusions Public Health Authorities and Public Health Medical Officers role in articulation with National Civil Protection Authority in emergency situations lacks severely, with this role being replaced by other entities. This is of great concern regarding management and control of diseases, particularly communicable diseases. Key messages Public Health Authorities lack the necessary involvement in Emergency Plans and emergency situations. Public health measures are coordinated by other entities rather than Public Health Authorities.

Market Failures, the Environment, and Human Health

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karyn Morrissey
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Free Market ◽  
Health Care Demand ◽  
Goods And Services

Knowledge of the important role that the environment plays in determining human health predates the modern public health era. However, the tendency to see health, disease, and their determinants as attributes of individuals rather than characteristics of communities meant that the role of the environment in human health was seldom accorded sufficient importance during much of the 20th century. Instead, research began to focus on specific risk factors that correlated with diseases of greatest concern, i.e., the non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, asthma, and diabetes. Many of these risk factors (e.g., smoking, alcohol consumption, and diet) were aspects of individual lifestyle and behaviors, freely chosen by the individual. Within this individual-centric framework of human health, the standard economic model for human health became primarily the Grossman model of health and health care demand. In this model, an individual’s health stock may be increased by investing in health (by consuming health services, for example) or decreased by endogenous (age) or exogenous (smoking) individual factors. Within this model, individuals used their available resources, their budget, to purchase goods and services that either increased or decreased their health stock. Grossman’s model provides a consumption-based approach to human health, where individuals purchase goods and services required to improve their individual health in the marketplace. Grossman’s model of health assumes that the goods and services required to optimize good health can be purchased through market-based interactions and that these goods and services are optimally priced—that the value of the goods and services are reflected in their price. In reality, many types of goods and services that are good for human health are not available to purchase, or if they are available they are undervalued in the free market. Across the environmental and health literature, these goods and services are, today, broadly referred to as “ecosystem services for human health.” However, the quasi-public good nature of ecosystem services for human health means that the private market will generate a suboptimal environment for both individual and public health outcomes. In the face of continued austerity and scarce public resources, understanding the role of the environment in human health may help to alleviate future health care demand by decreasing (or increasing) environmental risk (or benefits) associated with health outcomes. However, to take advantage of the role that the environment plays in human health requires a fundamental reorientation of public health policy and spending to include environmental considerations.

scholarly journals World leaders’ usage of Twitter in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: a content analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 510-516 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sohaib R Rufai ◽  
Catey Bunce
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Inclusion Criteria ◽  
Group Of Seven ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Twitter Data ◽  
Public Health Information ◽  
Effective Public Health

ABSTRACT Background It is crucial that world leaders mount effective public health measures in response to COVID-19. Twitter may represent a powerful tool to help achieve this. Here, we explore the role of Twitter as used by Group of Seven (G7) world leaders in response to COVID-19. Methods This was a qualitative study with content analysis. Inclusion criteria were as follows: viral tweets from G7 world leaders, attracting a minimum of 500 ‘likes’; keywords ‘COVID-19’ or ‘coronavirus’; search dates 17 November 2019 to 17 March 2020. We performed content analysis to categorize tweets into appropriate themes and analyzed associated Twitter data. Results Eight out of nine (88.9%) G7 world leaders had verified and active Twitter accounts, with a total following of 85.7 million users. Out of a total 203 viral tweets, 166 (82.8%) were classified as ‘Informative’, of which 48 (28.6%) had weblinks to government-based sources, while 19 (9.4%) were ‘Morale-boosting’ and 14 (6.9%) were ‘Political’. Numbers of followers and viral tweets were not strictly related. Conclusions Twitter may represent a powerful tool for world leaders to rapidly communicate public health information with citizens. We would urge general caution when using Twitter for health information, with a preference for tweets containing official government-based information sources.

scholarly journals Variation In Health Outcomes: The Role Of Spending On Social Services, Public Health, And Health Care, 2000–09

2016 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 760-768 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth H. Bradley ◽  
Maureen Canavan ◽  
Erika Rogan ◽  
Kristina Talbert-Slagle ◽  
Chima Ndumele ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Social Services

Public Health and the Law

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 690-695 ◽  
Author(s):  
James G. Hodge ◽  
Lexi C. White ◽  
Andrew Sniegowski
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Public Health Officials ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Structural Principles ◽  
Laws And Policies ◽  
Private Actors

Promoting and protecting the public's health in the United States and abroad are intricately tied to laws and policies. Laws provide support for public health measures, authorize specific actions among public and private actors, and empower public health officials. Laws can also inhibit or restrict efforts designed to improve communal health through protections for individual rights or structural principles of government. Advancing the health of populations through law is complex and subject to constant tradeoffs. This column seeks to explore the role of law in the interests of public health through scholarly and applied assessments across a spectrum of key issues. The first of these assessments focuses on a critical topic in emergency legal preparedness.

scholarly journals Public Health Literacy for Lawyers

2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 701-713 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy E. Parmet ◽  
Anthony Robbins
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Public Health Literacy

Public health professionals recognize the critical role the law plays in determining the success of public health measures. Even before September 11, 2001, public health experience with tobacco use, HIV, industrial pollution and other potent threats to the health of the public demonstrated that laws can assist or thwart public health efforts. The new focus on infectious threats and bioterrorism, starting with the anthrax attacks through the mail and continuing with SARS, has highlighted the important role of law.For lawyers to serve as effective partners in public health, they should have a basic familiarity with public health: how public health professionals see the world and the key issues they tackle. A practical grasp of public health can be acquired, and often is acquired, “on the job.”

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document