Social Determinants of Health in Canada PDF

Current Environment: Social determinants of health are the circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live , work, and age. It is also the systems put in place to support them. Each year in Canada: Up to 300,000 people experience homelessness with that numb...

Current Environment: Social determinants of health are the circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live , work, and age. It is also the systems put in place to support them. Each year in Canada: Up to 300,000 people experience homelessness with that number rising every year. An estimated 4 million Canadians do not have a primary care provider (family doctor) 3.8 million Canadians are living below the poverty line 8.7 million Canadians are food insecure Place Matters Map showing life expectancy according to province from 2020- 2022. Quebec is the highest at 82.5- 82.99 (British Columbia is now the highest at 83-85) Nunavut is the lowest at under 75 New Brunswick is 80.0-80.49 (this number has since declined to 79) Overall Canadian Average is 81.4  Areas of Vancouver can affect life expectancy by up to 9 years based on the neighbourhood you live in. Life expectancy is higher in urban areas than in rural areas. Income Researchers have also found that men in the wealthiest 20% of neighbourhoods in Canada live, on average, Statistics more than 4 years longer than men in the poorest 20% of neighbourhoods. This Canadian study also found that people living in the most deprived neighbourhoods had death rates that were 28% higher than the least deprived neighbourhoods. Suicide rates in the lowest income neighbourhoods were found to be almost twice those seen in the wealthiest neighbourhoods. Percentage of youth that are readmitted to the hospital based on health zone in New Brunswick. Food Matters  Low birthweight babies living in disadvantaged conditions are generally more susceptible to health problems than babies in advantaged populations. Early Adverse childhood experiences can create a Childhood sense of inefficacy – or learned helplessness – and which is a strong determinant of poor health. Developmen t In terms of access to regulated child care – an important contributor to child well-being – only 17% of Canadian families have access to a regulated setting. Researchers stated that establishing a comprehensive early childhood education program would be the single best way to improve Canadian health outcomes. Health Care Services The main purpose of universal health care is to protect the health of citizens while spreading health costs across the whole of society. A universal health care system is especially effective in protecting citizens with lower incomes who cannot afford private health care insurance. Medicare covers only 70% of total health care costs – the rest is covered by private insurance plans and out-of-pocket spending Medicare does not cover drug costs, and coverage of home care and nursing costs varies among the provinces/territories. In many other wealthy developed nations, these costs are covered by the public health care system. As a result, Canadians with a below-average income are three times less likely to fill a prescription and 60% less able to get a Despite the Universal Health Care Act outlining access to health care be free of discrimination… The bottom 33% of Canadian income earners are – when compared with the top 33% of income earners 50% less likely to see a specialist when needed 50% more likely to find it difficult to get care on weekends or evenings 40% more likely to wait five days or more for an appointment with a physician  Social Inclusion Groups Most Likely To Experience Social Exclusion Indigenous Canadians Canadians of colour Recent immigrants Women People with disabilities The LGBTQ+ Community  Socially excluded Canadians are more likely to be unemployed or to earn lower wages. They have less access to health and social services, and to means of furthering their education Social Exclusion cont… New Canadians are frequently unable to practice their profession due to a myriad of regulations and credentialing procedures that bar the way to participation. Social Exclusion includes: Lack of access to financial resources Lack of access to housing Not able to contribute to social and cultural activities Often unable to participate in voting or have a voice in government Studies find that the marginalization and exclusion of individuals and communities from mainstream society constitute a primary risk factor for adult-onset diabetes and a range of other chronic illnesses, such as respiratory and cardiovascular disease. Race and Health Care Statistics The infant mortality rate is double in Indigenous communities. The prevalence of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease is also higher within the indigenous population. Doctors often struggle to recognize physical symptoms such as jaundice, cyanosis, pallor, rashes, inflammation and bruising on people of colour. Despite making up 4.5% of the Canadian community, Indigenous people only represent less than 1% of physicians. Forced sterilization of Indigenous women still occurs today. Indigenous children represent 7.7% of all children in Canada, yet they represent 53% of children in foster care. Race is often used in medical algorithms to determine which patients receive care and what type of care they receive. This racial bias often leads to a lower quality of care for POC.