Interesting Dennis-but not surprising given current policies and pre-dominant political paradigm in Alberta.;)
Now for some GOOD NEWS:
A group of organizations and "experienced" people are working on a newly developed project in Alberta entitled: Social Development in Alberta: Connecting Communities, Action and Public Policy.
The project objectives are as follows:
1. To plan and carry out a provincial conference (March 3/4 in Calgary)to share information on research findings and shared realities of poverty and inadequate social conditions among community professionals, researchers and experienced (those affected by poverty and inadequate social conditions) groups in Alberta.
2. To facilitate the development of a draft Alberta Charter on Social Determinants of Health and Crime Prevention by community professionals, researchers and "experienced" (those affected by poverty and inadequate social conditions) groups during and after the conference.
3. To increase knowledge, skills and resources related to community action and policy development related to poverty/social conditions among community professionals, researchers and "experienced" (those affected by poverty and inadequate social conditions) groups in Alberta.
4. To plan and carry out regional forums with local, regional, and provincial decision-makers across the province to present conference recommendations and discuss policy change options.
5. To develop and distribute an Alberta Charter on Social Determinants of Health and Crime Prevention that will serve as an action framework for local communities and larger decision-making bodies in Alberta.
6. To foster support for existing and newly developed action groups addressing local action on specific social determinants of health e.g. food security, housing etc.
We are planning to engage the arts community to assist in vocalizing the realities of poverty and social inequity.
We connect by teleconference at this point though we did have an initial planning workshop in Calgary in late August. SOME of the current partners include the Alberta Healthy Living Network, Alberta Public Health Association, Health Canada-Population Health, Alberta Health and Wellness Health Promotion, Growing Food Security in Alberta, Four Worlds Developmental Learning Centre, Calgary Allied Arts , and Chinook Health Region-Population Health. Working sub-committees have just been formed, initial funding obtained for pre-conference work from Health Canada Population Health, and a LOI submitted to NCP-CMP for further financial support.
If you are interested in joining the group or wish for further information, please contact me(details below)
Cheers
Stasha
Stasha Donahue, RN, BN (Alberta SDOH Project Co-Chair)
CHR-PH-Child Poverty Initiaitve Lead
Community Health Fort Macleod Site
Phone: (403) 553-5351/FAX: (403) 553-2333
Office Hours-Monday to Thursday
"Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail"...Ralph Waldo Emerson
-----Original Message-----
From: Social Determinants of Health [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of
Dennis Raphael
Sent: September 27, 2004 2:57 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [SDOH] Bad news in Alberta...
"A rising death rate for newborns in Alberta pushed the national figures.
The province's infant mortality has risen in three of the last four years
and in 2002 reached levels not seen since 1994."
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1096280569864&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154
Men living longer, study shows
On average, babies born today expected to reach 80
OTTAWA - A Canadian boy born in 2002 could expect to live to 77.2 years of
age, a record high, Statistics Canada reported today.
The agency said life expectancy at birth for Canadian males rose 0.2 years,
about two and a half months, from 2001. Life expectancy at birth for women
was unchanged at 82.1 years.
The male-female age gap shrank to just under five years.
"Life expectancy at birth for both sexes combined reached 79.7 years in
2002, up 0.1 years from 2001 and entirely a result of the gain among men,"
the report said.
Between 1979 and 2002, life expectancy for men improved by 5.8 years while
that of women improved by 3.3 years.
Life expectancy at the age of 65 improved only for men in 2002. Their life
expectancy rose 0.1 years, while senior women saw no gain. At age 65, life
expectancy for women exceeds that for men by 3.4 years.
Based on 2002 mortality rates, Canadian men at the age of 65 can expect to
live on average an additional 17.2 years. Their female counterparts could
expect to live an average of 20.6 more years.
For both sexes combined, the remaining life span after age 65 would be 19.1
years.
Since 1979, life expectancy among men at 65 has increased by 2.6 years,
while that of women has increased by 1.6 years.
The infant mortality rate, deaths in the first year of life, increased in
2002 to 5.4 deaths for every 1,000 live births, up from 5.2 in 2001. The
entire increase resulted from female infant mortality, the report said.
The female infant mortality rate increased to 4.9 deaths per 1,000 live
births from 4.6 in 2001. The male infant mortality rate remained at 5.8.
The increase in the infant mortality rate was entirely due to the deaths of
infants under one day old. The death rate of these newborns increased to
2.5 per 1,000 live births in 2002, from 2.3 the year before.
A rising death rate for newborns in Alberta pushed the national figures.
The province's infant mortality has risen in three of the last four years
and in 2002 reached levels not seen since 1994.
Low birth weight and pre-term births have been found by researchers to put
infants at higher risk of death and birth data for Alberta from 1979 to
2002 show the province has had consistently higher proportions of both
these conditions than Canada as a whole.
The agency offered no explanation for the Alberta situation.
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