Black Health Alliance and many of its member organizations have for a number of years been encouraging change and improvements to our health care system in order to improve health outcomes for people of African descent. Some of those changes will require a paradigm shift in how we look at health care in Canada. Without going into a speech…health care must be viewed within the context of the social determinants of health….ethnicity and culture does have an impact on one’s experience of health and well-being…health care policies, guidelines, institutions and practitioners must move towards an understanding that one size does not fit all.
In fact one of the main impetuses for BHA’s 2002 Submission to the Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada (see Reports section of BHA Website) was close inspection of trends in HIV and AIDS in Canada. In essence, whereas the incidence and prevalence was showing a decline between the late 80s – 90s in Caucasian populations, the exact opposite was occurring in African and Black populations in Canada! A warning sign that existing public health measures to curtail and manage the disease and help those living with the disease was not being experienced by all populations.
Many years later, in Ontario we now have a HIV and AIDS Strategy designed by and built for the African and Caribbean communities in this province. At our last BHA members meeting (April 2009) as part of BHA’s “Let’s Talk About…” Speaker Series we had a candid discussion on HIV and Stigma in the Black Community with panelists from BLACK CAP, APAA and others. At our upcoming meeting, June 22 2009, we will continue the discussion on the social determinants of health, specifically, “The impact of racism, poverty, education and literacy on the health of Black Canadians”.
Recently I was informed of the plans for a long-term, large scale health study of Ontarians (see below). There is some speculation that this study may be designed to collect ethnoracial information of study participants and compare it with health status thereby providing a valuable tool to track and identify health disparities. If this is the case and if the study is marketed well and is able to engage large numbers from different ethnocultural groups it could be a model for across the board public health data collection and analysis (just what BHA recommended in our 2002 Report).
Dr. Christopher J. Morgan
Chair
Black Health Alliance
Have you ever wondered why some people get cancer or heart disease but others don’t? The Ontario Health Study is a long-term study that begins this spring. Its goal is to help learn more about how to stay healthy, and what causes and how to prevent the complications of chronic diseases.
We are recruiting Ontario residents to look at their health status, family medical histories, work, community and living environment. This not-for-profit Study is one of several across the country that are following 300,000 Canadians for the next 20 years.
Three government-funded organizations are leading the Ontario Health Study
- The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation to conduct research on cancer.
- Cancer Care Ontario is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to conduct research and improve cancer services.
- The Canadian Partnership Against Cancer is an independent organization funded by the federal government to accelerate action on cancer control for all Canadians.
In addition, the Canadian Cancer Society, Ontario Division and the Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion recognize the importance of this Study and are endorsing its objectives.
For more information see – http://www.ontariohealthstudy.ca/client/ohs/ohs.nsf/web/home
