Indigenous Studies

‘Housing conditions and respiratory hospitalizations among First Nations people in Canada’. released April 19, 2017 by Statistics Canada. This Health Reports article examines whether First Nations Aboriginal identity is associated with a greater likelihood of hospitalization for selected respiratory conditions when adjusting not only for housing, but also for location (on or off reserves, urban or rural) and household income. The analyses are based on information from the 2006 Census linked to hospital discharge data from the Discharge Abstract Database.

 

Smoking prevalence among Inuit in Canada, 1991 to 2012’. was released on February 15, 2017.   Using data from the 1991, 2001 and 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, this study examines the prevalence of smoking among Inuit aged 15 or older, by location of residence, sex and age group.

PDF:    http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-003-x/2017002/article/14773-eng.pdf

Smoking correlates among Inuit men and women in Inuit Nunangat
On March 21, 2018, Statistics Canada released ‘Smoking correlates among Inuit men and women in Inuit Nunangat.’ Using data from the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, an Inuit-specific social determinants of health framework, and a gender-based analysis, this Health Reports article examines correlates of smoking among Inuit men and women aged 18 or older living in the four regions collectively known as Inuit Nunangat (Nunavik in Northern Quebec, Nunatsiavut in Northern Labrador, Nunavut, and the Inuvialuit region of the Northwest Territories).
The Daily: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/180321/dq180321e-eng.htm

 “Social determinants of health for the off-reserve First Nations population, 15 years of age and older, 2012”, which explores the relationship between various social determinants of health and selected health outcomes for First Nations people aged 15 and older living off reserve. Specifically, the following social determinants are explored: health behaviours (smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity), physical environments (housing, mobility, employment, education, income, food security), access to health resources, cultural continuity (participation in traditional activities, Aboriginal language, social support), and residential school attendance. An integrated life course and social determinants model of Aboriginal health framework is used to guide the analysis.  Released by  Statistics Canada on April 12, 2016.

HTML:     http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-653-x/89-653-x2016010-eng.htm 

 

   ‘Acute care hospitalization by Aboriginal identity, Canada, 2006 through 2008’ was released on August 17, 2016.   National data about acute care hospitalization of Aboriginal people are scarce. This Health Reports study addresses that information gap by describing patterns of hospitalization by Aboriginal identity for leading diagnoses for all provinces and territories except Quebec. The 2006 Census was linked to the 2006/2007- to 2008/2009 Discharge Abstract Database, which contains hospital records from all acute care facilities in Canada (excluding Quebec). With these linked data, hospital records could be examined by Aboriginal identity, as reported to the census.

PDF:            http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-003-x/2016008/article/14647-eng.pdf

Acute care hospitalizations for mental and behavioural disorders among First Nations people
On June 20, 2018, Statistics Canada released the article ‘Acute care hospitalizations for mental and behavioural disorders among First Nations people’ in Health Reports. This study describes acute care hospitalizations for mental/behavioural disorders among First Nations people living on and off reserve. The 2006 Census was linked to the Discharge Abstract Database from 2006/2007 through 2008/2009 for all provinces (except Ontario and Quebec) and the three territories. Hospitalizations for seven types of disorders were identified.
HTML: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/82-003-x/2018006/article/54971-eng.htm
PDF: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/82-003-x/2018006/article/54971-eng.pdf

 ‘The influence of community well-being on mortality among Registered First Nations people’ was released July 20,2016.  This Health Reports article examines associations between community socioeconomic characteristics and mortality among the First Nations population. The 1991-to-2006 Census Mortality and Cancer Cohort follow-up, which tracked a 15% sample of Canadians aged 25 or older, included 57,300 respondents who self-identified as Registered First Nations people or Indian band members. The Community Well-Being Index (CWB), a measure of the social and economic well-being of communities, consists of income, education, labour force participation, and housing components. This study uses the 1991-to-2006 Census Mortality and Cancer Cohort to assess the influence of community factors as measured by the CWB and individual characteristics on the mortality of individuals who identified as Registered First Nations people or Indian band members.

PDF:            http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-003-x/2016007/article/14646-eng.pdf

 

Assessing the social determinants of self-reported Inuit health in Inuit Nunangat.” was released on February 22, 2016. The study used data from the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey to assess the relationship between various social, economic and cultural factors and excellent or very good self-reported health. The analysis was conducted for two age groups: those aged 15 to 24 years and those aged 25 to 54 years. 

Among the findings:

• Inuit with strong or very strong family ties were more likely to be in excellent or very good health than those with weaker ties.

• Educational attainment was positively associated with excellent or very good self-reported health.

• Younger Inuit living in a crowded dwelling were less likely to report excellent or very good health.

PDF:            http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-653-x/89-653-x2016009-eng.pdf

 

 ‘Lifetime suicidal thoughts among First Nations living off reserve, Métis and Inuit aged 26 to 59: Prevalence and associated characteristics’. was released on January 19, 2016.  Based on data from the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, this article presents prevalence estimates of suicidal thoughts among First Nations living off reserve, Métis and Inuit aged 26 to 59. It examines associations between suicidal thoughts and mental health, socio-demographic and other characteristics, many of which have been shown to be related to suicidal thoughts in other populations.

HTML:           http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-653-x/89-653-x2016008-eng.htm

‘Past-year suicidal thoughts among off-reserve First Nations, Métis and Inuit adults aged 18 to 25: Prevalence and associated characteristics’. was released October 13, 2016.  For decades, researchers have reported high suicide rates among Aboriginal youth, which are several times higher than rates among non-Aboriginal youth. Based on the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, this article presents estimates of prevalence of suicidal thoughts among off-reserve First Nations, Métis and Inuit adults aged 18 to 25. It examines associations between past-year suicidal thoughts and mental disorders and personality factors; childhood experiences and family characteristics; and socio-demographic characteristics, many of which have been shown to be related to suicidal thoughts in other populations.

HTML:           http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-653-x/89-653-x2016011-eng.htm

PDF:            http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-653-x/89-653-x2016011-eng.pdf

 

'Reports Suicide among First nations people, Métis and Inuit (2011 – 2016): Findings from the 2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort (CanCHEC)' was released on June 28, 2019. It presents suicide rates for the 2011 to 2016 time period among selfidentifying First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and non-Indigenous people in private dwellings in Canada. It also explores the influence of socioeconomic factors in the disparity in risk of suicide between First Nations people, Métis, Inuit and non-Indigenous people in Canada

PDF: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/99-011-x/99-011-x2019001-eng.pdf

 

 ‘The 2006 Canadian Birth-Census Cohort’ was released on January 20, 2016.  The purpose of the 2006 Canadian Birth-Census Cohort Database is to provide information on the nature and extent of variations in perinatal health across socioeconomic and ethnocultural groups.

Among the findings:

• Differences in birth outcomes across the selected socioeconomic and ethnocultural characteristics were similar to those based on other data sources.

• The higher rates of preterm birth, children who were large for their gestational age (LGA), and fetal and infant mortality for births to Aboriginal mothers are consistent with other studies.

• Cohort rates of preterm and LGA birth and fetal and infant mortality were higher, and the rate of SGA (small for gestational age) was lower, among mothers who reported Aboriginal identity than among non-Aboriginal mothers.

Tables 4 and 5 and Figure 2 contain data on the Aboriginal identity population.

PDF:                http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-003-x/2016001/article/14306-eng.pdf

 

 ‘Validation of the 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) in the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey’ was released on January 20, 2016.   The 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) is a short measure of non-specific psychological distress, which has been shown to be a sensitive screen for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for anxiety and mood disorders. The scale has yet to be validated as a measure of psychological distress for Aboriginal peoples in Canada. Using the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, this study examined the psychometric properties of the K10 for First Nations people living off reserve, Métis, and Inuit aged 15 or older.

HTML:             http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-003-x/2016001/article/14307-eng.htm

 

Health Research Working Paper Series

The Health of First Nations Living Off-Reserve, Inuit, and Métis Adults in Canada: The Impact of Socio-economic Status on Inequalities in Health  (2010)

Government of Canada Publications

Health profile of Aboriginal children (under 15 years of age  (1994)