Aboriginal health

Aboriginal people generally have higher traumabased death and hospitalization rates than the rest of the population. Nunavik residents were characterized by much higher death rates and lost potential years of life due to trauma (intentional and non intentional) than Quebecers as a whole during the periods 1991-1993 to 1997-1998. The Inuit of Nunavik also have higher hospitalization rates for trauma than do Quebecers as a whole, with a predominance of falls, off-road vehicle accidents, attempted murders and attempted suicides. This summary presents the results of the Nunavik Inuit Health Survey on transportation injuries and safety; it allows describing the prevalence of injuries among residents living in private households in Nunavik as reported during the 2004 survey.

Injuries reported during the 12 previous months are defined as those that were sufficiently serious to limit the individual’s regular activities. Injuries reported in this survey are relatively infrequent and…

This paper describes the state of health of Nunavik Inuit women and the sexual health profile of men and women as reported during the Nunavik Inuit Health Survey 2004. The results focus on the preventive attitude among women such as screening techniques of cervical and breast cancer and also on women’s behaviour during pregnancy and their bone health status. It also concentrates on preventive sexual behaviours among men and women such as the number of sexual partners in the preceding year and the use of contraceptives.

More than four out of five Inuit adult women had a Pap test in the two years before the survey (82%), and 60% of them had one in the previous 12 months. The use of the Pap test is less frequent among adult women with lower levels of education. Among those who had never had a Pap test or had one two or more years before the survey, 41% of them claimed that this examination was not offered to them by their doctor. In terms of breast cancer examination, 43% of wo…

Notions of mental health and wellness depend on core cultural values. For Inuit, these include respect and care for others in the extended family and community as well as for the land, animals and the environment. Inuit understanding of the healthy person gives importance both to self-sufficiency and to interdependence. Healthy individuals show resilience in their ability to solve problems through innovation and resourcefulness and in their ability to work together with others for a common cause.

There is wide recognition that certain mental health problems have increased in Nunavik in recent years, most evident in the high prevalence of suicide among youth, and many people link this directly to the impact of sedentarization, economic and political marginalization, and the rapidity of culture change which has posed particular dilemmas for youth, families and communities. Understanding the sources of mental health, resilience and well-being is therefore of crucial importance…

Tobacco smoke contains many toxic substances. It affects the health of smokers and of non-smokers exposed to it and increases the risks of certain types of cancers and respiratory diseases. Tobacco products are highly addictive and can cause the premature death of smokers.

The 1992 Inuit health survey revealed an important proportion of smokers. Tobacco use was measured again in the 2004 survey. In the latter survey, all participants aged 15 years and over were questioned about smoking.

The results from the Nunavik Inuit Health Survey 2004 show that more than three quarters of the participants surveyed smoked daily or occasionally, compared to one quarter of residents of the southern populations of Quebec and Canada. The proportions of smokers reported in the 2004 survey are basically the same as those derived from the 1992 Inuit survey. When analyzed by age group, the results reveal that those aged 18 to 29 smoke the most – nearly 90% of them are smokers – whereas p…

Many Inuit community members have expressed their concern about the rates of sexual abuse in Nunavik. The objective of the Nunavik Inuit Health Survey 2004 was, among other things, to gather information regarding the prevalence of sexual abuse and the characteristics of the victims in Nunavik. A total of 856 adults completed the sexual abuse section of the confidential questionnaire from which the current data are drawn.

Results reveal that one in three adults has experienced sexual abuse during childhood and one in five during adulthood. About one in two women reported having been forced or having faced attempts made to force them to perform a sexual act while a minor. One out of four stated that they faced the same problem in adulthood. The prevalence of sexual abuse in men during childhood and adulthood is also significant: one man out of five reported sexual abuse during childhood and one in eight reported having been forced or having faced attempts made to force them to…

If the prevalence of diabetes is high in the general Québec population, studies done of Aboriginal communities show that the prevalence in this population are three to four times greater than those observed in the general population (Canada 1999). The prevalence of diabetes has increased significantly over the last 20 years among the Cree population of Northern Québec (Eeyou Istchee) aged 20 years and over, from a few cases before the 1980s, to about 5.2% in the late eighties, to 7.1% in 1991, and climbing to about 15% in 2002 (Brassard, Robinson et al. 1993; CHSSB-JB 2002) (Brassard, Robinson et al. 1993; CCSSSBJ 2002). These results are consistent with the epidemiological data observed in the United States and in other regions of Canada. Data from the Cree Board of Health and Social Services of James Bay shows that in 2002, there were 1,064 known cases of diabetes for all ages in the Eeyou population, or proportionally three times more than in the population residing in Southern Q…

The Cree community of Oujé-Bougoumou is located approximately 60 kilometres west of Chibougamau and comprises 622 residents. There was, for this community, a potential exposure to toxic substances derived from tailings residues left behind from mining operations in the mid 1950s.

Confronted with this potential exposure, the Grand Council of the Crees commissioned an environmental contamination study, which was conducted by Christopher L. Covel from CL COVEL PG LLC and Roger D. Masters from Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire. This study indicated mobilization of toxic elements from mine tailings residues and suggested possible impacts on human health.

The report produced by this study was subsequently critically reviewed by Evert Nieboer of McMaster University who endorsed the environmental conclusions, but not the interpretation of the data on contaminants in hair on which the human health risk judgement had been based. A 2001 survey by the Quebec Ministry of…

This proposed health survey is in line with the updating of the responsibilities entrusted to the public health Director regarding the function of surveillance of the population’s health status and health determinants. In particular, under Section 43 of the Public Health Act (PHA), the latter is responsible for submitting the proposed survey to the CESP and for ensuring compliance with rules relating to the confidentiality and protection of personal information.

According to the new legislative safeguards stemming from the PHA (related to the updating of the surveillance function on the one hand and the role of the public health ethics committee on the other), since a proposed survey is one of the data sources that provides the information needed for the production of a surveillance plan, it should be directly linked to the latter. However, given that these measures have been implemented recently and work on the proposed survey has already begun, the CESP deemed the project…