Part of the Genuine Progress Index for Atlantic Canada Indice de progrs vritable Atlantique Communit

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Part of the Genuine Progress Index for Atlantic
CanadaIndice de progrès véritable -
AtlantiqueCommunity level health indicators
in Glace Bay The GPI Atlantic Survey Methods
and ResultsPeter D. MacIntyre, UCCBJune 20,
2003Presented at the Cape Breton Health
Research Symposium Broadening the definition of
healthBuilding research through partnerships.
GPIGlace Bay
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What kind of community are we leaving our
children?

• Issues at the national level

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What kind of world are we leaving our children?

• Canada has a premier quality of life
• More possessions, longer lives
• But, if we define well being more broadly, there
  are disturbing signs

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Warning Signals in Canada Determinants of Well
being

• Global warming
• Higher stress rates, obesity, childhood asthma
• Insecurity, job loss in Glace Bay CBRM
• Greater inequality and more child poverty
• General decline of volunteerism
• Natural resource depletion

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The more the economy grows, the better off we
are - Sending the wrong message?

• Crime, sickness, pollution, resource depletion
  make economy grow
• These are the mistakes of the past
• GDP can grow even as poverty and inequality
  increase.
• Free time, recreation, and unpaid work has no
  value in GDP
• Nadine Maxners poster shows that Glace Bay has
  enviable value system

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We Need Better Indicators of Progress and Well
being. In the GPI

• Health, livelihood security, free time, unpaid
  work, natural resource, education have value,
• Sickness, crime, disasters, pollution are costs,
• Reductions in crime, poverty, greenhouse gas,
  ecological footprint are progress,
• Growing equity signals progress.

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Indicators are Powerful

• What we measure
• reflects what we value as a society
• determines what makes it onto the policy agenda
• influences behaviour (e.g. students)

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Community-level GPI

• The Glace Bay Project

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Glace Bay Community GPI Partnerships include

• East Cape Breton Community Health Board
• Cape Breton Wellness Centre (UCCB)
• NS Citizens for Community Development Society
• CB DHA
• CBCEDA
• CB regional police (Sgt Barry Gordon)
• Glace Bay Citizens Service League

• UCCB
• Dalhousie University
• SMU
• Acadia
• ACEWH
• Canadian Population Health Initiative
• National Crime Prevention Centre
• HRDC (Glace Bay)
• CEIP

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The Method

• 1,700 surveys, 78 pages
• Detailed 2-5 hrs Glace Bay 82 response
• Random sample, age 15, confidential
• CI 95 /- 3 2 cross-tabulations
• Data collection 2001-02
• After mine closing
• Before call centre
• Benchmark at low point in community history

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Whats in the Glace Bay Survey?

• Five key areas

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Demographics Employment

• Age, sex, household, marital status, education,
  income
• Employment, unemployment, out of work
• Job characteristics - types of jobs (p-t, f-t,
  etc), benefits, work from home, occupation
• Work schedule, hours, shifts, job security,
  underemployment, job sharing - work reduction

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2) Health and Community

• Care giving, volunteer work, community service
• Core values, stress, mental health, social
  supports, childrens health
• Weight, smoking, physical activity, screening
  (Pap, mammogram, blood pressure)
• Mikelle Brysons poster reports smoking and
  chronic disease results
• Pain, disability, disease, medications, health
  care use

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3) Peace and Security

• Victimization and costs of crime
• Neighbourhood safety, fear, self-protection
• Opinions about police, courts, prisons
• Marcie Smiths poster deals with these issues
• Identify Glace Bay problems
• Vandalism, drinking, bullying, domestic violence,
  drugs, etc.

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4) Time Use Diary

• Work Household work, paid work, voluntary work,
  care giving, education
• How we spend free time - TV, reading,
  socializing, spiritual practice, sport, exercise
• Travel, personal activities, child care
• Window on quality of life

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5) Environment

• Energy use
• Transportation patterns
• Water quality
• Recycling and waste
• Food consumption - food diary and nutrition

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A few interesting results

• Qualitative data show that water quality,
  appearance of the town, and youth activity are of
  major concern.
• Crime rates are very low and over all age/sex
  groups, 90 of residents are satisfied with their
  safety from crime.
• Where there is a problem, vandalism is the
  recurring crime.
• Tobacco use is highest among unemployed
  community college graduates smoking rates and
  nicotine addiction appear to be high in Glace
  Bay.
• Almost 13 are unpaid caregivers who tend to be
  over 45 (68), female (30), employed (30), with
  personal health concerns.
• Residents value family first, wealth last.
• Just under half of respondents report being in
  excellent or very good health.

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Emphasis on practical action

• Smoking 2 tobacco presentations
• Need to consolidate programs for youth and adults
• High school, community college.
• Youth issues 1 presentation
• More programs for youth are needed, seen as
  linked to youth crime.
• Business Community 1 presentation
• Police better appreciate effect of vandalism.
• Employment 1 preliminary presentation
• What is the real unemployment rate, how do we
  measure it?

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The Glace Bay GPI Research Society
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Goals of the Glace Bay GPI Research Society

• To provide Glace Bay with community level data on
  a wide variety of indicators on progress and well
  being.
• To collect, analyze, and disseminate results of
  the GPI Glace Bay survey.
• To build partnerships between community,
  university, and potential funding partners.
• To be an advocate for information systems that
  would support local level planning and
  development.
• To be an advocate for regular follow up surveys
  to measure progress on identified priorities
  within the indicators.

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Goals 1 2The Glace Bay GPI Web Site

• Being constructed this summer
• Includes
• details of the sample
• presentations to the community
• project history
• data access guidelines for in depth research
• page after page of beautiful tables
• Cost effective, permanent, accessible
• http//discovery.uccb.ns.ca/glacebay_gpi/

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Goal 3 Building Partnerships

• Will continue to meet with academics, health,
  business, social services, police, and others.
• Community presentations format
• Preliminary Meeting and Consultation
• Presentation of survey and some results
• Small group discussion of themes concerns
• Researchers take back instructions
• Data Presentation
• More complete presentation of data
• Group discussion of results and applicability
• Group instructions to researchers
• Welcome new partners

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Goals 4 5 Advocacy

• Glace Bay Society will meet in the fall
• Expand membership
• Find dissemination tools
• Poster, pamphlets, meetings, web, library, CB
  Post, coffee news, etc.
• Investigate information systems
• Example Newfoundland Community Accounts
• Begin to look at key indicators of progress
• Future research on key indicators
• Seek funding partners

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If you are interested

• Check the web site
• http//discovery.uccb.ns.ca/glacebay_gpi
• Join the society
• Founding meeting in fall 2003
• Check out the data access guidelines
• They attempt to balance protecting privacy of
  respondents with needs of researchers
• Help us bring the data to the community
• Tell your colleagues about this project

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Any questions?

• http//discovery.uccb.ns.ca/glacebay_gpi