By Penny and Melissa

This Sunday people across the country will be celebrating their mothers (birth, adoptive, step…) grandmothers and for those of us lucky enough, women to whom we have looked to influence our own mothering.

As with many things in life, we don’t necessarily understand and appreciate many things until it is our turn to experience them ourselves.  Parenting and mothering in particular, is one of those things.

Memories of our mothers traditionally are viewed through our own lens; we think of all the times they helped us with our homework, sewed our new Halloween costume, breastfed us while caring for an older sibling, got three meals to the table 7 days a week and always made a homemade birthday cake. The list could go on and on.

But as a parent ourselves, we then also see it through a haze of exhaustion and worry and a real statistical possibility of post-partum mood changes. For many women, the stigma of experiencing a mental health issue means that the depression goes unrecognized, unreported and untreated. It also means that the very source of important social supports for women-her family and friends, are absent.

A woman with postpartum depression may regard her child with ambivalence, negativity or disinterest. An adverse effect on the bonding between mother and child may result.  Estimates of its occurrence range from 4% – 13%, and there is general agreement that this number is under-reported.  Although data from 2005 has shown that women with one or more risk factors have a statistically increased chance of developing postpartum depression, in general, its incidence cuts across racial, cultural and economic and age boundaries. Today, in Canada we are lucky that the growing awareness and understanding about mental health is growing.  Don’t be afraid to reach out if you think someone is struggling. And don’t be afraid to ask them twice, and let them know that there is help available.

In honour of the wonderful, strong, and caring women in our lives and those far away, we ask you to join us and take a few moments to reflect on the unseen difficulties of motherhood.

The Health Nexus team wants to wish all mothers a very happy mother’s day!

And if you are looking for bilingual resources on topics related to maternal health and maternal mental health we suggest you visit:

http://beststart.org/resources/ppmd/index.html

http://www.helpformom.ca/

http://www.ontario.cmha.ca/fact_sheets.asp?cID=4007

http://www.camh.net/Publications/CAMH_Publications/Postpartum_Depression/

http://postpartumstress.com/

• Do great local minds think alike? Comparing perceptions of the social determinants of health between non-profit and governmental actors in two Canadian cities
  Do great local minds think alike? Comparing perceptions of the social determinants of health between non-profit and governmental actors in two Canadian cities:
  

  Overall, there was high comparability between the groups in their relative ratings of the SDOH. Both groups assigned high levels of ‘influence’ and ‘priority’ to ‘healthy lifestyles’ and ‘clean air and water’ and lower levels to ‘strong community’ and ‘income’. Given the importance of a shared vision in collaborative enterprises, the comparability of perceptions between the groups found here holds promise for the prospect of inter-institutional partnerships. However, the low rating assigned to more structural health determinants suggests that more work is needed from researchers and advocates to effectively advance a health equity agenda at the local level in Canada.

• Atlantic Canadians Agree: Inequality is a Public Issue
  Atlantic Canadians Agree: Inequality is a Public Issue:
  

  This poll goes far to overturn some common myths about public opinion. Contrary to what business groups, elected representatives and the mainstream media often espouse, Canadians are well aware that the country’s wealthiest inhabitants have made enormous gains at the expense of the vast majority of working people. In fact, rather than fearing taxes, we overwhelmingly favour increases in government revenue to maintain and increase our social programs.

• Video: The link between your health and your wealth – The Globe and Mail
  Video: The link between your health and your wealth – The Globe and Mail:
  

  Recent reports demonstrate that there’s a definitive link between health and wealth. A new study suggests wealth plays a significant role in health outcomes including premature death

• New map reveals diabetes hot spots in the GTA – Healthzone.ca
  New map reveals diabetes hot spots in the GTA – Healthzone.ca:
  

  Booth said the pattern revealed by the report fits with where these at-risk communities live in the province. “There is more ethnic diversity in the GTA, so we do see higher rates of diabetes as well,” she said. “Amongst recent immigrants, South Asians have among the highest rates of diabetes. We do see communities around the GTA, such as Brampton and Mississauga, having high rates of diabetes where we know a lot of South Asian immigrants are settling.”

• The hidden costs of disability | Inequalities
  The hidden costs of disability | Inequalities:
  

  How much does a disability cost you? Let’s take the example that (slightly too easily) comes to mind for most people: a disability that means you need a wheelchair to get around – how much of a dent in your wallet is this, compared to an identical life without any mobility limitations?

• Wellesley Institute | Small steps are good, but services, jobs and equality are best for all
  Wellesley Institute | Small steps are good, but services, jobs and equality are best for all:
  

  This afternoon an agreement was reached on the Ontario budget. Three major changes have been made: the introduction of a temporary increase in taxes for Ontarians earning more than $500,000 per year, an increase in rates for people who are surviving on social assistance, and increased funding for child care.

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• Food Deserts and Obesity Role Challenged – NYTimes.com
  Food Deserts and Obesity Role Challenged – NYTimes.com:
  

  Within a couple of miles of almost any urban neighborhood, “you can get basically any type of food,” said Roland Sturm of the RAND Corporation, lead author of one of the studies. “Maybe we should call it a food swamp rather than a desert,” he said.

• Can incarceration be thought of as disease? | BMJ
  Can incarceration be thought of as disease? | BMJ
• Community support needs higher priority in disaster relief | BMJ
  Community support needs higher priority in disaster relief | BMJ:
  

  Humanitarian responses to wars and natural disasters should include more social support for communities alongside medical aid, the inaugural World Extreme Medicine Conference has heard.

• Meilinomics I: The Little Boats
  Meilinomics I: The Little Boats:
  

  Having understood that we have health as our goal, the question is, how do we work with the economy to reach that goal? The economy is a tool to make our lives better. If it fails to do so, we’re not using it right. How can we use it more wisely? The evaluation of any economic strategy (be it intervention or observation) must include not only the question, “Will it work?” but also, “For what (and whom) will it work?” In what way will it affect the economy, and will that effect be in line with our real goal, a healthy society?

• Canada News: Federal Court ruling could open door to equal funding for native kids – thestar.com
  Canada News: Federal Court ruling could open door to equal funding for native kids – thestar.com:
  

  A landmark federal court ruling opens the door to provide First Nations children living on reserve the same amount of funding other kids receive in the rest of Canada, aboriginal leaders say.

• Timothy Noah, Charles Murray, and America’s Inequality : The New Yorker
  Timothy Noah, Charles Murray, and America’s Inequality : The New Yorker:
  

  Traditionally, class figured less in politics in America than in most other Western countries, supposedly because the United States, though more economically unequal, and rougher in tone, was more socially equal, more diverse, more democratic, and better at giving ordinary people the opportunity to rise. That’s what Alexis de Tocqueville found in the eighteen-thirties, and the argument has had staying power. It has also been wearing thin.

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COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE
POUR DIFFUSION IMMÉDIATE

FORUM BILINGUE:
LES RESSOURCES HUMAINES AU CŒUR DES SERVICES DE SANTÉ

Toronto, 13 avril 2012 – Le forum bilingue “Journée Dialogue : les ressources humaines au cœur des services de santé”, organisé par le RIFSSSO (Regroupement des Intervenants Francophones en Santé et Services Sociaux de l’Ontario), Nexus Santé et le Réseau Franco-Santé du Sud, a eu un franc succès mercredi 11 avril 2012. Plus de 70 participants et 10 conférenciers professionnels étaient présents au Novotel à Toronto.

Ce forum visait à rassembler, pendant une journée complète, les acteurs clés et gestionnaires œuvrant dans les domaines de la santé, pour discuter des enjeux et défis liés à l’offre de services des soins de santé bilingues et explorer des pistes d’action. Des ateliers furent présentés en anglais et en français.
Brian Conway, Médecin consultant en maladies infectieuses et Président de la Société en français affirmait que “l’accès aux services de santé dans sa langue a des retombées positives qui vont bien au-delà du respect pour la culture de l’usager. Il s’agit d’un élément essentiel à l’amélioration de l’état individuel de santé et à l’appropriation de la santé par une population.” De plus, “L’accessibilité prend encore plus d’importance lorsqu’on veut aider une population qui a davantage de problèmes de santé, tels les francophones en situation minoritaire au Canada dont 50 – 55 % n’ont souvent que peu ou pas accès à des services de santé dans leur langue maternelle.”

Lors de cet événement, le RIFSSSO a également lancé en exclusivité sa trousse Ressources Humaines, destinée aux organismes anglophones. Ce nouvel outil vise à sensibiliser les gestionnaires sur l’importance de développer des services permettant de mieux desservir  la population francophone de leur région.

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Pour plus d’informations veuillez contacter:
Béatrix Lafosse Cornally, Agente de projets
RIFSSSO
2, rue Gloucester – Bureau 205 – Toronto
Tél: 416.968.6759
Courriel: beatrix.lafosse@rifssso.ca

• How Not to Think About Social Determinants of Health: A cautionary tale from Canada | Healthy Policies
  How Not to Think About Social Determinants of Health: A cautionary tale from Canada | Healthy Policies:
  

  In the full text of the report, the authors are commendably candid about limitations related to possible under-reporting of health risks in the survey on which the report was based – limitations, in many cases, related to the simplistic nature of the survey questions. For instance, the survey asked only about leisure time physical activity, not about activity related to work or quotidian errand-running. The conclusion that Ontarians’ combined exposure reduced overall life expectancy in the province by 7.5 years is no doubt statistically robust, given the data on which it was based. Unfortunately, it’s also a ‘so what’ kind of conclusion. The authors of the report are remarkably unreflective about their focus on proximate risk factors, ignoring the contextual influences that shape individuals’ opportunities to lead healthy lives.

• What is the ‘best’ health promotion action to take?
  What is the ‘best’ health promotion action to take?
• Becoming a health promoting school: key components of planning
  Becoming a health promoting school: key components of planning:
  

  The school community sees the value of adopting the HPS framework, however on-going structured support is required if the school is to successfully adopt the HPS approach. The school community needs to understand that the move toward cultural and environmental change is slow. Successful adoption of the HPS model requires time and collaboration. The emphasis needs to be on supporting teachers to change their school from within. Relationships are important.

• Canadians OK with higher taxes to fight inequality – Toronto – CBC News
  Canadians OK with higher taxes to fight inequality – Toronto – CBC News:
  

  Canadians are willing to pay more taxes to help close the growing income gap and want corporations to pay higher tax rates too, according to a new poll released Tuesday. The survey of 2000 Canadians, commissioned by the left-leaning Broadbent Institute, found that 23 per cent are “very willing” and 41 per cent are “somewhat willing” to pay slightly more tax in order to protect social programs such as health care, post-secondary education and pensions.

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• Wellesley Institute | New national movement to end homelessness launched today
  Wellesley Institute | New national movement to end homelessness launched today:
  

  The alliance aims to work with partners across the country, and at the national level, to create a national movement to prevent and end homelessness across Canada. At the heart of the work is “A Plan not a Dream” – which sets out a strategy to move from aspiring to end homelessness to actually preventing and ending homelessness

• Wellesley Institute | One size user fees don’t fit all
  Wellesley Institute | One size user fees don’t fit all:
  

  The health promoting benefits of staying fit and active are well-established, but one-size-fits-all user fees can mean that people with low incomes are unable to access community recreation facilities, which can lead to poor health. This is particularly concerning for children as a lack of opportunities to be active can lead to a lifetime of health problems.

• Economic Inequality, Women, and Minority Women | Social Planning Toronto
  Economic Inequality, Women, and Minority Women | Social Planning Toronto:
  

  Arguably, our country is managed by a purely economic agenda that does not value the human capital of immigrants and visible minority women. This misguided economic agenda contributes not only to the feminization of poverty but also to its racialization because poverty and inequality have increased in the past decade and racialized women continue to be poorer.

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• Toronto News: ‘Walkable’ city linked to health benefits – thestar.com
  Toronto News: ‘Walkable’ city linked to health benefits – thestar.com:
  

  McKeown said the research shows that the shape of the neighbourhood can encourage people to be more active, whether or not they’re living in a walkable area, because they naturally tend to physical activity. “If people have a preference for walkable neighbourhoods, they walk more. But even people who don’t have a preference for walkable neighbourhoods walk more if they live in a walkable neighbourhood,” he said.

• Forging Stronger Social Connections for a Longer Life – NYTimes.com
  Forging Stronger Social Connections for a Longer Life – NYTimes.com:
  

  those with close social ties and unhealthful lifestyles actually lived longer than those with poor social ties but more health-promoting habits. Of course, those who lived healthfully and had strong social ties lived the longest.

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Like many, I waited with trepidation over the past several weeks to see how McGuinty’s government would respond to the current economic challenges and the recommendations put from recently by Don Drummond. I expected Tuesday’s budget to be tough and it was. While the commitment to protect, or at least minimize the impact on, health and education, was evident, the budget neglected to strengthen health promotion. The Healthiest Province campaign, sponsored by Ontario Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance requested a modest 0.15% increase that would ultimately result in significant savings. In addition, the lack of support given to change the conditions for most in need was disheartening at best. The critical Poverty Reduction Strategy seems all but forgotten. While there are elements in the budget to applaud, overall I had hoped for more.

We now wait for the federal budget to be announced shortly and then to see the overall impact of both over time. Regardless, Health Nexus will continue to support health promotion and work with our partners to build healthy, equitable and thriving communities.

For more information on the mixed reaction to the provincial budget, we’ve listed just a few of the many commentaries available online

Barb Willet
Executive Director

Wellesley Institute – Ontario Budget 2012 article series

People for Education – Education funding cut in 2012 budget

Carol Goar – Ontario budget is a requiem for a caring province – thestar.com

CCPA – Completing the job started by Mike Harris

Hamilton Spectator: Budget ‘austerity’ is hungry children in Hamilton (original link, which might or might not work)

CBC: Ontario Budget Highlights

Canada News: Ontario Budget 2012: Health sector to see parts of system cut away – thestar.com

Canada News: Toronto doctor worries budget cuts will affect poor patients the most – thestar.com

The goals and the challenges of Ontario’s budget – The Globe and Mail

Windsor Star: Provincial budget earns mixed reviews in Windsor

Chronicle-Journal: What will budget mean for you?