258263 Mental health, substance use and access to care among an urban First Nations population in Hamilton, Canada

Monday, October 29, 2012

Michelle Firestone, MhS, PhD Candidate , Centre for Research on Inner City Health, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
Janet K. Smylie, MD MPH , Centre for Research on Inner City Health, University of Toronto/St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
Sylvia Maracle , Executive Director, Ontario Federation of Indian Friendship Centres, Toronto, ON, Canada
Michael Spiller, PhD Candidate , Department of Sociology, Cornell University, Ithica, NY
De dwa da dehs nye>S. Aboriginal Health Centre , Aboriginal Health Centre, De dwa da dehs nye>s, Hamilton, ON, Canada
Background: In Canada, intergenerational cycles of family disruption and associated physical, psychological and sexual abuse; dislocation from traditional lands; and outlawing of spiritual practices among First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples has resulted in many health and social inequalities. There is an urgent need for more community centric research and data systems in the area of Aboriginal urban health. Specifically, mental health and substance use have been identified as top health priorities currently facing Aboriginal peoples in Canada and are a focus of community based recovery programs and services. Using First Nations adult population data from the Our Health Counts study; we aim to address these knowledge gaps.

Methods: Analysis will involve data gathered through Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS) among First Nations adults in Hamilton. RDS uses chain-referral sampling to generate probabilistic population estimates. By analyzing the ties between respondents, one can make inferences about the study population. For the purpose of this research, population proportion estimates and 95% confidence intervals will be generated for social characteristics of interest.

Results: RDS prevalence estimates will be presented for the following: mental health disorders (including depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide ideation/attempts), substance use, access to mental health services, and additional health determinants such as poverty, mobility, overcrowding, dislocation, racism/discrimination, community and family violence.

Conclusions: By working in partnership with urban Aboriginal organizations it is possible to produce policy and service relevant data and address the current deficiency in available public health information on urban Aboriginal people in Canada.

Learning Areas:
Diversity and culture
Epidemiology
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
1. Explain the rationale, principles and methods of RDS used in the Our Health Counts Project 2. Present RDS adjusted prevalence estimates for key mental health, substance use and service access outcomes for urban First Nations adults and children in Hamilton, Ontario 3. Discuss implications for future program planning and policy development in urban Aboriginal mental health, substance use and healing in Canada.

Keywords: Adult and Child Mental Health, Native and Indigenous Populations

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have contributed to multiple research projects as a research co-ordinator and doctoral student at the Centre for Research on Inner City Health at St. Michael’s Hospital. My research is grounded in community partnerships and participatory methods, with a specific focus on mental health and healing among urban Aboriginal people in Canada.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3105.0: American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Caucus Roundtable Session – Discussions of Public Health in Indigenous Communities