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What is Health?

Below are several carefully selected resources related to health, the health care system, and the challenges currently being faced. These resources include information on issues affecting Canada as a whole, with particular focus on Northwestern Ontario.

Thompson, Valerie D. Health and Health Care Delivery in Canada. 4th ed., Toronto, On, Elsevier, 2024.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US). (2021) Access to Healthcare and Disparities in Access.  2021 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report – NCBI Bookshelf.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK578537?

Scollard, Sierra. “When Health Care Harms: Addressing Indigenous-Specific Racism in Canada | Canadian Public Health Association.” Cpha.ca, 17 July 2025, www.cpha.ca/when-health-care-harms-addressing-indigenous-specific-racism-canada.

Morriseau K, Fowler SB. A Concept Analysis of Cultural Appreciation in Addressing the Wholistic Health Needs of Indigenous People. J Holist Nurs. 2024 Jun;42(2):202-210. doi: 10.1177/08980101231189397. Epub 2023 Jul 24. PMID: 37487198.

Health Sciences Association | National Survey Shows Shortage Crisis Affecting Health Care Across Canada. (2025). Retrieved from Hsabc.org website: https://hsabc.org/news/national-survey-shows-shortage-crisis-affecting-health-care-across-canada

The Canadian Institute for Health Information. (2024). Changes in practice patterns of family physicians in Canada.
 https://www.cihi.ca/en/changes-in-practice-patterns-of-family-physicians-in-canada

Newbery S, Malette J. Integration of care in Northern Ontario: Rural health hubs and the patient medical home concept. Can J Rural Med. 2021 Jan-Mar;26(1):7-13. doi: 10.4103/CJRM.CJRM_103_19. PMID: 33380600.

Burnett K, Sanders C, Halperin D, Halperin S. Indigenous Peoples, settler colonialism, and access to health care in rural and northern Ontario. Health Place. 2020 Nov;66:102445. doi: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2020.102445. Epub 2020 Oct 5. PMID: 33032242.

The following resources provide information on the determinants of health and how they influence overall well-being. They review the social, economic, environmental, and cultural factors that help determine health outcomes for individuals and communities. Understanding these determinants is essential for recognizing the overall impact on health.

Biddle, N. (2012). Improving Indigenous health: Are mainstream determinants sufficient? In N. Biddle & B. Hunter (Eds.), Survey Analysis for Indigenous Policy in Australia: Social Sciences Perspectives (Vol. 32, pp. 65–78). ANU Press. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt24h8br.12

Chapman, A. R. (2010). The social determinants of health, health equity, and human rights. Health and Human Rights, 12(2), 17–30. http://www.jstor.org/stable/healhumarigh.12.2.17

Government of Canada. (2024). Social determinants of health and health inequalities – Canada.ca

Government of Canada. (2025).Health determinants

Kant, S., Vertinsky, I., Zheng, B., & Smith, P. M. (2013). Social, cultural, and land use determinants of the health and well-being of Aboriginal peoples of Canada: A path analysis. Journal of Public Health Policy, 34(3), 462–476. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43287981

Rasanathan, K., Montesinos, E. V., Matheson, D., Etienne, C., & Evans, T. (2011). Primary health care and the social determinants of health: essential and complementary approaches for reducing inequities in health. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health (1979-), 65(8), 656–660. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23050931

Valeggia, C. R., & Snodgrass, J. J. (2015). Health of Indigenous Peoples. Annual Review of Anthropology, 44, 117–135. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24811652

Curated sources demonstrating health inequities of Indigenous populations in Canada. The literature below emphasizes colonialism as a foundational determinant shaping social, economic, and health conditions of communities rather than attributing disparities to individual behaviours. Indigenous health inequities in Canada are structurally produced and require systemic, multi-level intervention.

Alliance for Healthier Communities. (2025). Steps taken towards Indigenous health in Indigenous hands: Transfer of services from Guelph CHC to Southwest Aboriginal Health Access Centre shines light on the path to Indigenous self-determination in health care. https://www.allianceon.org/blog/Steps-Taken-Towards-Indigenous-Health-Indigenous-Hands-Transfer-services-Guelph-CHC-Southwest

Borrell C, Espelt A, Rodríguez-Sanz M, Navarro V. Politics and health. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2007 Aug;61(8):658-9. doi: 10.1136/jech.2006.059063. PMID: 17630361; PMCID: PMC2652986.

Canadian Medical Association. (2026). What is Indigenous-led health care in Canada? CMA Healthcare for Real. https://www.cma.ca/healthcare-for-real/what-indigenous-led-health-care-canada

Greenwood, M., Atkinson, D., & Sutherland, J. (2017). Supporting health equity for First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. Healthcare Policy, 12(2), 31–36.

Marcone, M. F., Madan, P., & Grodzinski, B. (2020). An overview of the sociological and environmental factors influencing eating food behavior in Canada. Frontiers in Nutrition, 7, Article 77. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2020.00077

Statistics Canada. (2024, November 4). Health care access and experiences among Indigenous people, 2024. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/241104/dq241104a-eng.htm

Managing diabetes can be challenging, but reliable information and support can help. This post highlights some helpful resources for people living with diabetes, including education, support programs, and tools to support healthier daily management.

Cheran K, Murthy C, Bornemann EA, Kamma HK, Alabbas M, Elashahab M, Abid N, Manaye S, Venugopal S. The Growing Epidemic of Diabetes Among the Indigenous Population of Canada: A Systematic Review. Cureus. 2023 Mar 15;15(3):e36173. doi: 10.7759/cureus.36173. PMID: 37065334; PMCID: PMC10103803.

ICES. (2023). Regional measures of diabetes burden in Ontario: Key findings. ICES | Regional Measures of Diabetes Burden in Ontario

Diabetes Canada. (n.d.). Indigenous communities and diabetes. https://www.diabetes.ca/resources/tools—resources/indigenous-communities-and-diabetes

Ontario Health. (2025). The burden of chronic diseases in Ontario. https://www.ontariohealth.ca/system/reporting/disease-prevention/burden-chronic-disease

Public Health Agency of Canada. (2024). Canadian chronic disease surveillance system. https://health-infobase.canada.ca/ccdss/Index

Public Health Ontario. (2023). Impact of environmental features on diabetes. https://www.publichealthontario.ca/-/media/Documents/D/2023/diabetes-impact-environmental-features.pdf

Sikdar, K. C., Wang, P. P., MacDonald, D., & Gadag, V. G. (2010). Diabetes and its impact on health-related quality of life: a life table analysis. Quality of Life Research, 19(6), 781–787. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40835593