Chronic Disease Coverage in Canadian Aboriginal Newspapers

Purpose: To determine the volume and focus of articles on four chronic diseases in newspapers targeting First Nations, Me ́tis, and Inuit in Canada. Methods: From a sampling frame of 31 Aboriginal newspapers published in English from 1996–2000, 14 newspapers were randomly selected allowing for national and regional representation. Newspaper archives were searched at the National Library of Canada and articles selected if the disease terms cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or HIV/AIDS appeared in the headline, or in the first or last paragraph of the article. Articles were coded for inclusion of mobilizing information (local, distant, unrestricted, not specified, none) and content focus (scientific, human interest, com- mercial, other). Cancer articles were categorized by tumor site specificity. Data were analyzed by frequency, cross tabulations, and chi-square analysis. Results: Of 400 chronic disease articles, there were significantly more articles on HIV/AIDS (167 or 41.8%) and diabetes (135 or 33.8%) and few articles on cancer (56 or 14%) and cardiovascular disease (30 articles or 7.5%) (p \u3c 0.001). Slightly more than one third (36.5%) of the articles contained mobilizing information to en- able readers to take further health action. Mobilizing information was virtually absent from cardiovascular (7/30 or 23%) and diabetes (29/135 or 21.5%) articles. Site specific cancer coverage differed significantly from chance (p\u3c0.001) with 41% of the articles on breast cancer and no articles on lung or colorectal cancers. Interpretation: Given the burden of tobacco-related cardiovascular disease and cancer in Canadian Aboriginal people, the lack of coverage and limited mobilizing information in ethnic newspapers are a missed opportunity for health promotion

The Effects Of Protein Deficiency On Fever And Plasma Iron Response In Bacterially Infected Rabbits.

PhDPhysical anthropologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/178644/2/7916709.pd

Defining and measuring acculturation: A systematic review of public health studies with Hispanic populations in the United States

In this systematic review we sought to identify how the public health literature focusing on Hispanic populations in the United States defined and measured the concept of acculturation. A review of 134 studies found considerable variation in the definition and measurement of this construct. The ten acculturation scales used provided little theoretical orientation. It was unclear the extent to which acculturative changes in attitudes, beliefs and behaviors were captured by current measurement tools, as these primarily measure linguistic elements. We suggest future research should refine existing tools, determine their validity and us efulness across ethnic and subethnic groups, and identify which aspects of acculturation these scales and indices reliably measure. Recommendations for use of acculturation instruments in public health practice with Hispanic populations are included.Acculturation Public health Hispanic Measurement scales Ethnicity USA Review

Assessing Health Numeracy Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Quantitative information occupies a central role within health care decision making. Despite this, numeracy has attracted little research attention. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to (1) describe the health numeracy skill of a nonclinical, Canadian community-based senior population and (2) determine the relationship between health numeracy skill and prose health literacy, education, and math anxiety in this population. A convenience sample of 140 men and women, 50 + years, completed a questionnaire assessing demographic details, math anxiety, functional health literacy (Shortened Test of Functional Health Literacy for Adults STOFHLA), general context numeracy, and health context numeracy skills. Most participants had adequate functional health literacy (prose and numeracy) as measured by the STOFHLA, poorer general context numeracy skill, higher health context numeracy skill, and moderate math anxiety. Approximately 36% of the variation in general context numeracy scores and 26% of the variation in health context numeracy scores were explained by prose health literacy skill (STOFHLA), math anxiety, and attained education. This research offers an initial assessment of health numeracy skills as measured by three existing numeracy scales among a group of independently functioning older Canadian adults. This work highlights the need for clarification of the numeracy concept and refinement of health numeracy assessment instruments. Moreover, identifying patients\u27 numeracy strengths and weaknesses will enable the development of focused numeracy interventions and may contribute to moving individuals further along the continuum of health literacy proficiency

Canadian Aboriginal people's experiences with HIV/AIDS as portrayed in selected English language Aboriginal media (1996-2000)

This paper describes the portrayal of HIV/AIDS in 14 mass print newspapers directed towards the Canadian Aboriginal population and published between 1996 and 2000. Based on qualitative content analysis the research examines both manifest and latent meanings. Manifest results of this study indicate that women and youth are under represented as persons with HIV/AIDS. The latent results note the frequent references to Aboriginal culture, and the political and economic position of Aboriginal Canadians when discussing the disease, the person with the disease, the fear of the disease and the reaction of the community to the person with the disease. Unlike mainstream media where the medical frame is dominant, HIV/AIDS are here contextualized by culture, identity, spirituality and political-economic issues.Print media HIV/AIDS Canadian Aboriginal populations Stigmatization Canada

Brazilian immigrants’ oral health literacy and participation in oral health care in Canada

Abstract Background Inadequate functional health literacy is a common problem in immigrant populations. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between oral (dental) health literacy (OHL) and participation in oral health care among Brazilian immigrants in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Methods The study used a cross-sectional design and a convenience sample of 101 Brazilian immigrants selected through the snowball sampling technique. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression modeling. Results Most of the sample had adequate OHL (83.1 %). Inadequate/marginal OHL was associated with not visiting a dentist in the preceding year (OR = 3.61; p = 0.04), not having a dentist as the primary source of dental information (OR = 5.55; p < 0.01), and not participating in shared dental treatment decision making (OR = 1.06; p = 0.05; OHL as a continuous variable) in multivariate logistic regressions controlling for covariates. A low average annual family income was associated with two indicators of poor participation in oral health care (i.e., not having visited a dentist in the previous year, and not having a dentist as regular source of dental information). Conclusion Limited OHL was linked to lower participation in the oral health care system and with barriers to using dental services among a sample of Brazilian immigrants. More effective knowledge transfer will be required to help specific groups of immigrants to better navigate the Canadian dental care system