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Advocacy in a Regionalized Health Care System
Overview
• BC and Canadian Context
• Advocacy Focus
• Tell our story with an emphasis on
collaboration, partnerships, engagements
• Successes
• Challenges
Context
• What is the Health Officers’ Council of BC• Our roles are: Assertive Knowledge Translation (AKT) Educator/watchdog Resource broker Partnership developer Advocate/catalyst
• Context of Health Authority employment• Other current alignments
Advocacy Focus Selection
• Externally facilitated process to establish
Council interest in and priorities for advocacy
• 3 priority areas selected for further work:
1) regulation of psychoactive substances
2) chronic conditions
3) child poverty
Process
• Members self selected to the 3 working groups
• Clearly we do not “own” the issues
• Nor are we the experts
• Collaborate and partner with those currently active and leading
• Review evidence for policy or interventions
Childhood Poverty
PopulationHealth
Network
MichaelHayesSFU
PublicHealth
Assn. of BC
BC Healthy Living
Alliance
DennisRaphael
York Health Authorities
and Ministryof Health
First Call BC
Human EarlyLearning Partnership
Adapted from Ron Labonte, 2002
Process continued
• Range of high level policy options and interventions aimed at reducing child poverty were debated at Council
• Collaborators were in attendance as resources and participants
• Vancouver Coastal Health provided logistical and staff support
Poverty is a Health Issue:Four Policy Options Selected
1. Establish Poverty Reduction Targets and Strategies; all of Gov’t approach
2. Increased Surveillance and Reporting
3. Provincial Income Assistance Strategies
4. Accessible Child Care
Process continued
• Policy Options paper circulated to stakeholders and partners including:
1) other health authorities/MHOs/PHO
2) BC Government Conversations
on Health (care)
3) Health Canada’s consultation on healthy children and youth
4) BC Healthy Living Alliance
Partnerships
Formalized Membership in:
• First Call BC Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition
• BC Healthy Child Development Alliance
Continuing membership in:
• BC Healthy Living Alliance
Engagements
• BC Progress Board
• Van City Savings and Credit
• Child and Youth Representative of BC
• Provincial Health Officer annual report
“Equity and Health”
• Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives to collaborate on a living wage campaign
Successes
• Early Development Instrument (EDI) now annualized
• Participated with partners in TV and print media release of the 2007 Child Poverty Report Card
• Supported Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) resolution on reducing child poverty
• Presentation at Health Conferences• Op/ed pieces for print and radio catalogued
Challenges
• Political will
• Employer support
• Preventative dose, maintain focus
• Evaluating value and impact
• Election year opportunities
Nelson Ames Medical Health Officer