Lauréates

Population and Public Health Student Award Winners

Together, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Institute of Population and Public Health (IPPH), the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) and the Canadian Institute for Health Information's Canadian Population Health Initiative (CPHI) are pleased to announce the winners of the inaugural Population and Public Health Student Awards. Designed to acknowledge excellence in the next generation of population and public health (PPH) researchers, policy makers and practitioners, these awards are available to Masters and PhD students enrolled in Canadian academic institutions.

This year's winners come from across Canada and are working on a range of research projects, indicative of the diversity and breadth of population and public health issues. The inaugural recipients and their winning research projects include:

• Sarah Viehbeck, MA Candidate, Department of Health Studies and Gerontology, University of Waterloo for her study entitled "Tobacco use and public health."
• Jena Webb, MA Candidate, Université de Québec à Montréal for her study entitled "The use of the ecosystem approach to population health: the case of mercury contamination in aquatic environments and riparian populations, Andean Amazon, Napo River Valley, Ecuador."
• Sharon Yanicki, MA Candidate, School of Health Sciences, University of Lethbridge for her study entitled "Social support and family strengths: how do low-income single mothers view support received from a home visitation program?"
• Alice Chen, PhD Candidate, Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia for her study entitled "Utilization of mental health services by Chinese immigrants in British Columbia."

This year's awards were presented at the CPHA Conference in St. John's, Newfoundland held from June 13-16, 2004.

"The award provided significant assistance by covering the cost of travel and expenses related to the CPHA Conference" says Sharon Yanicki. "I certainly enjoyed Newfoundland, the conference and the opportunity to hear some excellent presentations. As a new researcher, it was very encouraging to have this support."

The award aims to build the capacity of young population and public health (PPH) researchers by providing a venue to both profile their work and encourage their participation in current discussions regarding research, policy, and practice. "For me, the student award is an affirmation of the importance of my research interest and recognition of the need to understand more about diversity in health services" notes Alice Chen. "I specialize in international health, but intend on using my expertise in Canada someday, so I was very interested to hear the complications and concerns of public health researchers doing work here"  further remarks Jena Webb.

"I feel very fortunate to have been recognized through the CIHR-IPPH/CPHA/CIHI-CPHI Student Awards program" says Sarah Viehbeck. "Being afforded the opportunity to share my research findings at a national conference and also to be so warmly welcomed by members of the public health community was a truly wonderful experience. I see the Population and Public Health Student Award, as well as my participation in the Canadian Public Health Association conference, as two potential tools to broaden my understanding of population health issues at the national level and also as an avenue to meet members of the community that I hope to one day be a part of. I urge the partners in this award to continue to offer it to Canadian students. It is an important tool in building capacity among the next generation of public health researchers."

Award-Winning Abstracts

Utilization Of Mental Health Services By Chinese Immigrants In British Columbia
Alice Chen, PhD Candidate, Department of Health Care & Epidemiology, University of British Columbia

There are reports that immigrants in Canada are under-served by the mental health service system; however, few comprehensive studies are available. The aim of this thesis project is to research the rates and determinants of mental health service utilization of Chinese immigrants in British Columbia using historic administrative databases. A total of more than 150,000 immigrants from China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, who landed in B.C. between 1985 and 2000, were identified from an immigration database which was linked to the province's administrative health records, as part of a national study on immigrant health. Controls were randomly selected from the general B.C. population and individually matched to immigrants by sex, age and region. Preliminary results confirm that, while Chinese immigrants use less formal health care overall than controls, the difference in utilization is particularly profound for mental health problems. Moreover, this gap remains over the study period. The under-utilization of mental health services may indicate better health status or ongoing barriers to access. Determinants of utilization, such as education and English ability, will shed light on the factors affecting utilization. The implications for public health policy and service delivery will be discussed.

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Municipal Smoke-Free Bylaws And Smoking Cessation
Sarah M. Viehbeck, M.Sc. Candidate, Department of Health Studies and Gerontology, University of Waterloo

Tobacco control is a leading public health priority. Community environments have become a critical setting for interventions. However, to date virtually all attention from advocates and researchers has focused on the impact no-smoking restrictions on protecting non-smokers from environmental tobacco smoke and on preventing never smokers from starting to smoke. A small, methodologically limited literature focused on workplaces suggests that no-smoking bylaws may produce a great health benefit by motivating current smokers to quit and increasing the odds that their quit attempts are successful.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of municipal smoke-free bylaws on smoking cessation. Specifically, data from Statistics Canada's Canadian Community Health Survey has been analyzed to determine the odds that a smoker has quit in communities that have a strong municipal bylaw compared to those communities that have no bylaw. The analysis took into consideration the potential interaction between individual and community level characteristics. Results provide insight into the impact of policy on population health outcomes and should assist provincial public health advocates in their efforts to promote smoke free spaces.

The Use Of The Ecosystem Approach To Population Health: The Case Of Mercury Contamination In Aquatic Environments And Riparian Populations, Andean Amazon, Napo River Valley, Ecuador
Jena Webb, MA Candidate, Université de Québec à Montréal

A recently identified consequence of deforestation in the Amazon is the lixiviation of naturally occurring mercury contained in soils into rivers thereby introducing this neurotoxin into the aquatic ecosystem. Our research, conducted in the Napo Valley, Ecuadorian Amazon, indicates that fish high on the trophic chain and riparian communities which rely on fish as a major protein source have elevated mercury (Hg) levels (Mainville et al. IDRC International forum on ecosystem approaches to human health, abstracts p12, 2003). Interviews on personal information and diet were conducted with 99 individuals in three communities (two rural and one urban) along the Napo River. Hair samples were collected from these same 99 individuals. Samples of commonly eaten fish were also taken. The hair and fish samples were analyzed using cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometry. The two rural communities consumed more fish and were found to have higher hair mercury levels (8.71 µg/g and 5.32 µg/g) when compared to the urban community (1.87 µg/g). Monthly mercury intake was established through a sequential analysis of mercury in each centimeter of hair (one centimeter representing approximately one month of hair growth); however, seasonal tendencies were weak. Mercury levels in piscivorous fish (0.36 µg/g) were significantly higher than in herbivorous fish (0.05 µg/g). An examination of the prevailing socio-cultural context, using an ecosystem approach, indicates that these factors are important in determining mercury exposure. The two village communities consume different species of fish with different frequencies leading to differential exposure and mercury concentrations in hair samples, while the urban community displays a heterogeneous fish consumption pattern reflecting the diversity in cultures established in the city after several waves of immigration. The levels of mercury in the two village populations were similar to those found in Brazil where neurobehavioral tests showed a correlation between these relatively low levels of mercury and decreased psychomotor capacities. Future research (the MECAA project) will evaluate more precisely the risk that fish consumption poses to population health by conducting neurobehavioral tests in the 3 communities already studied and carrying out similar work in communities of the Bolivian Amazon (Beni watershed).

Adopting the Ecosystem Approach to Human Health, this research requires a look into the complex relationships between the geochemical factors defining the physical environment, the socio-politico-economic pressures shaping deforestation practices, population health and public health policy, as well as the cultural determinants which influence diet, nutrition and well-being.

This study is distinctive in that it is complemented by another study in the same region which looks at the impacts of deforestation on Hg levels in soils. In this way, mercury contamination of aquatic ecosystems and the impacts on population health can be linked directly to the source, deforestation, providing concrete evidence of the public health risks associated with felling forests.

One of the main goals of the MECAA project is to improve the health of local populations. Through workshops, presentations, and constant contact and collaboration with communities and public health care providers the communities' health and research needs will be known to us and our findings will be transferred to health stakeholders (including the local public health care staff and participating populations). Capacity building in collaborating countries is another goal of the MECAA project. In 2003 an Ecuadorian researcher was trained on the field and was given the opportunity to carry out an internship in Montreal to learn the lab techniques involved in the analysis of mercury. He has returned to Ecuador and is now using his expertise in environmental quality studies. In the coming phase of this research we hope to include several promising students from Ecuador and Bolivia in the field and laboratory research. Through this project a research network between scientists in Ecuador, Bolivia and Canada will be created, forming a community of practice which will hopefully remain active in the long-term. This project has already, and plans to continue, to bridge the gap between population health research and public health policy. In a meeting with the Ecuadorian Minister of Environment, the population health impacts of deforestation were highlighted and we recommended that forest conservation be seen as a public health priority in the Amazon. The hope is that this research can be used to influence evidence-based policy in directions favorable to the well-being of local people.

Social support and family strengths: how do low-income single mothers view support received from a home visitation program?
Sharon Yanicki, MA Candidate, School of Health Sciences, University of Lethbridge

Research has most commonly viewed lone-mother families through a focus on psychosocial risk factors and health deficits. The negative impact of social isolation and poverty on the health of this population has been well documented. Home visitation programs have been developed as a health promoting strategy to enhance social support for lone-mothers, however the literature is conflicting regarding the outcomes of this approach. This study sought to increase understanding of the perspective of lone-mother families, and to describe the context of home visitation in relation to their broader social support networks. Utilizing a combination of semi-structured interviews and clinical tools, mothers in this study described perceived relationships between support and family strengths within their households. Completed within southwest Alberta in 2003, this study provides insights for practice (home visitation and formal social support strategies) and raises issues for program evaluation. The family strengths focus of this study identifies opportunities for supporting positive outcomes within this population. The utility of combining clinical tools with qualitative interview techniques explored within this study will also be presented.