The Canadian public health sector's foundational values of social justice and equity, and its mandate to promote population health, make it ideally situated to take a strong lead in addressing persistent and unacceptable inequities in health between socially disadvantaged, marginalized or excluded groups and the general population. There is currently much attention paid to improving understanding of pathways to health equity and development of effective population health interventions to reduce health inequities. Strengthening the capacity of the public health sector to develop, implement and sustain equity-focused population health initiatives-including readiness to engage in a social justice-based equity framework for public health-is an equally essential area that has received less attention. Unfortunately, there is evidence that current capacity of the Canadian public health sector to address inequities is highly variable. The first step in developing a sustained approach to improving capacity for health equity action is the identification of what this type of capacity entails. This paper outlines a Conceptual Framework of Organizational Capacity for Public Health Equity Action (OC-PHEA), grounded in the experience of Canadian public health equity champions, that can guide research, dialogue, reflection and action on public health capacity development to achieve health equity goals.

SaisiretAGIR Une chronique présentant des ressources éclairées par les données probantes pour le transfert et l'échange de connaissances.

Over the past decade, the rhetoric of "empowerment" has permeated the health promotion, education, and social welfare literature. Many scholars and professionals, particularly those active in the field of social intervention and community development, have found themselves struggling for location in the emancipatory process. This struggle often is characterized by a profound self-consciousness of privilege and the fear of being perceived as imposing and manipulative. This article explores the tensions inherent in the role of the scholar/activist using illustrations from the author's experience as principal investigator of the Atlantic Regional Evaluation of the Community Action Program for Children. In so doing, it discusses the importance of a relational approach to empowerment, one characterized by mutuality. A commitment to mutuality is seen as a key factor in enhancing the emancipatory capacities of empowerment-based research projects.

Canada increasingly favours immigration policies based on human capital theory and economic outcomes. Consequently, while immigration is on the increase there is a downward trend in the number of “family class” entrants admitted to the country. The group most seriously affected is sponsored parents and/or grandparents who are also the most vulnerable to criticisms against family class immigration. The discussion is centered on the perceived lack of potential economic contributions of these immigrants. Such a focus, however, overlooks the feminized nature of this type of immigration and the many non-economic contributions these immigrants make. Using multinomial regression modeling of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada data, we examine economic and non-economic contributions of sponsored parent and/or grandparent immigrants and compare them to immigrants of similar age migrating under other categories of immigration. We find that sponsored parents and/or grandparents make significant economic contributions to Canadian society as well as other non-economic ones that are often overlooked. We also find that their contributions increase over time and are heavily gendered, with female sponsored parents and/or grandparents making more non-economic contributions than their male counterparts or other immigrants of similar age migrating under other categories of immigration. Le Canada favorise de plus en plus les politiques d’immigration qui sont fondées sur la théorie du capital humain et sur ses retombées économiques. Par conséquent, alors que cette immigration est à la hausse, il y a néanmoins une tendance à la baisse du nombre d’entrées obtenues à partir du «regroupement familial». Le groupe le plus sérieusement touché est celui des parents et / ou grands-parents parrainés, qui sont aussi les plus vulnérables face aux critiques contre cette catégorie. La discussion est centrée sur le manque perçu de contributions économiques potentielles qu’ils peuvent apporter. Une telle approche, cependant, néglige la nature féminisée de ce type d’immigration et leurs nombreuses prestations non monétaires. En utilisant un modèle de régression multinominale de l’Enquête longitudinale auprès des immigrants au Canada, nous examinons ces apports et nous les comparons à ceux d’autres immigrés d’un âge similaire et provenant d’autres catégories. Nous constatons que les parents et / ou grands-parents parrainés font d’importantes contributions économiques à la société canadienne, ainsi que des non-économiques qui sont souvent négligées. Nous constatons également qu’au fil du temps leurs prestations augmentent et sont fortement sexuées, les femmes en faisant plus au niveau non monétaire que leurs homologues masculins et que les immigrés d’un âge similaire venus par l’entremise d’autres catégories d’immigration.

This article provides an overview of the ways in which the mistreatment and neglect of older people have come to be understood as a social problem, one which is underpinned by a variety of substantive and theoretical assumptions. It connects the process of conceptualizing elder abuse and neglect to political-economic and social evolution. The authors draw on a review of the literature, government sources, interest group websites, and their own research to provide a critical commentary illustrating how these understandings have become manifest in legislation, policies, and programs pertaining to "elder abuse and neglect" in Canada. Suggestions are provided for changes in direction for policies, programs, and research.