Housing as a socio-economic determinant of health: findings of a national needs, gaps and opportunities assessment.

Full Abstract

BACKGROUND:
In 2002-2003, a Needs, Gaps and Opportunities Assessment (NGOA) was conducted to investigate relationships between socio-economic dimensions of housing and health. Recent reviews of the literature point to a dearth of research on the socio-economic dimensions of housing and health, despite its potential for promoting health.

METHODS:
The NGOA sought to identify research needs and gaps, and future opportunities for research in housing, socio-economic status and health. The methods used included a literature scan, a scan of research capacity, eight regional stakeholder workshops across Canada, and an open-ended e-mail survey of stakeholders. In this paper, we report the findings of the stakeholder consultations.

FINDINGS:
The main finding of the NGOA was that there is a significant dearth of research on housing as a socio-economic determinant of health but enormous potential for conducting high-impact, longitudinal and quasi-experimental research in the area. Of particular interest to stakeholder participants in the NGOA were the economic aspects of housing and health; the impact of housing on health for vulnerable subgroups (e.g., Aboriginal peoples, immigrants, children, seniors); the role of socio-economically and ethnically mixed communities; and the interaction between socio-economic aspects of housing and biophysical hazards in the home.

CONCLUSION:
The NGOA demonstrated that there is a substantial audience eager for knowledge on housing as a socio-economic determinant of health and that such knowledge could make an immediate impact on policy decision-making and program operation. Although knowledge gaps are substantial, the NGOA clearly identifies opportunities for high-impact, longitudinal and quasi-experimental research. Recently signed federal-provincial funding agreements for housing make the findings of the NGOA timely. Moreover, the NGOA results demonstrate how research on housing as a socio-economic determinant of health could be a strategy for improving our understanding of the effects of social environments on health and for reducing health disparities.

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Author information

Author/s: Dunn, James R (JR); Hayes, Michael V (MV); Hulchanski, J David (JD); Hwang, Stephen W (SW); Potvin, Louise (L);

Affiliation: Centre for Research on Inner City Health, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON. jim.dunn(-atsign-)utoronto.ca

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Canadian journal of public health. Revue canadienne de santé publique (Can J Public Health), published in Canada. (Language: eng)

Reference: -2006 Sep-Oct; vol 97 Suppl 3 (issue ) : pp S11-5, S12-7

Dates: Created 2007/03/15; Completed 2007/04/09; Revised 2008/02/13;

PMID: 17357542, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Aged
Canada
Child
Emigration and Immigration
Health Services Needs and Demand
Health Status Indicators
Housing - economics; statistics & numerical data

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