In times of health reform, fiscal restraint and population aging, it becomes increasingly imperative to understand what must be done to better link research and policy in the health area. In this paper, the major determinants of healthy aging are discussed in terms of current conceptual frameworks of health, measurement, methodologies, and data sources. In order to maximize the benefit for the health of current and future Canadian seniors, policy recommendations are made to Statistics Canada, Health Canada, and the Seniors Independence Research Program (SIRP) which cover a range of issues related to measurement and data sources, health services, health status, economic status, and education.

Recent large-scale disasters have exposed the interconnected nature of modern societies, exacerbating the risk of cascading impacts. Examining elements of community health status, such as social determinants of health, their perceived health status, and how they relate to disaster resilience, can illuminate alternative actions for cost-effective disaster prevention and management. Moreover, agricultural communities are essential to food security and provide a working example of the importance of mitigation in escalation of crises. To that aim, this research examines perceptions of the relationship between disaster resilience and determinants of health, including health status. Participants also reported their views on perceived vulnerable groups in their community and proposed design characteristics of more effective community disaster plans.

Here investigated are these elements in a small agricultural community of Western Australia previously exposed to bushfires. A questionnaire was used based on health elements from the Social Determinants of Health described by the World Health Organization (WHO) and compared this with quantitative data describing the community health status. A mixed methods approach combining qualitative (semi-structured interview) and quantitative (closed questions using a Likert scale) tools was undertaken with a small group of community members.

It was found that community connection and social capital were perceived to provide knowledge and support that enhanced individual disaster risk awareness and preparedness and improved an individual’s disaster resilience. Stress and social exclusion within a community were perceived to decrease an individual’s resilience to disaster. Disaster resilience was reported to be a function of good physical and mental health. To achieve effective disaster planning, community partnership in the development, education, and testing of plans and robust communication were described as essential traits in community emergency plans.

The Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) framework aims to understand how environmental exposures in early life shape lifecycle health. Our understanding and the ability to prevent poor health outcomes and enrich for resiliency remain limited, in part, because exposure–outcome relationships are complex and poorly defined. We, therefore, aimed to determine the major DOHaD risk and resilience factors. A systematic approach with a 3-level screening process was used to conduct our Rapid Evidence Review following the established guidelines. Scientific databases using DOHaD-related keywords were searched to capture articles between January 1, 2009 and April 19, 2019. A final total of 56 systematic reviews/meta-analyses were obtained. Studies were categorized into domains based on primary exposures and outcomes investigated. Primary summary statistics and extracted data from the studies are presented in Graphical Overview for Evidence Reviews diagrams. There was substantial heterogeneity within and between studies. While global trends showed an increase in DOHaD publications over the last decade, the majority of data reported were from high-income countries. Articles were categorized under six exposure domains: Early Life Nutrition, Maternal/Paternal Health, Maternal/Paternal Psychological Exposure, Toxicants/Environment, Social Determinants, and Others. Studies examining social determinants of health and paternal influences were underrepresented. Only 23% of the articles explored resiliency factors. We synthesized major evidence on relationships between early life exposures and developmental and health outcomes, identifying risk and resiliency factors that influence later life health. Our findings provide insight into important trends and gaps in knowledge within many exposures and outcome domains.

Objectives: To conduct a systematic review of selected health determinants, including gender, and their impact on hospitalization rates for depression. Depression includes both depressive and bipolar disorders. Selected health determinants were gender, age, sex, family structure, education, and socioeconomic status.

Methods: Systematic search of conventional and fugitive literature sources. All reports of primary data, systematic reviews, and meta-analysis of primary data were included if they focused on hospitalization for depression and reported data by one or more of the selected health determinants. Two researchers independently evaluated each citation for inclusion and extracted data from the included studies.

Results: There is an important underreporting of health determinants data in studies of hospitalization for depression. No studies examined the role of gender. Age and sex were reported in 83 percent and 80 percent of the 110 included studies. Women showed a higher rate of hospitalization for depression than men (p<.05). Age and diagnosis had different effects in men and women. Adult women were significantly more likely than men to report a depressive disorder, whereas men were more likely to report a bipolar disorder (p<.05). Little can be concluded on the other health determinants.

Conclusions: The importance of reporting hospitalization data and conducting hospital utilization analysis by sex and health determinants, including gender, must be emphasized.