Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer, has stated that First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities face a higher risk of “severe outcomes” from the novel coronavirus and COVID-19. These include health inequities, higher rates of underlying medical conditions, and challenges of living in remote and fly-in communities.

The First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) has published a special paper that is intended to support coronavirus emergency preparedness efforts in First Nations reserve and Northern communities.

The paper, RHS Statistics for Shaping a Response to COVID-19 in First Nations Communities, includes analysis based on results from the First Nations Regional Health Survey Phase 3 (RHS) Phase 3, a large-scale national survey of First Nations communities conducted in 2015–2016 by FNIGC and its Regional partners.

Available now on FNIGC.ca, the 22-page paper contains reliable national-level data that can be used by First Nations to better prepare for potential outbreaks of COVID-19.

The data in the paper was drawn from the RHS Phase 3 Volumes One and Two, which were published by FNIGC in 2018. These reports can be downloaded for free at FNIGC’s Online Library.

The analysis in the paper is organized according to six socio-economic themes:

• Chronic Health Conditions,
• Barriers to Accessing Health Care,
• Senior Populations,
• Smoking & Obesity,
• Housing, and
• Poverty.

Some of the key findings include:

• Nearly 3-in-5 of First Nations adults, 1-in-3 First Nations youth, and more than 1-in-4 First Nations children reported having one (or more) chronic health condition, such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. Pre-existing chronic health conditions are a risk factor when it comes to COVID-19.
• 1-in-10 First Nations adults reported requiring health care in the previous 12 months but not receiving all the care they needed. 21 percent of First Nations adults reported not having a primary health-care provider, compared to 16 percent among the general population. Poor access to health care, health-care professionals, and resources poses a significant threat when it comes to the spread of coronavirus.
• 1-in-4 First Nations adults are living in overcrowded households (more than one person per room). That number is significantly higher in rural First Nations communities (28 percent) or remote/special access communities 1-in-3 (32 percent). Overcrowding increases the risk of the spread of contagious diseases, like COVID-19.

For more information on FNIGC’s RHS COVID-19 paper, please download it on our Online Library.

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This final volume, which marks the conclusion of a landmark five-year survey process conducted by FNIGC and its Regional Partners across the country, explores national RHS Phase 3 data related to health-care access, language, culture, nutrition, food security, physical activity, and personal and community wellness. Among the RHS Phase 3 Volume Two’s key findings are:

• Most First Nations youth and adults have a strong sense of belonging and safety in their community. The majority of First Nations adults (80.6%) rated their sense of community belonging as somewhat or very strong, while 81.5% adults reported feeling reasonably or very safe in their community. More than three-quarters (76.6%) of First Nations youth reported a somewhat or very strong sense of belonging to their community, and 83.2% of youth felt very or reasonably safe in their community.
• First Nations children have a strong connection to culture. More than one quarter (26.2%) of First Nations children report that they always or almost always participate in their community’s cultural events, and nearly half (45.2%) reported that they sometimes participated.
• First Nations youth are experiencing significantly higher rates of bullying. More than 1 in 4 (27.9%) of First Nations youth had experienced bullying in the RHS Phase 3, compared to 1 in 10 (11.7%) in the RHS Phase 2 (2008-2010).

• Access to primary health care remains an issue in First Nations communities. More than 1 in 5 (21.3%) First Nations adults reported not having a primary health-care provider, compared to 15.8% among the general population.
• First Nations women (youth and adults) have significantly higher rates of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts compared to First Nations men (youth and adults). Female adults reported higher percentages of lifetime suicidal thoughts (18.7%) compared with male adults (13.7%); and nearly twice as many female adults (14.3%) as male adults (8.2%) reported a suicide attempts in their lifetime. Female youth (aged 12-17) reported significantly higher percentages of lifetime suicidal thoughts (23.1%) compared with male youth (9.3%); and three times as many female youth reported suicide attempts in their lifetime (15.6%), compared with male youth (5.2%).
• Food insecurity continues to be an alarming and urgent health issue in First Nations communities. While half (49.2%) of First Nations households were categorized as food secure, more than one-third (37.7%) of households were moderately food insecure, and more than 1 in 10 (13.1%) were severely food insecure. (This represents only a slight decrease from the RHS Phase 2, which showed that 45.7% of households were food secure, 38.3% were moderately food insecure, and 14.1% were severely food insecure).

“The results from the second volume of this essential First Nations-led report reveal some of the strengths, challenges, and resiliencies of our First Nations communities across the country, while also challenging a lot of common assumptions and misconceptions,” says Dr. Jonathan Dewar, Executive Director of FNIGC.

“It’s my hope that the information contained in the RHS Phase 3 report will serve to inform decision-making at all levels of government, as well as contribute to a richer body of knowledge about the ever-changing nature of life in First Nations communities, for researchers, policy makers, politicians, media, and the general public.”

The RHS was the first—and is still the only—national health survey created, conducted, and carried out by First Nations people for First Nations people. Launched in 1997, the RHS is rooted in Traditional and Western understandings of health and well-being and gathers information in First Nations reserve and northern communities across Canada.

RHS Phase 3, the latest phase of the survey, began data collection in April 2015 and wrapped up 18 months later finishing with 23,764 surveys completed in 253 First Nations communities, or 78 percent of its target number—a highly successful response rate for a survey of this size and complexity. The results of the second volume of the RHS Phase 3 are contained in the National Report of The First Nations Regional Health Survey Phase 3: Volume Two, which was released today during the Assembly of First Nations’ Annual General Assembly in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Copies of the 168-page report can be downloaded from our Online Library or by visiting FNIGC’s booth (#261) at the Circle of Trade at the Vancouver Convention Centre East, 999 Canada Place, as part of the Assembly of First Nations’ 39th Annual General Assembly. 

FNIGC is an incorporated non-profit organization operating with a special mandate from the Assembly of First Nations Special Chiefs in Assembly (Resolution #48/2009). First Nations-led, FNIGC envisions that every First Nation will achieve data sovereignty in alignment with its distinct worldview.

Media: Brad Mackay 613-314-2575 or bmackay@fnigc.ca

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The National Report of The First Nations Regional Health Survey Phase 3: Volume 1, released today in Ottawa, is the culmination of the third phase of a landmark five-year survey process conducted by FNIGC and its Regional Partners across the country. Among the key findings of Volume 1 of the RHS Phase 3 are:

• More than three-quarters (75.3%) of First Nations youth said they had abstained from any alcohol consumption in the previous year; a significantly higher proportion than that reported in the RHS Phase 2 (2008-2010), which showed that nearly two-thirds (61.0%) of youth had abstained from alcohol.
• Nearly three-quarters (74.4%) of First Nations adults reported being directly or inter-generationally affected by their parents’ or grandparents’ attendance in Indian Residential School.
• Only 1 in 10 (10.4%) youth reported smoking on a daily basis, and only 6.8% reported smoking on an occasional basis; this marks a significant decrease from the RHS Phase 2 (2008-2010) which reported 20.4% of youth were daily smokers (a decrease of nearly 50 percent) and 12.8% were occasional smokers.
• A significantly higher proportion of First Nations adults reported having higher levels of educational attainment in 2015-2016; 14.8% reported high school as being their highest level attainment (compared to 9.8% in RHS Phase 2) and 3.2% reported having attained a Graduate-level education (compared to 1.3% in the RHS Phase 2). Levels of post-secondary attainment remained stable, at 45.6%.
• The age-standardized prevalence of diabetes among First Nations adults was 19.2%, which represents a steady trend-over-time when compared to 20.7% in the RHS Phase 2 (2008-2010), and 20.1% in the RHS Phase 1 (2002-2003).
• The percentage of First Nations adults reporting household mould or mildew was 39.7%, which marks a significant decrease compared to 50.9% in RHS Phase 2 and 44% in RHS Phase 1 (2002-2003).   Despite this, the current First Nations rate is still three times higher than the rate in the general population (13%).
• More than two-thirds (69.7%) of First Nations adults were actively participating in the labour force*, a number that was slightly higher that the labour force participation rate in the general Canadian population (65.7%); yet they still experience lower employment rates (47.1% ) and higher rates of unemployment (61.1%) than the general population. (*the labour force participation rate is defined as the percentage of adults either employed or actively seeking employment).

“The results from the first volume of this essential First Nations-led report reveal some of the strengths, challenges, and resiliencies of our First Nations communities across the country, while also challenging a lot of common assumptions and misconceptions” says Dr. Jonathan Dewar, Executive Director of FNIGC.

“It’s my hope that the information contained in the RHS Phase 3 report will serve to inform decision-making at all levels of government, as well as contribute to a richer body of knowledge about the ever-changing nature of life in First Nations communities for researchers, policy makers, politicians, media, and the general public.”

The RHS was the first—and is still the only—national health survey created, conducted, and carried out by First Nations people for First Nations people. Launched in 1997, the RHS is rooted in Traditional and Western understandings of health and well-being and gathers information in First Nations reserve and northern communities across Canada.

RHS Phase 3, the latest phase of the survey, began data collection in April 2015 and wrapped up 18 months later finishing with 23,764 surveys completed in 253 First Nations communities, or 78 percent of its target number—a highly successful response rate for a survey of this size and complexity. .

The first RHS Phase 3 results are contained in the National Report of The First Nations Regional Health Survey Phase 3: Volume 1, which is being released today on Day Two of the “20 Years of First Nations Data: The Path to RHS Phase 3,” FNIGC’s RHS data release conference at the Delta Ottawa City Centre Hotel in downtown Ottawa. In addition, more than 80 charts and figures published in the report are now available on FNIGC Data Online, FNIGC’s free-to-use data tool: fnigc.ca/dataonline.

A copy of the 170-page report can be downloaded here:  National Report of The First Nations Regional Health Survey Phase 3: Volume 1

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On March 13 & 14, 2018, “20 years of First Nations Data: The Path to RHS Phase 3” will bring FNIGC’s Regional Partners, field workers, First Nations leaders, researchers, academics and guest speakers together in Ottawa for a first-look at the latest data from the landmark First Nations Regional Health Survey (FNRHS, or RHS).

Taking place at the Delta Ottawa City Centre Hotel, the conference will include presentations of regional and national-level data and selected trends from the RHS Phase 3, alongside discussions about the RHS survey development process, the evolution of the RHS over the past 20 years, and the impact the RHS has had in First Nations communities over time.

“The RHS was the first—and is still the only—national health survey created, conducted and carried out by First Nations people for First Nations people, and we want to take this opportunity to help celebrate its social and cultural impact over the past two decades,” says Jonathan Dewar, FNIGC’s Executive Director.

“Further, this third phase of the survey promises to be the most important and exciting, as it will allow us for the first time to look at selected RHS data trends over time.”

Founded in 1997, the RHS is FNIGC’s original survey process. Rooted in Traditional and Western understandings of health and well-being, the survey gathers information in First Nations reserve and Northern communities across Canada.

RHS Phase 3, the latest phase of the survey, began data collection in April 2015 and wrapped up 18 months later finishing with more than 24,000 surveys completed in 253 First Nations communities, or 78 percent of its target number—a record in the history of the survey.

In addition to spotlighting the latest release of data from the RHS, FNIGC’s national conference will also serve as a celebration of the hard-work and dedication of FNIGC and its Regional Partner organizations that have contributed to the success of the milestone First Nations survey over the past two decades. This will culminate in an evening celebration on Tuesday, March 13, featuring food and live music.

FNIGC will also be live-streaming the entire conference on its Facebook Page (Facebook.com/FNIGC) to ensure that as many people as possible can take part.

Come join FNIGC for a healthy debate and help celebrate the continued success of this unique First Nations survey.

Registration is $150 ($50 for students) and includes all meals and refreshments. Space is limited to 150 spots. Registration can be completed online at FNIGC.ca/RHS3Conference.

For more information please contact Lyndsy Gracie at lgracie@fnigc.ca.

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