Social inclusion/exclusion as matters of social (in)justice: a call for nursing action.

Social inclusion/exclusion involves just/unjust social relations and social structures enabling or constraining opportunities for participation and health. In this paper, social inclusion/exclusion is explored as a dialectic. Three discourses--discourses on recognition, capabilities, and equality and citizenship--are identified within Canadian literature.

Embracing the population health framework in nursing research.

Individuals' health outcomes are influenced not only by their knowledge and behavior, but also by complex social, political and economic forces. Attention to these multi-level factors is necessary to accurately and comprehensively understand and intervene to improve human health. The population health framework is a valuable conceptual framework to guide nurse researchers in identifying and targeting the broad range of determinants of health.

Strengthening access to restorative places: findings from a participatory study on engaging with nature in the promotion of health.

In this paper, we examine selected research findings from a community-based study on engaging with nature to promote health. Combining participatory photographic research methods with an iterative process of dialectical analysis, we explored nature-based health promotion with community citizens, practitioners, and decision-makers from various sectors to examine the complexities of connecting with natural outdoor places in local contexts. Participants identified an array of barriers to and opportunities for everyday access to restorative outdoor places.

'Health equity through action on the social determinants of health': taking up the challenge in nursing.

Reducing health inequities is a priority issue in Canada and worldwide. In this paper, we argue that nursing has a clear mandate to ensure access to health and health-care by providing sensitive empowering care to those experiencing inequities and working to change underlying social conditions that result in and perpetuate health inequities. We identify key dimensions of the concept of health (in)equities and identify recommendations to reduce inequities advanced in key global and Canadian documents.

Incorporating a research apprenticeship model in a Canadian nursing Honors Program.

In this article, we describe the development of a BScN (Honors) Program in a large Canadian university. We describe the elements of the program, including the application of a research apprenticeship model as the core of the program. We provide examples of student learning experiences culminating in the Honors project.

A support intervention to promote health and coping among homeless youths.

Homeless youths are often vulnerable to limited support resources and loneliness. Peers are a potent source of social support. A support intervention for homeless youths was designed to optimize peer influence and was pilot tested.

Engaging with nature to promote health: new directions for nursing research.

Aim: The aim of this paper is to offer a conceptual framework for nature-based health promotion in nursing and provide related recommendations for future nursing research.

Background: Empirical data suggest that interaction with nature has direct health benefits. When people attend to outdoor habitats, gardens and other forms of nature, they are more likely to engage in physical activity and other behaviours that improve health.

"Who do they think we are, anyway?": perceptions of and responses to poverty stigma.

In this article, we report on qualitative findings pertaining to low-income people's perceptions of and responses to "poverty stigma," a key component of social exclusion with important implications for health and well-being. Our findings are drawn from a multimethod study designed to investigate experiences of social exclusion and social isolation among people living on low incomes. We conducted semistructured individual interviews (n = 59) and group interviews (total n = 34) with low-income residents of two large Canadian cities.

Development of the role of public health nurses in addressing child and family poverty: a framework for action.

Aim: The purpose of this paper is to invite dialogue about how public health nurses could best address child and family poverty. Their current role is reviewed and a framework for expanding this role is presented.

Background: The negative health consequences of poverty for children are well-documented worldwide.

The road less traveled: nursing advocacy at the policy level.

A frequent observation made about nursing advocacy at the policy level is its absence-or at least its invisibility. Yet there is a persistent belief that nurses will participate in advocacy at the societal level in matters of health. Although gaps exist in our knowledge about how to advocate at the policy level, the authors suggest that a number of other factors contribute to the disconnect between what nurses are expected to do in terms of policy advocacy and what they actually do.

"You need to know where we're coming from": Canadian Aboriginal women's perspectives on culturally appropriate HIV counseling and testing.

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to determine Canadian Aboriginal women's perspectives on culturally appropriate HIV counseling and testing. Data were collected through semistructured individual interviews with 7 Aboriginal women, and one focus group, in a western Canadian city. Four major categories were elucidated through thematic content analysis: Aboriginal women's life experiences that may influence their risk of HIV infection and their response to testing; barriers to HIV testing; guiding principles of the ideal HIV testing situation; and characteristics of culturally appropriate HIV testing.

A critical policy analysis of an emerging agenda for home care in one Canadian province.

Amidst projections of the increased care demands and expectations for home care, policy in this area demands urgent attention. Home care is inherently complex as it challenges us to deliberate fundamental issues of responsibility for care, and the limits of care for people in their most immediate contexts and needs. This research takes the form of a critical policy analysis of the interaction of the context, process and content of policy proposals in home care in a regional health system in one Canadian province.

Women's health in northern British Columbia: the role of geography and gender.

Introduction: Although research interest in women's health is growing, much of the literature does not sufficiently describe the importance of geography and gender for the health of women. This qualitative study explored factors in the northern Canadian context that influence women's health by interviewing 25 women in northern Canada.

Results: Findings reveal that the importance of the northern context for women's health can be attributed to the north's historical location, and its physical, sociocultural and political environments.

Determinants of health-service use by low-income people.

Poverty influences health status, life expectancy, health behaviours, and use of health services. This study examined factors influencing the use of health-related services by people living in poverty. In the first phase, 199 impoverished users of health-related services in 2 large Canadian cities were interviewed by their peers.

Lay understandings of the effects of poverty: a Canadian perspective.

Although there is a large body of research dedicated to exploring public attributions for poverty, considerably less attention has been directed to public understandings about the effects of poverty. In this paper, we describe lay understandings of the effects of poverty and the factors that potentially influence these perceptions, using data from a telephone survey conducted in 2002 on a random sample (n=1671) of adults from eight neighbourhoods in two large Canadian cities (Edmonton and Toronto). These data were supplemented with interview data obtained from 153 people living in these same neighbourhoods.

Low-income Canadians' experiences with health-related services: implications for health care reform.

This study investigated the use of health-related services by low-income Canadians living in two large cities, Edmonton and Toronto. Interview data collected from low-income people, service providers and managers, advocacy group representatives, and senior-level public servants were analyzed using thematic content analysis. Findings indicate that, in addition to health care policies and programs, a broad range of policies, programs, and services relating to income security, recreation, and housing influence the ability of low-income Canadians to attain, maintain, and enhance their health.

Developing resilience: how women maintain their health in northern geographically isolated settings.

The purpose of this study was to explore how women maintain their health in northern geographically isolated settings, using a feminist grounded theory method. Twenty-five women of diverse backgrounds in northern British Columbia, Canada, engaged in qualitative interviews over a 2-year period to express perspectives about how the north affects their health and how they maintain their health in northern settings. Findings reveal that the women experienced vulnerability to physical health and safety risks, psychosocial health risks, and risks of inadequate health care.

Nursing students' beliefs about poverty and health.

Purpose: This paper examines baccalaureate nursing students' beliefs about the relationship between poverty and health, and the factors that influence these beliefs.

Background: The relationship between poverty and health is well established, and poverty remains a persistent problem in many industrialized nations. Nurses' understanding of how poverty influences health will affect how they interact with individual clients as well as the strategies they employ to address poverty-related issues.

Baccalaureate nursing students' attitudes toward poverty: implications for nursing curricula.

Given the link between poverty and health, nurses, in their work in hospitals and in the community, often come into contact with people who are poor. To be effective care providers, nurses must have an adequate understanding of poverty and a positive attitude toward people who are poor. This study examined attitudes toward poverty among baccalaureate nursing students (N = 740) at three Canadian universities.

Socioeconomic status, sense of coherence and health in Canadian women.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the role of sense of coherence (SOC) in the relationship between household income and self-rated health among Canadian women. SOC is a global orientation that enables one to perceive events of the world as comprehensible, manageable, and meaningful.

Methods: A secondary data analysis was conducted using the National Population Health Survey 1994-95.

Public support for poverty-related policies.

Objective: This research examined how public perceptions of the relationship between poverty and health predict support for poverty-related policies.

Methods: A random sample of 1,203 Albertans were interviewed by telephone to determine their perceptions of the relationship between poverty and health (myth, drift, behavioural, structural), and their support for government spending in six poverty-related policy areas: nutrition programs, housing, child care, increased welfare allowance, wage subsidies, and recreation programs.

Results: The greatest support was for child care programs, with the least support for increased welfare allowance.

Care-giving and care-seeking behaviours of parents who take their children to an emergency department for non-urgent care.

Objective: This study explored the care-giving and care-seeking behaviours of parents who took their children to the emergency department (ED) of a large urban hospital in Western Canada for non-urgent care.

Method: Data were collected from a convenience sample of 114 parents during a two-week period in January 1992, using a self-administered 53-item questionnaire. The data were analyzed using nonparametric statistics (Chi-square) and thematic content analysis.