Using a model of risk perception which divides the community into attitudinal and behavioural subgroups based on awareness, concern and action in relation to a waste management facility, we conducted a survey in a community with an operating landfill and a ten-year history of controversy over the unsuccessful siting of a hazardous waste facility (HWF). The purpose of the survey was to study community attitudes to waste management in general, attitudes specific to landfills and HWFs, and to identify factors which shape community attitudes in both cases. Levels of concern and activism were lower for the landfill; activism and concern were more likely among younger subjects and those with children. In the case of the HWF, greater concern and activism were more likely among married people and those without a university education. Gender differences in relation to environmental "concern" were not found for either the landfill or the HWF siting attempts.

Adult↗

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Risk perception differences in a community with a municipal solid waste incinerator.

Using a community model of risk perception, we conducted an environmental risk perception survey in a community with an operating municipal solid waste incinerator to further understanding of community responses to technology perceived as "hazardous". The specific aims of the survey were to study attitudes to waste management (incineration in particular) and to identify sociological attributes which help shape community attitudes to the facility. Approximately one third of the community were unaware of the incinerator. Those unaware gave lower desirability ratings to incinerator technology than the aware group. About half of the aware group were concerned about the facility and rated the incinerator in the same way as those who were unaware; however, the remainder (the unconcerned) appear to have accepted the incinerator. The results of this cross-sectional study suggest that informing the public about technology perceived as hazardous may not lead to alarm, but may in fact increase acceptance.

Attitude to Health↗

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Concentrations of organochlorine pesticides in the adipose tissue of British Columbia residents.

Adipose tissue from a sample of 41 British Columbians was analyzed for a number of organochlorine pesticides. Pesticide concentrations were very low. Persistent fat-soluble compounds like DDT were found at the highest concentrations, whereas compounds that either quickly metabolize to other forms or are readily excreted were found at low levels or not detected. Data on age, sex, area of residence, occupation, diet and weight were obtained by interview. Increasing age was related to increasing levels of several of the persistent pesticides. Although there were insufficient data for statistical analysis, two individuals with potential occupational exposures had much higher levels of the pesticides than other subjects. Although population-based surveys of these organochlorine pesticides in human tissue may have little value, further study may be warranted for groups known to have had high exposures (e.g. occupationally exposed).

Adipose Tissue↗

PubMedDate not supplied

A controlled trial of the effect of HEPA vacuuming on childhood lead exposure.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

British Columbia↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Opportunities for a broader understanding of work and health: multiple uses of an occupational cohort database.

Occupational cohort studies conducted to study cancer incidence and mortality require extensive data gathering about workers' job histories, exposures, and health outcomes. Although this process is expensive, the database created can be looked upon as a resource for broad investigations of the relationship between work and health. This paper presents the example of a retrospective cohort study which began in the traditional way, examining the link between a specific pesticide exposure and mortality and cancer incidence. The cohort register has since been used to investigate whether infertility, adverse reproductive outcomes, and childhood cancers might be associated with this exposure. It is also being used as the basis for studying other sawmill exposures including noise and wood dust as well as socioeconomic factors including job strain, job mobility, unemployment, and retraining. This approach allows both the efficient use of occupational cohorts as well as providing the opportunity for investigators to develop a more comprehensive perspective on the determinants of the health status of workers and their families.

British Columbia↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The case for child development as a determinant of health.

The complex relationship between life course and social/economic-psychosocial conditions in a given society has a powerful determining effect on human health. The socioeconomic gradient emerges from a complex mixture of psychosocial and material influences operating at various levels of social aggregation and, also, a series of biological responses whose character and significance vary over the life course. Biological embedding and the "latency" and "pathways" model incorporate the notion of a critical period in development; the pathways model emphasizes the cumulative effect of life events and the ongoing importance of social/economic-psychosocial conditions throughout the life cycle. The models, although conceptually complementary, result in ideological conflict and lend themselves to different policy directions.

Child↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Creating a population-based linked health database: a new resource for health services research.

As the availability of both health utilization and outcome information becomes increasingly important to health care researchers and policy makers, the ability to link person-specific health data becomes a critical objective. The integration of population-based administrative health databases has been realized in British Columbia by constructing an historical file of all persons registered with the health care system, and by probabilistically linking various program files to this 'coordinating' file. The linkages have achieved a high rate of success in matching service events to person-specific registration records. This success has allowed research projects to be proposed which would otherwise not have been feasible, and has initiated the development of policies and procedures regarding research access to linked data. These policies and procedures include a framework for addressing the ethical issues surrounding data linkage. With continued attention to confidentiality issues, these linked data present a valuable resource for health services research and planning.

British Columbia↗