Author: Mike LeBlanc

On October 21, 2022, the National Executive Council approved revisions to NOP #28  Appendix 3 (PDH Audits) and Appendix 4 (BOC Exam). The grounds for appealing the decision of PDH auditors and BOC plagiarism committee members have been reduced. Practices are now in place that require a failing grade be determined by a majority vote of a panel of qualified persons and therefore subjecting the decision to further scrutiny is redundant. Appeals based on the grounds that a process error affected the outcome of these decisions will still be reviewed.     

For more details on the allowable grounds for appeal and the guiding principles behind them please refer to NOP #28 Appendix 3 (PDH Audits) and Appendix 4 (BOC Exam).  

Hello Members:

Sharing the CIPHI 2022 Summer Advocacy Campaign wrap-up newsletter in the attached PDF to highlight the reach of our first public campaign.

As we compile our CIPHI national and regional campaign statistics, we invite you to participate in the campaign survey for your chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card. Please click on this link to provide your feedback: 

https://singuser98e5cae1.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_efH9kJveiDsaDzg 

We wish to hear from you, our members! 

Your feedback will be included in the campaign’s final report.

-CIPHI National Advocacy Committee

CIPHI Members,

The latest issue of the Environmental Health Review is now available via the Membership Services Centre.

https://pubs.ciphi.ca/toc/ehr/65/3

We have three very interesting technical articles. One paper looks at the very important issue of providing an indigenous perspective on climate change. This paper highlights some of the lessons learned by seeking this perspective, not only when it comes to climate change, but also when addressing the broader social and environmental determinants of health. It presents factors public health authorities must consider to meaningfully engage with Indigenous Peoples and reduce health inequities. This allows the creation of an ethical space where “Two-eyed Seeing” can weave the different streams of evidence.

A second paper looks at how social media has been used by Ontario’s public health units in the early part of 2020. It was determined that engagement varies by region and platform but in general increased posting (especially on Twitter and Facebook) had a small negative effect on engagement. Posting less often but with more original or creative content leads to better engagement. Increased follower counts also accounted for higher engagement across all platforms. PHUs would best use their resources to increase follower count and post less often and include more personalized posts to effectively spread their information.

A third paper examines vector-borne diseases, specifically West Nile virus and how it has been impacted by climate change in the Windsor-Essex area. Increasing maximum January and February temperatures and the number of days in May with temperatures above 30^oC demonstrated a positive impact on the number of West Nile Virus positive pools and the annual rate of West Nile Virus. Health units should consider adapting their vector-borne management strategies and risk assessment tools to include these parameters, which can help health units assess vector-borne disease risks for people during the season and develop risk communication strategies to protect public health.

The National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health presents a paper with its assessment on climate change and emerging health hazards within our communities. They report that many interacting elements can affect the presence, proliferation, and likelihood of exposure to OPs in water systems, including climate warming, precipitation, humidity, increased air conditioning and need for cooling, and water efficiency measures.

As usual, we have the very valuable journal summaries prepared by Nelson Fok in this Issue as well.

We always welcome scientific articles, short reports, commentaries and other submissions for publication. Submissions from practicing environmental public health practitioners, educators, and researchers will help to inform the field about current and important issues and continue to make the Environmental Health Review an important read for environmental public health professionals in Canada. Submissions can be sent to ehreditor@ciphi.ca.

I hope you enjoy reading this Issue.

—
Andrew Papadopoulos, PhD, CPHI(C)
Editor, Environmental Health Review

Environmental Public Health Week celebrates the important work of Environmental Public Health Professionals (EPHPs) across Canada.

This year’s theme is “Strength through Collaboration” recognizes that EPHPs work collaboratively with partners to collectively control disease, hazards and injury, and help Canadians stay out of hospitals.

Through evaluation and monitoring to control risks posed to the public, EPHPs, also known as Public Health Inspectors and Environmental Public Health Officers, use a broad array of strategies and interventions to prevent the occurrence of injury, disease and premature death by minimizing environmental health risks to the population.

We educate and ensure compliance with regulations on recreational water, food safety, health hazards, safe drinking water, safe built environments, onsite sewage systems, smoke-free facilities, and indoor air quality. We are part of emergency response teams and multi-agency approaches to safeguard the public. Our employers and partners include health authorities, government agencies, public health organizations, interprovincial/territorial committees and more, all working together to support and protect the health of Canadians.

This summer, CIPHI launched a national campaign to build awareness of the breadth of work completed by EPHPs. For Environmental Public Health Week, CIPHI National will be running a social media campaign similar to previous years, and we hope to see members, partners and employers share our posts widely again. Stay tuned for more information about EPHW and how you can support it.

-CIPHI National Advocacy Committee