Understanding Disparity on the Canadian Prairies: A Step toward Improving Tuburculosis Outcomes

Victoria Cook,Donald Enarson,Shawna Buccholz

doi:10.1155/2013/747469

Abstract

Understanding Disparity on the Canadian Prairies: A Step toward Improving Tuburculosis Outcomes

Highlights

These findings confirm the heterogeneity of TB in the prairies with varying rates across provinces
Challenges to TB control in Aboriginal populations can be split into those particular to the disease and those that may be more specific to Aboriginal communities including suboptimal access to health care, nature and extent of coordination among health care managers at various levels, cultural sensitivity of health services, health care worker staffing and retention, and geographical isolation, as well as the stigma and discrimination associated with TB that is inextricably linked to colonization, the sanatorium era and residential schools
Additional challenges to TB control in some Aboriginal communities may be the unique social and language networks, the relative mobility of community members, and the shared responsibility and funding structure for TB programming

Summary

Introduction

These findings confirm the heterogeneity of TB in the prairies with varying rates across provinces. Challenges to TB control in Aboriginal populations can be split into those particular to the disease (ie, nonspecific symptoms leading to diagnostic delay, diagnostic accuracy of testing for TB infection, acceptance and completion of latent TB infection treatment, comorbid conditions and the social determinants of health) and those that may be more specific to Aboriginal communities including suboptimal access to health care, nature and extent of coordination among health care managers at various levels, cultural sensitivity of health services, health care worker staffing and retention, and geographical isolation, as well as the stigma and discrimination associated with TB that is inextricably linked to colonization, the sanatorium era and residential schools.

Results

Conclusion