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Objectives: Indigenous peoples are the first peoples of what is now called Canada. Canadians have benefitted from their largesse and contributions in a myriad of ways that remain unacknowledged. Indeed, ongoing colonization and systemic anti-Indigenous racism in all quarters of our society have had heinous impacts on their health and well-being. Despite this reality and multiple calls for redress, Indigenous health is still missing from the Core Competencies for Public Health in Canada, having obvious implications for public health training programs and subsequent practice. Our objective in this paper is to critically explore the reasons behind institutional apathy for reconciliation in Indigenous health., Methods: Interviews were conducted with 19 leaders in Canadian Graduate Public Health Programs (CGPHPs) at 15 universities to explore the extent to which CGPHPs engage with Canada's 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action to address Indigenous health. We used thematic discourse analysis to illuminate the landscape and make recommendations., Results: Participants agree that Indigenous health is important, but our data reveal an uneven landscape for addressing the Calls to Action. Curriculum was limited though we noted modest positive change. On the whole, the non-Indigenous (white) professoriate still needs to educate themselves while not all see the need to do so. Many deflected responsibility. Yet anecdotally, there is desire among CGPHP students who are already unsettling themselves to see such competency in their training., Conclusion: It is a settler evasion to claim lack of expertise, to express a desire to limit the burden on Indigenous academics, and to stand on the sidelines of institutional inertia. Our findings are a call to CGPHPs to do better., (© 2021. The Author(s) under exclusive license to The Canadian Public Health Association.)

Evidence is building regarding the association between government implemented public health measures aimed at combating COVID-19 and their impacts on health. This study investigated the relationship between the stringency of public health measures implemented in Canada and self-reported mental health, physical health, stress, and wellbeing among a random sample of 6647 Canadians 18 years of age and older. The analysis was based on self-reported health data from the Canadian Perspectives on Environmental Noise Survey. This data was combined with the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker database, which included overall stringency index (SI), and four of its sub-components, i.e., school and business closures, restrictions on gatherings, and stay at home policies. Adjusted multivariate logistic regression models indicated that the magnitude of the overall SI was associated with higher or lower odds of reporting worse physical health, mental health, stress and/or overall wellbeing, depending on the measure evaluated. Similarly, policy directed at the four sub-components had varying impacts on the odds of reporting worse health, depending on the sub-component, the strength of the policy restriction, and the health outcome evaluated. The association between the strength of the public health measures and self-reported health, and how this may inform future policy, is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing body of evidence indicates that extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) readily survive wastewater treatment, raising concerns about the public health risks associated with exposure to wastewater-contaminated environments. In this study, E. coli isolates recovered from chlorinated sewage or treated wastewater effluents in Canada were screened for ExPEC virulence markers. Eighty-six isolates were identified as presumptive ExPEC, clustering within major pandemic lineages including ST131, ST95, and ST73 according to multilocus sequence typing analyses. Across the whole, core, and accessory genome, 37 isolates were extremely similar to clinical bloodborne E. coli (BBEC) and neonatal meningitic E. coli (NMEC) strains, suggesting that these wastewater isolates may exhibit a similar phenotypically related pathogenic potential. Interestingly, ExPEC strains also shared accessory gene content with naturalized wastewater strains, suggesting a common genetic capacity for surviving water treatment. Collectively, these findings suggest that E. coli strains that may cause septicemia and meningitis are surviving wastewater treatment and may be transmissible through wastewater effluents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]