1. Identity and COVID-19 in Canada: Gender, ethnicity, and minority status.
- Author
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Kim, D, Pongou, R, Ahinkorah, BO, Mabeu, MC, Agarwal, A, Maltais, S, Boubacar Moumouni, A, Yaya, S, Kim, D, Pongou, R, Ahinkorah, BO, Mabeu, MC, Agarwal, A, Maltais, S, Boubacar Moumouni, A, and Yaya, S
- Abstract
BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, growing evidence from the United States, the United Kingdom, and China has demonstrated the unequal social and economic burden of this health crisis. Yet, in Canada, studies assessing the socioeconomic and demographic determinants of COVID-19, and how these determinants vary by gender and ethnic minority status, remain scarce. As new strains of COVID-19 emerge, it is important to understand the disparities to be able to initiate policies and interventions that target and prioritise the most at-risk sub-populations. AIM: The objective of this study is to assess the socioeconomic and demographic factors associated with COVID-19-related symptoms in Canada, and how these determinants vary by identity factors including gender and visible minority status. METHODS: We implemented an online survey and collected a nationally representative sample of 2,829 individual responses. The original data collected via the SurveyMonkey platform were analysed using a cross-sectional study. The outcome variables were COVID-19-related symptoms among respondents and their household members. The exposure variables were socioeconomic and demographic factors including gender and ethnicity as well as age, province, minority status, level of education, total annual income in 2019, and number of household members. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to test the associations. The results were presented as adjusted odds ratios (aORs) at p < 0.05 and a 95% confidence interval. RESULTS: We found that the odds of having COVID-19-related symptoms were higher among respondents who belong to mixed race [aOR = 2.77; CI = 1.18-6.48] and among those who lived in provinces other than Ontario and Quebec [aOR = 1.88; CI = 1.08-3.28]. There were no significant differences in COVID-19 symptoms between males and females, however, we did find a significant association between the province, ethnicity, and
- Published
- 2023