The DIVA Foundation » Social health

Canadians, especially women, are feeling pressed for time

DIVA — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 12:41:02 +0000

The Canadian Index of Wellbeing released a report on Tuesday that indicates that Canadians, particularly women, are experiencing increasing stress from feeling pressed for time.

The demands of childcare, single-parenting and caring for aging relatives — tasks which are most often taken on by women — are cited as key reasons that people are feeling the time crunch. In general, a higher proportion of females (22.7%) than males (16.6%) reported feeling time pressure.

The report lists the following pressures that are contributing to Canadians’ time crunch:

A greater demand by consumers for services in the evenings, weekends and holiday
A lack of comprehensive childcare support for many Canadians
An increase in urban sprawl (people are spending more time commuting to work)
Greater innovation and adaptation of workplace technologies (smartphones and laptops keep employees perpetually “on call”)
An increase in passive activities among children and adolescents (young people are exceeding recommended amounts of time in front of the TV, video, and computer screens)
An aging population (in the absence of community support for seniors, families are taking on the care of their elder members)
Leisure and culture activities are becoming more expensive.

You can read the report, Caught in the Time Crunch: Time Use, Leisure and Culture in Canada (PDF, 1MB), or visit the Canadian Index of Wellbeing web site for more information about factors affecting Canadians’ way of life.

New iPhone app aimed at women’s safety

DIVA — Sun, 23 May 2010 01:23:18 +0000

A new iPhone application released on Friday by the YWCA is intended to be used by women who feel they are in danger or in a difficult situation. The “Safety Siren” app sends a call and email that to a friend or family member when the user clicks a button or shakes their iPhone, depending on the settings she has chosen. It also includes contact information for YWCA branches, emergency hotlines, and access to a library of women’s health information, among other resources. The app is available free from the Apple App store.

You can read more about the Safety Siren app in the CBC News or the Toronto Star.

End-of-life care for cancer patients

DIVA — Fri, 21 May 2010 13:33:42 +0000

The Canadian Cancer Society recently released a report detailing the end-of-life care of cancer patients. This report was released in conjunction with the Canadian Cancer Statistics 2010 report.

The report summarized that there is an ever increasing burden placed on family members of cancer patients when dealing with the end-of-life care. One of the main factors is this is due to the rise in the number of deaths associated with cancer. This increase in combination with a weak support system for patients and family members means that these affected groups are not getting the support they need.

The Canadian Cancer Society recommends:

An increase in how long a caregiver can receive financial benefits for compassionate care to 26 weeks from the current six weeks, given the unpredictability of death.
Establish a caregiver tax benefit that would be paid monthly to help caregivers with the costs related to caring for a loved one with cancer.

To learn more about the study and recommendations, see the associated CBC article.

http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/05/19/cancer-canada-statistics.html

The birth control pill turns 50 years old

DIVA — Tue, 11 May 2010 16:44:59 +0000

As many women and their families celebrated Mother’s Day this year, an auspicious milestone in the social and cultural history of women’s health also occurred: the Pill turned 50 years old. Sunday May 9, 2010 marks the 50^th anniversary of the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of the birth control pill.

Throughout its history, the Pill has been the center of ongoing controversy about what it means for women to be able to medically control their reproductive health. Whether it is seen as a boon to women’s emancipation by empowering them to control their bodies, or as an instrument of moral decay, the Pill certainly medicalized contraception, leading to, if not sexual revolution, at least a broadening of perceptions about what constitutes women’s health. As pointed out by Andrea Tone, Canada Research Chair in the Social History of Medicine at McGill University, in an interview with the Globe and Mail: “Prior to 1960, it was rare for a woman to talk to a doctor about birth control… But the Pill required a gynecological exam, a consultation and discussion about intimate matters, which led to the wider conversation about women’s health.”

You can read more about the Pill and how it has shaped both women’s health and the broader social and cultural landscape over the past 50 years in the following articles: