Office of the Chief Coroner

Publications & Reports

The Office of the Chief Coroner’s Death Review of the Youth Suicides at the Pikangikum First Nation

2006 – 2008

Appendix 4: First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey (RHS) 2002/03 and Impact of Health of First Nations Adults and Youth

Education, Employment and Income

Education

When reviewing the age and educational levels of First Nations, it is clear that the elderly and the young are least likely to have attained at least a high school education. In addition, there is a substantial difference between First Nations and the remainder of the Canadian population, intensified for those First Nation adults living on reserve. These tables are taken from the RHS.¹

Picture 16. A table showing the age and education of Adults in First Nations communities (n=10,812)

Employment

51% of First Nations are not employed. First Nations employment rates lag behind the Canadian population by 8%. The following was obtained from the RHS.²

Figure 2. Employment patterns by gender, age and education (n=10,773)

Telling trends emerge. Women are more likely to be working part time. Also, a significant number of young people aged 18-29 are unemployed, about 60%. Education clearly shows a trend toward greater employment, with completion of a high school education almost doubling the probability of employment.

Personal and Household Income

“The median personal income in 2001 of RHS adults in First Nations communities was $15,667. The median household income = $29,897. Men and women had essentially the same income levels.”³

Again, there is good evidence that those less than 29 and greater than 60 have the lowest median household income. The value of education indicates that as level of education increases, so does personal income. Also, income from government sources decreases with increasing education. 80% of women and 62% of First Nations men receive income from the government.

First Nations (FN) Housing and Living Conditions

Home Occupancy

Condition of Housing

Drug and Alcohol Use

The use of alcohol by First Nations is associated with negative stereotypes of FN peoples. With the arrival of Europeans, came the greatly expanded use of alcohol in diplomatic engagements, and the far more ready availability to FN. Social and individual risk factors associated with substance abuse have been identified as:

First Nations are more likely to abstain from alcohol use than the Canadian population at large. For example, in the general population, about 80% reported alcohol use in the previous year, as opposed to only 66% of FN. After 60 years of age, the use of alcohol for FN drops to less than half the rate of Canadians on average.

Rates of alcohol use in remote isolated communities are more likely than non-isolated communities to report drinking. (75.7% vs. 64.6%)

The issue for FN is not the overall usage, but rather, the prevalence of higher rates of alcohol dependence, and heavy binge drinking; “…the proportion of heavy drinkers (those who have 5 or more drinks on one occasion) remains higher for Aboriginal people than that found in the general population. …more than double the proportion of First Nations adults (16%) reported heavy drinking on a weekly basis than in the general population; (6.2%) appear to be at highest risk, with 20.9% of males reporting heavy drinking on a weekly basis, compared to 10.2% of females reporting weekly heavy drinking.”⁷

With respect to others of drugs of abuse, 26.7% of FN had used marijuana in the past year, compared to only 14.1% in the general population. 29% of males between 18-29 years of age use marijuana on a daily basis. The elicit use of prescription drugs, namely opioids is a rising problem of concern for FN. Lastly, the RHS reported that the use of inhalants, such as gasoline sniffing was very low at 0.2%.⁸ Treatment was sought for 16.3% of respondents for alcohol abuse, 7% for drug abuse, and 1.2% for solvent abuse.

The Health of First Nations Youth

School Education

According to the RHS, school performance can be measured by examining attendance and self-reporting at repeating grades.

Health factors related to school attendance include:

Self-reporting of health was a good predictor of not attending school, experiencing learning problems at school, or disliking school.

The nutrition of youth at school was positively correlated with a number of different items. For example, as the level of nutrition improved, learning problems and having to repeat a grade decreased. School enjoyment increased.

A striking finding was the proportion of children of school age not attending school, as well as the high levels of self-reported learning problems at school. These figures for FN are not compared to the Canadian population, and would be more informative if they were. In a contemporary society, education to acquire skills and trades enhances the learner’s ability to achieve gainful employment, which enhances income and likewise, health. These figures, with reference to FN in Canada provide a useful snapshot as to how skewed school attendance at Pikangikum is, where it is estimated that somewhere between 30-50% of school age children and youth do not attend school.

There were also positive correlations between school attendance, and participation in sports, art and music, singing, drumming and dancing; the very activities which were lost when the school burned down.

Increased alcohol consumption and smoking were negatively associated with school performance in that they were correlated with lower rates of school attendance and higher rates of repeating grades. 59% of youth between the ages of 15-19 smoke.

Of interest, only 1.5 % of respondents in the RHS 2002/03 Youth Survey reported that they had used inhalants (glue, gas, paint) in the previous year. In Pikangikum, gasoline sniffing is a major health issue in the youth.

Emotional and Social Wellbeing

The Canadian Community Health Survey of 2002 reported that 7.9% of Canadians aged 12 or older appear to have experienced at least one major depressive episode in the previous 12 months, versus 13.2% of the Aboriginal population.

Important figures here are that 27.2% of youth reported having suffered with depression in the previous year. For females between 15-17 years, 44% reported these feeling versus 22% of males. For females between 11-14 years of age, the rate was 28% versus 13.3% for males.⁹

The youth were reporting on lifetime suicide attempts. For First Nation youth between the ages of 12-17, 5.8% reported that they had attempted suicide.¹⁰

There is a striking difference between males and females in these reports. 25% of females reported thoughts of suicide, versus 9.3% of males between the ages of 15-17. For the Pikangikum youth suicides reviewed, the number of males and females were equally split.

When seeking help for problems, youth reported that for depression, 17.6% do not seek help from anyone. 21.9% go to a friend their own age, and 42.3% go to a parent or guardian. A concern here that merits addressing, is the large number of youth that do not seek help, and the lack of utilization of medical professionals for help, including doctor/nurse or health care aid. This speaks to the need for community-based programs in parenting and family wellness and the role of support counsellors.

¹ First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey (RHS) 2002/03, Results for Adults, Youth and Children Living in First Nations Communities, Assembly of First Nations/First Nations Information Governance Committee, second edition, March 2007, p. 26.

² Ibid. pg. 27.

³ Ibid., p. 28.

⁴ Ibid., p. 41

⁵ Ibid., p. 44

⁶ Ibid., p. 115.

⁷ First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey (RHS) 2002/03, Results for Adults, Youth and Children Living in First Nations Communities, Assembly of First Nations/First Nations Information Governance Committee, second edition, March 2007, p. 116.

⁸ Ibid., p. 116.

⁹ Ibid., p. 221.

¹⁰ Ibid., p. 222.