A Spotlight on Canadian Health Issues
Toronto, Ontario — Ipsos conducted two polls on issues facing Canadian health care on behalf of HealthCareCAN. The first was a survey of the general public, and the second a survey among members of HealthCareCAN and the Canadian College of Health Leaders, who include hospital CEOs, department heads, medical directors and other senior health administrators. The surveys focused on: value-based care, opioids in Canada, indigenous health and cybersecurity.
Value-Based Care a Priority, but Undermeasured
Seven in 10 health leaders indicate they have a commitment to value-based care that is acted on in their organization (71%), and 9 in 10 believe achieving quality care outcomes is more important than cutting costs for sustainability (89%). Similar results were seen among the general public, of which 8 in 10 believe achieving quality care outcomes is most important (82%). While health leaders see value-based care as being important, it may be going undermeasured, as in practice, only 4 in 10 health leaders say they measure value in the care they deliver in their information systems (40%).
Discrimination Against Indigenous People an Issue, but Government on Right Track in Addressing
Half of health leaders surveyed believe race-based discrimination against Indigenous People is an issue in their organization (51%), with 1 in 10 believing it to be a big problem (11%). Canadians in general were more likely to believe this discrimination is a big problem in Canadian health care (21%).
Half of health leaders say their organization has a formal process for reporting discrimination (52%), and only one-third say they have an indigenous cultural safety commitment or charter in their organization. BC members however, are much more likely to have this in place, with nearly 6 in 10 having a cultural safety commitment or charter in their organizations (58%).
While race-based discrimination against Indigenous People is certainly seen as a problem, both health leaders (62%) and Canadians in general (56%) believe the federal government is on the right track in addressing the issue.
Opioids at Crisis Level in Canada
Over 8 in 10 health leaders surveyed believe there is currently an opioid crisis in Canada (85%), with 1 in 10 believing there isn’t one, yet (11%). This is lower among the general public, but still 6 in 10 Canadians believe there’s currently a crisis (61%) and 3 in 10 believe there isn’t one, yet (28%). Among leaders who think there is a crisis, or there isn’t one yet, two-thirds say it is directly impacting their organization (66%). The biggest challenges members see in addressing increased opioid use are lack of an effective strategy (49%) and lack of resources (47%). Both health leaders and the general public are somewhat divided on whether or not the federal government is on the right track in addressing the issue of opioids, with Canadians in general less likely to believe they are on the right track (49%) compared to health leaders (56%).
Cybersecurity a vulnerability for Canadian Health Care Organizations
The majority of health leaders believe their organizations are vulnerable to cyber attacks (85%). This is in line with the views of the general public, of which over 8 in 10 say Canadian health organizations are vulnerable to these attacks (86%). It is important to note these surveys were fielded in the wake of the WannaCry ransomware attacks, which saw health organizations in the UK compromised and may have influenced these results.
While health leaders viewed cybersecurity as a vulnerability, 9 in 10 believe their organization was prepared to deal with a disaster event (flood, ice storm, major power outage, etc.) (89%). However, there is less confidence in the health care system’s overall ability to mobilize and coordinate with other critical infrastructure sectors (power, water, transport, etc.) during a disaster event, with 7 in 10 confident (73%) and only 14% very confident.
Cybersecurity a vulnerability for Canadian Health Care Organizations
When asked open-ended questions on what health leaders see the role of both federal and provincial government being, across these issues both federal and provincial governments were largely seen as providing funding, setting standards, planning/strategy and raising awareness/providing education, with these being cited by roughly 1 in 5 to 1 in 4 members across issues.
About the Study
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between May 19th and May 23rd, 2017, on behalf of HealthCareCAN. For this survey, a sample of 1,005 Canadians from Ipsos' online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/ - 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. Ipsos also conducted a survey of HealthCareCAN and the Canadian College of Health Leaders between May 17th and May 26th. Invites were sent out to all members of both organizations, and n=227 surveys were completed. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Jennifer McLeod Macey
Vice President, Health Research Institute, Canada Ipsos Public Affairs
+1 416 324-2108
Marina Gilson
Director, Canada Ipsos Public Affairs
+1 778 373-5046
About Ipsos
Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. Ipsos ranks third in the global research industry. With offices in 88 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across five research specializations: brand, advertising and media, customer loyalty, marketing, public affairs research, and survey management. Ipsos researchers assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media and they measure public opinion around the globe. Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999 and generated global revenues of €1,669.5 ($2,218.4 million) in 2014.
