Dr. Jim Frankish’s Web Page

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Important News !!!

On September 1, 2007 the UBC Institute of Health Promotion Research (IHPR) was formally replaced by the new Centre for Population Health Promotion Research (CPHPR). The Centre is administratively affiliated with the Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP) within the College for Interdisciplinary Studies at UBC. The Centre remains located at 435-2206 East Mall, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z3, 604-822-2258, 604-822-9210, cphpr.info@ubc.ca.

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Centre for Population Health Promotion Research*

A UBC nexus for research, training & capacity-building

 

Room 435, Library Processing Centre, 2206 East Mall Vancouver BC V6T 1Z3
604-822-2258, 822-9210, ihpr.info@ubc.ca

New Website Under Construction (www.cphpr.ubc.ca)

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Contact Information

Dr. Jim Frankish

Professor & Director, Centre for Population Health Promotion Research

College for Interdisciplinary Studies (HELP) &

Department of Healthcare and Epidemiology Medicine, University of British Columbia

Room 425, Library Processing Centre 2206 East Mall Vancouver BC V6T 1Z3

604‑822‑9205, 822‑9210, frankish@interchange.ubc.ca

Personal web ‑ www.jimfrankish.com

IHPR Web Site ‑ www.ihpr.ubc.ca

BC Homelessness & Health Research ‑ Network www.bchhrn.ihpr.ubc.ca

BC Homelessness Virtual Library www.hvl.ihpr.ubc.ca

Partners in Community Health Research Training Program ‑ www.pchr.net

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Last Revised April 15th 2008

Full CV

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Featured News Article

Home Cost Crunch: UBC's Role? - UBC: Fueling, or solving, the problem? As real estate inflation tears Vancouver's social fabric, what's a university to do?

 

By Jim Frankish, Published: April 22, 2008 in theTyee.ca

http://thetyee.ca/Views/2008/04/22/HomeCostCrunch/

 

This is a plea for all Canadians to stop and think about how we define "progress" in our cities and towns.

 

We are bombarded daily by the message that social well-being is best measured by economic growth and indicators such as housing starts. It is as if our only gauge of progress is more -- more housing at higher prices.

 

And yet, we continue to create housing that fewer people can afford. The trend should be alarming for all Canadians.

 

As a professor engaged in research and teaching on health inequities, I believe the University of British Columbia and its community provides a compelling case to study. The UBC Mission & Vision states that we will "promote the values of a civil and sustainable society", and acknowledge our obligations as citizens to "secure a sustainable and equitable future for all." The current situation in Vancouver suggests that the UBC community should greatly strengthen these commitments, particularly when it comes to engaging the poorest and most vulnerable.

 

Unreal estate

Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation places the average resale price in 2007 for a Vancouver home at $464,500, after 10 straight years of price escalation.

 

Around UBC, a million dollars has become a low price for a home. The RealtyLink website on January 25th, 2008 in the UBC area showed 4 houses for sale at minimum cost of $929,000 and a maximum of $7.68 million. For 13 available townhouses, the minimum was $458,000 and the maximum was $2.38 million. The 57 listed apartments had a minimum price of $348,000 and a maximum of $1.87 million. For a typical mortgage (7 per cent interest, 5 per cent down, 5 year term, 25 year amortization), the minimum household income to purchase the average house ($3.9 million) was $1.1 million with monthly payments of $27,000. For the least expensive apartment, the minimum household income was just under $100,000, with monthly payments of $2,700. This is in a neighborhood where much of the land is leased, not owned.

 

In 2007, public data showed that UBC had roughly 11,748 employees. There were 12 employee groups, including union members, faculty and administrators, and some 43,000 students.

 

At the above prices (with two incomes per household), none of the almost 12,000 employees had a sufficient household income to purchase the average listed house ($3.9 million).

 

Only two per cent could qualify to buy the average townhouse ($1.2 million). Sadly, only 11 per cent could buy the average apartment ($724,000).

 

Finally, UBC had just over 5,000 people in six unionized groups. None of them could afford to buy any of the 74 properties above.

 

Slamming the gates

In sum, only 3.5 per cent of the almost 12,000 employees in Canada's third-largest university could afford to purchase property in the "neighborhood." Appropriate/affordable housing is even more problematic for the 43,000 UBC students who are generally younger and less affluent.

 

Magnify this problem across Canada where full-time post-secondary enrolment is expected to grow to 1.3 million in 2013.

 

Like many other universities, UBC can be very proud of several recent initiatives such as Community Service-Learning and the Community Health Initiative by University Students. To its credit, UBC has also built small amounts of non-market and rental housing. But as some of the foremost communities in Canadian society, our universities should be champions for change. They should be leading the charge for affordable housing for their staff and students, and for our most vulnerable citizens.

 

Given the obvious need and UBC's apparent resources, where is the housing for single parents, immigrants/refugees, the working poor, the homeless and low-income students in the new UBC community now taking form on and around campus?

 

Big long term costs

Our recent work (led by colleagues from SFU) shows that the cost of providing adequate housing and support to the absolute homeless in B.C. is $179 million. Provisions for adequate housing in the new UBC community (and elsewhere) would reduce costs for health care, corrections, and emergency shelters. There would be a net cost avoidance of $33 million per year to the province of B.C.

 

We in the richest neighborhoods across Canada should be doing the most, not the least in addressing inequities and improving the 'health' of our region. Why are our poorest citizens and increasing numbers of the middle class being priced out of home ownership in our towns and cities? Housing (like health services) is a "social" good that is too important to leave to the free market in Canada or elsewhere. Human well-being is not a commodity. Canadians must move toward a more sustainable model that adopts a "triple-bottom-line" mentality by giving equitable weight to our economic well-being, environmental preservation, and the promotion of social justice.

 

As a starting point, an immediate, cooperative and substantive investment in affordable and non-market housing for staff and students would go a long way toward meeting the vision statements of universities such as UBC. Second, we must lead and foster a comprehensive public conversation with all Canadians about the true determinants of health -- not just health care but housing, education, income, early child development, and social relations. At present, Canadian media give inordinate coverage to health care issues and largely ignore the 'non-medical' determinants of health. This coverage is at odds with our research which shows that Canadians see homelessness as an urgent social and health issue. They are eager and impatient to have their political, academic and community leaders address the health, social, legal and economic challenges associated with poverty in Canadian cities.

 

Walk the talk

Over the long term, universities across Canada could readily assume a place of greater regional and national leadership in "promoting the values of a civil and sustainable society." In part, this can be done by educating the next generation of decision leaders on the evidence regarding the real determinants of the health of this and future generations. Otherwise, we are all at risk of losing key opportunities and failing in our stated obligation to "secure a sustainable and equitable future for all."

 

The world is coming to Vancouver, and Canada, in 2010 and beyond. If we fail to change, the world will find communities that are increasingly unaffordable, inaccessible, and unfriendly.

 

If so, they surely won't see any real sign of "progress."

 

Dr. Jim Frankish is chair of the Impact on Communities Coalition, a senior scholar at the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, and professor & director at the Centre for Population Health Promotion Research, College for Interdisciplinary Studies, and Department of Healthcare & Epidemiology, UBC.

 

Featured Report

2007. Patterson, M., Somers, J., McIntosh, K., Shiell, A. & Frankish, J. Housing and Support for Adults with Severe Addictions and/or Mental Illness in BC, Centre for Applied Research in Mental Health and Addiction (CARMHA), SFU Vancouver.

index_files\HOUSING SAMI FINAL DOCUMENT OCT 31 2007.pdf

 

Featured Project

We are working to create a Population Health Implementation Centre in our Downtown Eastside. It will be home to social-enterprise activities, employment training of at-risk & street persons, community-service learning projects, mental health, addiction, legal & housing outreach services, food security/nutrition initiatives, literacy and health work, arts activities (e.g., community theatre), research, training and capacity-building around determinants of health, the conduct and evaluation of demonstration projects, and the creation and sharing of related resources that can be shared/adapted across Canada (and beyond). Notions of population health and determinants of health have gained prominence in federal, provincial & local health policy/practice. CIHR and other funders have identified population health interventions as a priority. There is a huge, obvious need to address determinants of health and related inequities in one of Canada’s poorest neighbourhoods – the Downtown Eastside. Sadly, these inequities regularly manifest in the form of mental illness and addictions. Auspicious circumstances exist in support of the creation of the above Centre. The WHO Commission provides a challenge to Canada to take strong action on determinants of health. (This would include the types of demonstration projects and ‘action’ envisaged by your Commission). In the 2010 Olympics, the world will see our health inequities in Vancouver. In a Mayor’s poll, Vancouverites rated "addressing homelessness" as the #1 expected legacy of 2010. Our Province is eager to address these concerns in lasting and innovative ways. To date, we have found a possible site for the Centre, done a building inspection, and had very positive conversations with the Sacred Heart parish about a low-cost, long-term lease of a vacant school property which they hold. The school site has additional vacant space that could be developed. We have also had positive conversations with provincial ministers regarding creation of a ‘Healthy Cities Investment’ that will provide an endowment to UBC from the $1B in annual property-transfer taxes. We have suggested 1% ($10M) per year for three years around the 2010 Games. We have strong indications of support from Stephen Owen and others at UBC, and will arrange with students from our Sauder Business School to create a full business plan for the Centre. Our collegial and collaborative relations with SFU mean that the Centre can easily involve faculty and students across universities. Our respective units and others, e.g. UBC’s Learning Exchange already have established footprints in the community. For example, we have street youth and UBC students (from 10 disciplines) teaching health literacy to other street-youth. We have applied to renew our successful, research-training program, "Partners in Community Health Research" (PCHR: pchr.net). We are applying for a Community-University Research Alliance (CURA) grant from SSHRC. Finally, we have developed connections with the Downtown Eastside Revitalization Taskforce of the Vancouver Board of Trade. These business connections will be a key to our development of social-enterprise activities, employment training of at-risk and street persons. Through VanCity and other business entities, social-enterprise activities are growing in Vancouver. The business community is also eager to support innovative 2010 legacy projects. In sum, the proposed Centre will impact health and quality-of-life in BC’s poorest community. Our work will improve the literacy, health literacy, and employability of persons in the DTES. Over times the Centre and its work will help to train the next generation of (mental) health and social science professionals. The Healthy-Cities Investment from the Province would represent a lasting legacy of that is consistent with the Vision for the 2010 Games. Most important, it will improve the living conditions, (mental) health and quality-of-life of our most needy citizens. The envisioned Centre could readily provide a long-term home for community development, demonstration projects and community-service learning and research.

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With Thanks from Pivot Legal Society

 
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Recent Activities & Upcoming Activities

 

Courses

New Course! Spring 2008

Student Directed Seminar - Perspectives on Health – Local to Global

Coordinators: Nadia Formigoni and Melanie Byland, Faculty Sponsor: Dr. James Frankish, melanie.byland@gmail.com, nadiafor@interchange.ubc.ca

 

This course is an interdisciplinary health seminar focusing on local, provincial, national and global health issues. Guest lecturers will address topics such as drug addictions, urban & rural health, Canadian health care policy and socio-economic factors in international health. Along with the in-class course content, a community service learning (CSL) component is included in this course. Prerequisites 3rd or 4th year standing and a 200-word statement of interest.

 

Course Dates: Tuesdays & Thursdays, 4 – 5:30 pm, January 2008.

Overview of Course

Jan 08 Introduction

Jan 10 Drug Addictions

Jan 15 Homelessness

Jan 17 Health Psychology

Jan 22 Human Early Learning Partnership

Jan 24 Discussion of Community Health Issues & Introduction to Provincial Health

Jan 29 Social Geographies of Health (Healthy Communities: Act Now)

Jan 31 Urban Health

Feb 05 Rural Health

Feb 07 Topics in Youth Health

Feb 12 Preparation for Community-Service Learning

Feb 14 Preparation and Planning for CSL

Feb 19 Reading Week – CSL Projects

Feb 21 Reading Week

Feb 26 Debriefing of CSL

Feb 28 Discussion of Provincial Health & Introduction to National Health

Mar 04 Overview of Health Economics

Mar 06 CSL Presentations

Mar 11 Canadian Health Care Policy

Mar 13 Population health in industrialized societies

Mar 18 Discussion of National Health Issues & Introduction to Global Health

Mar 20 Global problems in health

Mar 25 Socio-economic factors in international health

Mar 27 Global threats to human health

Apr 01 Cultural Differences in Health

Apr 03 Discussion of Global Health Issues & Introduction to Connecting Themes

Apr 08 Synthesis of Course Material

Apr 10 Synthesis of Course Material

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Recent Course - Health Promotion Theory & Practice – Winter 2008: Mondays, 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm, January 9 - April 2, LPC 424, 2206 East Mall. 604-822-9205 or frankish@interchange.ubc.ca e This course combines Health Care & Epidemiology 545 & 546 (Social Science Concepts in Health Promotion). It draws upon theories and concepts from social/behavioral sciences as applied to health promotion and population-health research. The objective is to increase awareness of, and skills in applying, selected social-science concepts in analysis of health promotion problems, assessment of needs in specific populations, and planning of programs. The course is open to Doctoral and advanced Masters-level students in health-related disciplines. Preference is given to students Health Care & Epidemiology.

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Upcoming Course – IHHS 200 – Determinants of Health, September 2008. Note my class section will be limited to 1st and 2nd year students.

Note: IHHS 200 Materials are at the very end of this website. IHHS 200 will be taught by other instructors in Fall 2007. Jim will teach in september 2008

Papers

Fielden S. Rusch M. Masinda M. Sands J. Frankish J. Evoy B. Key considerations for logic model development in research partnerships: a Canadian case study. Evaluation & Program Planning. 30(2):115-24, 2007 May.

Community-academic partnership research is a fairly new genre of community-based participatory research. It has arisen in part, from recognition of the potential role of alliances in the development and translation of applied knowledge and the elimination of health disparities. This paper reports on the learning process of academic and community members who worked together in developing a logic model for a research program focusing on partnerships with vulnerable populations. The Partners in Community Health Research is a 6-year training program that seeks to combine research, training, and practice through the work of its "learning clusters". As these types of partnerships proliferate, the articulation and exploration of clear models will assist in their implementation. The authors, coming from both academia and community agencies, present a logic model meant to facilitate program management. Key considerations in the model's development are discussed in the context of an ongoing research partnership; namely, the complexity of the research partnership, power and accountability, alignment with health promotion policy, and the iterative nature of program design. Recommendations challenge academics, policy-makers, service providers, and community members to reflect on the elements needed to support and manage research partnerships and the tools necessary to ensure continued collaboration. logicmodelsandpartners.pdf

 

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Fielden, S. Sheckter, L. Chapman, G., Alimenti, A., Forbes, J., Sheps, S., Cadell, S., Frankish, J. Growing up: perspectives of children, families and service providers regarding the needs of older children with perinatally-acquired HIV. AIDS Care. 18(8):1050-3, 2006 Nov.

Children with perinatally-acquired HIV are living into adolescence and adulthood. As this is a relatively new phenomenon, there is a paucity of research highlighting the complex issues that arise for these children. This qualitative case-study examines the needs of a select group of older children (9-16 years old) with perinatally-acquired HIV in the province of British Columbia, Canada through focus groups and interviews conducted with ten HIV-infected children, 11 family members and 11 service providers. The needs of this population are diverse, reflecting its heterogeneity. However, participants consistently highlighted issues of stigma, sexual health and mental health as major areas of current and future concern. Continued support, education and future planning in these areas are necessary for older HIV-infected children as they transition out of childhood. growingupAIDS.pdf

 

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Frankish C.J., Moulton G.E., Quantz D., Carson A.J., Casebeer A.L., Eyles J.D., Labonte R., Evoy B.E. Addressing the non-medical determinants of health: A survey of Canada’s health regions. Can J Public Health 2007; 98(1):41-47.

healthregionsandnmdh.pdf

 

Background: The Canadian health system is undergoing reform. Over the past decade, a prominent trend has been creation of health regions. This structural shift is concurrent with a greater emphasis on population health and the broad determinants of health. In parallel, there is a movement toward more intersectoral collaboration (i.e., collaboration between diverse segments of the health system, and between the health system and other sectors of society). The purpose of this exploratory study is to determine the self-reported level of internal action (within regional health authorities) and intersectoral collaboration around 10 determinants of health by regional health authorities across Canada. Methods: From September 2003 to February 2004, we undertook a survey of regional health authorities in Canadian provinces (N=69). Using SPSS 12.0, we generated frequencies for the self-reported level of internal and intersectoral action for each determinant. Other analyses were done to compare rural/suburban and urban regions, and to compare Western, Central and Eastern Canada. Results: Of the 10 determinants of health surveyed, child development and personal health practices were self-reported by the majority of health regions to receive greatest attention, both internally and through intersectoral activities. Culture, gender and employment/working conditions received least attention in most regions. Conclusion: The exploratory survey results give us the first Canadian snapshot of health regions’ activities in relation to the broad range of non-medical determinants of health. They provide a starting data set for baselining future progress, and for beginning deeper analyses of specific areas of action and intersectoral collaboration.

 

 

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See Report Card on the 2010 Olmypic Games Olympic report.lnk

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New Grants Received

 

Hospitals and Homelessness: The Experiences of Homeless and Under-Housed Persons, Service Providers & Health Professionals & The Emergency, Inpatient & Outpatient Profiles of Homeless and Under-Housed Persons

This new project was submitted to the Homelessness Knowledge Development Program (HRSDC) on behalf of the BC Homelessness and Health Research Network. It represents a partnership between the Lookout Emergency Aid Society, Providence Healthcare & St. Paul’s Hospital, the Salvation Army - Vancouver, the Triage Emergency Services & Care Society Vancouver General Hospital, Vancouver Coastal Health and the Centre for Population Health Promotion Research at UBC. Our specific objectives are to address these research and clinical gaps by doing the following: 1) gathering new knowledge regarding the history and experiences of contact (emergency, hospital admissions, discharge) with St. Paul’s Hospital and Vancouver General Hospital in homeless shelter users and other street-involved persons; 2) gathering new knowledge regarding shelter and service providers’ experience(s) of sending clients to either hospital and receiving patients back from either hospital; 3) gathering new knowledge regarding health professionals’ experiences of receiving and discharging patients who are homeless or marginally housed persons; and 4) comparing patients (emergency, medical, psychiatric, surgical) of no fixed address with shelter users via medical chart reviews.

 

Public Outreach Grant - Media as an Ally in Addressing Homelessness

A 2007 Mayor’s poll ranked the City’s top priority as homelessness (25%). The most expected legacy of the 2010 Olympics was reduced homelessness Our project will to reach out to the community (providers, NGOs, media) and build their capacity to directly engage Canadians in a public conversation regarding potential policy and program solutions that will erase homelessness and improve the quality of life, social functioning and health of persons who are marginalized. Our objectives are to conduct a participatory, community-outreach project that: a) gathers information on service providers’ experiences and capacity regarding use of media and media advocacy (MA), b) conducts a needs assessment regarding providers’ use(s) of media, c) to co-host a community forum, student seminar, pre