Children's health

Highlights

• This report presents data on the prescription of medications for attention deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity (ADHD) taken from the Québec Integrated Chronic Disease Surveillance System (QICDSS). Estimates were obtained from longitudinal monitoring between April 1, 2000, and March 31, 2020, for all individuals aged 24 years and younger who were eligible for Québec’s public prescription drug insurance plan (PPDIP).
• The results show a steady increase in the prescription of ADHD medications over time. In 2019–2020, 56,080 Quebecers (7.7%) aged from 1 to 24 years enrolled in the PPDIP received at least one prescription for ADHD medication.
• The percentage of ADHD medication prescribing differs by the sex and age of the person.
• The prevalence of ADHD medication prescribing varied considerably across regions, ranging from 3.2% to 14.4%.
• People living in highly economically advantaged environments have a lower pre…

This knowledge translation tool, developed by the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ), aims to support early childhood stakeholders in the implementation of concerted actions at the national, regional, and local levels. More specifically, the tool targets professionals who accompany early childhood consultation and mobilization, as well as partners and actors on the ground who feel affected.

The tool is based on two knowledge syntheses¹. These syntheses have identified principles for effective early childhood interventions across Canada. The tool introduces these principles and illustrates them with examples of interventions that have been evaluated. There are, of course, many effective and inspiring actions in Quebec; however, it was impossible to list them all in this tool. We encourage early childhood stakeholders to share their success stories for further reflection and mobilization. …

This knowledge translation tool, developed by the Institut national de santé publique (INSPQ), is based on the synthesis Développement socioaffectif de l’enfant entre 0 et 5 ans et facteurs associés. The synthesis and tool were developed as part of the Initiative concertée d’intervention pour le développement des jeunes enfants (ICIDJE) working group, “Intervention Support” component.

The tool consists of two parts :

1. The pyramid of social-emotional development from 0 to 6 years of age
2. Social-emotional development from 0 to 6 years of age: one step at a time

Each part may be used independently.

• The pyramid of social-emotional development from 0 to 6 years of age
  (infographic + glossary)
  This section includes an infographic presenting a comprehensive framework of key aspects that influence the development of children’s social and emotional skills…

This surveillance report examines changes from 1989–1992 to 2008–2010 in preterm and small-for-gestational-age birth rates in Québec for the general population and by mother’s first language. Rates based on selected sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., place of residence, material deprivation, and immigrant status) of mothers in each linguistic community are also presented.

The report’s main finding is that previously observed variations in perinatal health favoring Anglophones were not observed in 2008–2010: preterm and small-for-gestational-age birth rates were similar for Anglophones, Francophones, and Allophones during this period.

Preterm birth rates

• Preterm birth rates increased for all linguistic communities from 1989–1992¹ and stabilized beginning in 2002–2004.
• In 2008–2010 preterm birth rates per 100 live births were comparable for Francophones, Anglophones, and Allo…

A framework for integrated health promotion and prevention actions based on a competency approach

The framework for integrated promotion and prevention actions in schools seeks to promote the development of competencies that contribute to academic success and are common to a range of subjects related to health and well-being. It is aimed at counteracting the tendency to compartmentalize actions (e.g., healthy eating, sexuality). The framework also lays out the organizational conditions that promote synergy between stakeholders as well as key actions to deploy and knowledge (knowledge, attitudes and skills) to be acquired at different stages in the child’s development and school career.

A positive, comprehensive intervention strategy based on the development of personal and social competencies

The framework’s intervention strategy has three guiding principles: 1) Act according to a positive and continuous vision of development…

The purpose of the Joint Intervention Initiative for Early Childhood Development (JIIECD) is to support the development of the children of Québec, improve their school readiness and enhance their success in school. The first phase involves conducting the Québec Survey of Child Development in Kindergarten (QSCDK). The second phase consists of implementing actions that may support child development on the basis of the results obtained in the first phase. Several partners are collaborating in this initiative: the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS), the Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS), the Ministère de la Famille, the organization Avenir d'enfants and the Institut de la statistique du Québec (ISQ).

The intervention working group [JIIECD intervention support phase], a committee of partners from the project and from the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ), has tasked itself with supporting the planning of actions by consid…

This tool was developed to support the collective decision-making process concerning actions to promote total child development. It is designed for local and regional actors seeking to take an objective look at the services available in their areas based on the outcomes of the Québec Survey of Child Development in Kindergarten (QSCDK). This tool can be used to conduct a self-evaluation based on the ten conditions for success set out in the document Conditions for Success of Actions to Promote Total Child Development: State of Knowledge.

The tool may be used when undertaking general and concerted planning of actions within a given territory, fine-tuning an existing plan or evaluating the adequacy of a new action. It may also be useful for matching the ongoing adequacy of your actions against the conditions for success.

The live attenuated influenza virus vaccine (LAIV), Flumist®, administered by intranasal spray, is approved for people aged 2-59 years. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommended in its statement for the 2011-2012 season that, given its efficacy and immunogenicity, LAIV should be used preferentially for healthy children and adolescents aged 2 to 17 years. NACI also indicates that LAIV can be used for children with chronic diseases, other than immune compromising conditions or severe asthma, but that there were insufficient data to recommend the preferential use of LAIV over trivalent inactivated vaccine (TIV). The Comité sur l'immunisation du Québec (CIQ) also recommended, at its June 2011 meeting, that LAIV should be used preferentially in healthy children aged 2-17 years, particularly among household contacts of people at high risk for complicated influenza infection.

At the December 2011 CIQ meeting, the question of LAIV preferential use in childre…

The Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) and the Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS) asked the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) to produce a decision support tool. This new tool is intended to help managers and staff in the education and health networks to select the promotion and prevention practices that will be most effective in fostering educational success, health and well-being among students in Québec schools.

The document entitled Educational Success, Health and Well-Being: Effective Action in Schools – Synthesis of Recommendations is one component of this tool. It presents a synthesis of the national and international scientific knowledge, in the fields of education science, social science and health, underpinning the main recommendations concerning effective health promotion and prevention practices in schools. The synthesis is presented in the form of information sheets on eleven topics that are reflec…