Children's health

The Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) is participating in the inquiry by appearing before the Board, submitting evidence and making representations.

The INSPQ is affected by the Order of the Governor in Council, which prohibits the advertising, sale or importation of baby walkers within the meaning of section 9 of the Hazardous Products Act, for the following reasons: The INSPQ is an organization that was created in June 1998. It is a public health expertise and reference centre for Quebec. Its goal is to contribute to the advancement of knowledge and to propose intersectoral strategies and actions to improve population health and well-being. Trauma is a particular area of focus for the INSPQ. Since baby walkers represent a major safety issue, any legislative change that is likely to increase access to these products is of the highest concern to us. Moreover, the INSPQ attaches particular importance to one of the objectives of Quebec's national public hea…

In Canada, the first 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV-7) was licenced in 2001. The manufacturer's recommendation is to administer three doses at an early age for primary immunization and a booster dose during the second year (Wyeth-Ayerst Canada Inc. 2001). The recommendation of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NAIC) is to give 3 doses of vaccines at the same time as the other vaccines provided in the schedule at the ages of 2, 4 and 6 months, and the booster dose between 12 and 15 months (NAIC 2002). An economic analysis done for Canada indicated that such a program would significantly reduce the burden of disease in children, but that the cost-effectiveness indices, established for a purchase price of $58 per dose, were not favorable compared to other immunization programs (De Wals et al. 2003). In 2002, in response to the report of the Working Group on Conjugate Antipneumococcal Vaccine (INSPQ 2003), the Quebec Immunization Committee (QIC…

Here are the abstracts and PowerPoints of the North American Conference on deafness screening and intervention in early childhood (January 23-25, 2003).