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Several factors affect citizens' health in Toronto. Elements include local hospitals, air quality and smog alerts as well as vehicle emissions, healthy exercise and food options, and the level of crime. Each of these factors are described in greater detail below.


Description

The city is part of the Toronto Public Health Division, and is home to many
hospitals A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
. Other factors affecting health in the city include
air quality Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different types ...
in regard to smog. Smog alerts are issued by Toronto Public Health when the air quality is poor enough to warrant informing some segments of the public to limit their exposure to the smog, such as children, the elderly, and people with
lung diseases Respiratory diseases, or lung diseases, are pathological conditions affecting the organs and tissues that make gas exchange difficult in air-breathing animals. They include conditions of the respiratory tract including the trachea, bronchi, br ...
or heart conditions. The best and worst years for smog in the city within the last five years were respectively 2006 with 11 smog alerts, and 2005 with 48 smog alerts. A vehicle emissions testing program known as Ontario's Drive Clean began in 1999, and has had a minimal impact on smog in Toronto. 2005 was Toronto's worst year on record for smog with a total of 48 smog alert days. The Ontario Medical Association estimated in 2005 that total air pollution (from all sources) would cause some 5,800 deaths and 17,000 hospital admissions that year. The city has many opportunities for citizens to be
physically active Exercise is a Human body, body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. It is performed for various reasons, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone ...
, including
bike lanes Bike lanes (US) or cycle lanes (UK) are types of bikeways (cycleways) with lanes on the roadway for cyclists only. In the United Kingdom, an on-road cycle-lane can be firmly restricted to cycles (marked with a solid white line, entry by motor ...
,
walkways In American English, walkway is a composite or umbrella term for all engineered surfaces or structures which support the use of trails. ''The New Oxford American Dictionary'' also defines a walkway as "a passage or path for walking along, esp. a ...
, and parks throughout the city. Given the cultural diversity of the city, there is also great diversity in the foods that citizens can consume, which determines their personal
nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient ...
. Many foods for example enter the city through the
Ontario Food Terminal The Ontario Food Terminal is the main produce distribution centre for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at 165 The Queensway at Park Lawn Road, north of the Gardiner Expressway, and west of the Humber River. The U-shaped building occupies o ...
, located on the west side. Another risk to health for citizens is exposure to crime in the city. Toronto has a rate of
violent crime A violent crime, violent felony, crime of violence or crime of a violent nature is a crime in which an offender or perpetrator uses or threatens to use harmful force upon a victim. This entails both crimes in which the violent act is the objecti ...
of 738 incidents per 100,000 people, though this is still lower than the national average of 951, according to 2006 Statistics Canada data, and far lower than other cities of comparable size (particularly those in the United States).


Governance

Several municipally funded programs affect health in the city. They are listed below, and where possible their annual budgets are provided. Provincial and
federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
programs also affect health in Toronto, such as the provincial Smoke-Free Ontario Act which bans
cigarette smoking Tobacco smoking is the practice of burning tobacco and ingesting the resulting smoke. The smoke may be inhaled, as is done with cigarettes, or simply released from the mouth, as is generally done with pipes and cigars. The practice is believed ...
in enclosed spaces in the province. *
Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division Toronto Parks, Forestry & Recreation (PFR) is the division of Toronto's municipal government responsible for maintaining the municipal park system and natural spaces, regulation of and provision of urban forestry services, and the delivery of rec ...
($239,953,000, 2004) * Toronto Police Services ($707,573,000, 2004) *
Toronto Public Health Toronto Public Health (TPH) is the public health unit in Toronto, Ontario. It is responsible for delivering public health programs and services, enforcing public health regulations and advising Toronto City Council on health issues. The current u ...
($182,672,000, 2004) * Toronto Water Division


History of public administration

All municipalities had their own public health programs, meaning a patchwork of systems throughout Ontario, including within the modern borders of Toronto. For example, the Town of Mimico, Town of New Toronto, and Village of Long Branch each had their own program, despite the communities bordering each other within a few kilometre stretch of
Lakeshore Road Lakeshore Road (originally Lake Shore Road) is a historic roadway in the Canadian province of Ontario, running through the city of Burlington and the town of Oakville in Halton Region, as well as the city of Mississauga in Peel Region. As its n ...
. In 1956, the Lakeshore Board of Education in 1956 asking the councils of to consider forming one central service.
Metropolitan Toronto The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and villages that surrounded Toronto, whic ...
was created in 1954 as a measure to encourage collaboration between the urban municipalities in southern York County. In 1960, the
Toronto Board of Health Toronto Public Health (TPH) is the public health unit in Toronto, Ontario. It is responsible for delivering public health programs and services, enforcing public health regulations and advising Toronto City Council on health issues. The current u ...
chair called for a Metro-wide board, stating "epidemics don't recognize municipal boundaries. The present chaotic division of health responsibilities in ridiculous." Premier
John Robarts John Parmenter Robarts (January 11, 1917 – October 18, 1982) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th premier of Ontario from 1961 to 1971. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Early life Robar ...
' government looked to find efficiencies in local governance. That included Health Minister Dr.
Matthew Dymond Matthew Bulloch Dymond, (September 24, 1911 – February 21, 1996) was a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1955 to 1975 who represented the riding of Ontario. He ...
proposing a joint board of health for Metro's six municipalities. Local Medical Officers of Health and board chairs largely balked at the idea, announced in 1967, even though the province offered to pay 75% of costs, instead of the previous 25%. It was thought that a merger would raise costs, that one body couldn't serve 2 million residents, and that a merger might lead to a "lowest common denominator" approach. Dymond remained firm, noting that other large municipalities had been successful in such transitions.


Organizations

The city is home to many health organizations, including: *
List of hospitals in Toronto There are over thirty hospitals located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Many of them are also medical research facilities and teaching schools affiliated with the University of Toronto. Most hospitals are grouped under administrative networks that ser ...
* Canadian Association of Food Banks *
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH, pronounced , french: Centre de toxicomanie et de santé mentale) is a psychiatric teaching hospital located in Toronto and ten community locations throughout the province of Ontario, Canada. It re ...
* The Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada * Heart and Stroke Foundation *
Canadian Cancer Society The Canadian Cancer Society (french: Société canadienne du cancer) is Canada's largest national cancer charity and the largest national charitable funder of cancer research in Canada. History The idea to form the Canadian Cancer Society origin ...
*
Alzheimer Society of Canada The Alzheimer Society of Canada (ASC) is a Canadian health charity for people living with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Active in communities right across Canada, the Society partners with Alzheimer Societies in every Canadian provi ...
* Alzheimer Society of Ontario *
Alzheimer Society of Toronto Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As t ...
* Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada *
Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation was a charitable organization which raised money to advance research, education, diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Established in 1986 by Nancy Tsai (then known as Nancy Paul), it worked to fund, suppor ...
*
Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research The Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR) is the only national charitable foundation that raises awareness to generate funds for research into all aspects of HIV infection and AIDS. Since inception in 1987, CANFAR has invested more than ...
*
Cystic Fibrosis Canada Cystic Fibrosis Canada is a national charitable not-for-profit corporation established in 1960. Cystic Fibrosis Canada's mandate is to help individuals with cystic fibrosis, principally by funding cystic fibrosis research and care. The organizat ...
*
Canadian Mental Health Association The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is a Canadian non-profit mental health organization that focusing on resources, programs and advocacy. It was founded on April 22, 1918, by Dr. Clarence M. Hincks and Clifford W. Beers. Originally nam ...
*
ALS Society of Canada The ALS Society of Canada is a registered, not-for-profit Canadian organization. ALS Canada, founded in 1977, is a national voluntary health organization dedicated to the fight against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig' ...
* Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders * The Canadian Hearing Society *
JDRF JDRF is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that funds type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, provides a broad array of community and activist services to the T1D population and actively advocates for regulation favorable to medical research and approval o ...
* Kidney Foundation of Canada * Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada * Muscular Dystrophy Canada The city was also the host of the 2006 XVI International AIDS Conference.


See also

*
Determinants of health The social determinants of health (SDOH) are the economic and social conditions that influence individual and group differences in health status. They are the health promoting factors found in one's living and working conditions (such as the d ...


References

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