Canada among leaders in OECD health results
CMAJ 2000;162:1032
| | Other Pulse articles / Autres chroniques Médicogramme | |
See also:
The latest data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) indicate that Canada compares favourably with other highly industrialized countries when it comes to life expectancy but is in the middle of the pack in terms of infant mortality.
In 1996, the life expectancy at birth for a Canadian woman was 81.4 years, which ranked Canada sixth among the 28 countries for which data were available. Only Japan (83.6 years), France (82.0), Switzerland (81.9), Spain (81.8) and Sweden (81.5) have higher life expectancy rates for females. The US, at 79.4 years, ranked 17th, while Turkey had the lowest life expectancy rate for women, 70.5years.
Canada ranked fourth in life expectancy at birth for men, at 75.7 years. Only Japan (77.0 years), Sweden (76.5), and Iceland (76.2) had superior rates. The US ranked 19th at 72.7 years, while Turkey again had the worst rate, 65.9 years.
In terms of of infant mortality, Canada is tied with Belgium and the Czech Republic for 14th place among the 28 countries, with a rate of 6.0 deaths/1000 live births. The United States mirrors Canada, with an infant mortality rate of 6.1/1000. Iceland has the best rate, 3.7/1000 live births, followed closely by Japan (3.8), Finland (3.9) and Norway (4.0). Turkey, at 42.2/1000, had the highest infant mortality rate, with Mexico a distant second at 17/1000. — Shelley Martin, CMA, martis@cma.ca
 |
Send a letter to the editor Envoyez une lettre à la rédaction |
© 2000 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors
