Public Health Law and Ethics Program

The law and the ethical framework within which we evolve, is an important tool to achieving better population health: it influences the practice of public health at the local, regional, provincial/territorial, federal and international levels, and enables jurisdictions to work together on the day-to-day business of public health.

The SARS outbreak of 2003 highlighted some weaknesses in our current legislative framework. This - and the continuing challenges posed by such outbreaks as the incidence of the West Nile Virus, the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (“mad cow disease”) - and the increasing threat of a flu
pandemic - have underscored the importance of effective public health laws.

• Public Health Law Improvement Network

What's New

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is pleased to support
the First Canadian Roundtable on Public Health Ethics:
Exploring the Foundations, taking place in Montreal, Quebec (Canada)
from November 8-9, 2007.

The objectives of the Roundtable are to:

1. identify and bring together stakeholders involved/interested in public health ethics;
2. improve the understanding of the inherent ethical dimensions of public health research and practice;
3. promote dialogue and understanding of ethics and its application across sectors, e.g. biomedical research, clinical ethics, public health ethics, health policy, and political decision-making; and
4. identify opportunities and challenges for action or initiatives in public health ethics.

For more information and to register please consult the conference website www.ethics-ethique.ca

Reports / Analyses

• The SARS Commission , April 2005.

• The Normative Framework for the Reporting and Management of Infectious Diseases: International Compendium ( 6 666 KB), March 2005.

• Learning from SARS - Renewal of Public Health in Canada,
  September 2004.

• The Reporting and Management of Personal Information and Personal Health Information to Control and Combat Infectious Disease: An Analysis of the Canadian Statutory and Regulatory Framework.
  ( 1 438 KB), March 2004.

• Initial Report of the Ontario Expert Panel on SARS and Infectious Disease Control , December 2003.

• Reforming Health Protection and Promotion in Canada: Time to Act , November 2003.

• Walkerton Commission of Inquiry Reports , October 2003.

• The Future of Public Health in Canada: Developing a Public Health System for the 21st Century , June 2003.

• The Compendium of the Canadian Legislative Framework for the Declaration and Management of Infectious Diseases
  ( 9 956 KB) February 2003.

• Use of Cancer Patient Information for Surveillance Purposes
  March 2000.

• Commission of Inquiry on the Blood System in Canada (Krever Commission) , October 1993.

Presentation

• Post-SARS Public Health Law Developments in Canada
  Seoul, Korea - August 17, 2005.
  ( PPT 255 KB)
• Post-SARS Public Health Law Developments in Canada
  Atlanta, Georgia - June 14, 2005.
  ( PPT 247 KB)

Other Links

• Public Health Law Program
  a CDC program aiming to improve the health of the public through law (U.S.)
• Public Health Law Program
  a California-based non-governmental organization that develops policy sotultions to public health challenges
• Constitution Acts
• Health Protection Legislative Renewal
• HumGen International
  a research resource for ethical, legal and social issues in human genetics and population health
• LEGIS INFO
• The First Canadian Roundtable on Public Health Ethics
  
  

For more information, contact publichealthpractice@phac-aspc.gc.ca
or call toll free: 1-877-430-9995.