Domains of Equity
Health Domain
Economic Domain
Social & Human Development Domain
Physical Environment Domain
Community & Belonging Domain
Profile on local issues
Portraits of population groups
Immigrants & Racialized Groups
Social Domain
Physical Domain
Community Domain
The Health Domain
The NEI Population Health Domain reveals health disparities at the level of Ottawa neighbourhoods (census tract level). It ranks Ottawa neighbourhoods on access to diabetes related health services, emergency room visits for mental health and addiction services, and emergency room visits linked to falls among seniors. Through empirically mapping inequity, this NEI domain aims to support decision makers in making evidence-based decisions that can produce a more equitable, stronger, and healthier Ottawa.
The Ottawa NEI Health Domain has three indicators:
Diabetes Related Health Service
Percentage of people aged 20 and over with diabetes related health service.
Data Source: Ottawa Public Health, Cameron McDermaid MHSc
Falls among Seniors
Aged standardized number of hospital discharges with any diagnosis of fall for population 60 years and over.
Average Number of ED Mental Health & Substance Use Visits, 2014-2018.
Why this domain matters
Health is not only biologically determined but influenced by environmental factors (built environment), economic factors (income and level of education), and social factors (social network and support). Socio-economic status (SES) interacts with each of the aforementioned factors in a multitude of ways determining individual health outcomes. Low-income status can have a detrimental impact on health, increasing hospitalization rates, incidence of diabetes, acute and chronic health issues, and mortality rates. The interaction of place and health cannot be understated, with the health consequence of living in disadvantaged neighbourhoods outweighing individual socio-economic characteristics.
Universal programs can achieve health improvements for some health inequities, such as obesity, alcohol binging and hospitalizations for injuries in children. Other health inequities, such as mental health disorders, substance use disorders, diabetes, and COPD will require targeted programs with particular attention to the needs of specific low-SES populations and/or neighbourhoods 1.
1 Canadian Institute for Health Information. (2008). Reducing Gaps in Health: A Focus on Socio-Economic Status in Urban Canada. In Canadian Institute for Health Information – report.
Maps and Data related to the Health Domain
REPORT: Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health In Ottawa
Ottawa Public Health, 2016.
Assesses the relationship between health status and income for thirteen health measures.
WEBSITE: The Ottawa Neighbourhood Study
The Ottawa Neighbourhood Study (ONS) provides data on strengths and challenges for each neighbourhood in Ottawa
RESEARCH: Ottawa Public Health's General Population Health Data
Research, Data and Reports by Ottawa Public Health related to population health and socio-demographic data.
DATA: Health & Wellness theme through Ottawa Insights
By the Ottawa Community Foundation
Find data and indicators related to health & wellness in Ottawa.
ONLINE LEARNING: Health Equity
By Public Health Ontario
On line courses, interactive modules, research, data and reports for integrating health equity in health promotion programs and policies.
INFOGRAPHIC: A Health Equity Approach
By the Public Health Agency of Canada
Chief Public Health Officer of Canada's health equity approach
See Graphic
REPORT: What is Health Equity?
By the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
A report designed to increase consensus around the meaning of health equity by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
RESOURCE: Prevention Institute
Health Equity focus area
Initiatives, research, publications, training and other tools and services related to health equity by the Prevention Institute
MAPPING PORTAL: Isolated Seniors and Food Security
By the Social Planning Council of Ottawa
This dashboard is exploring the presence of vulnerable senior populations that could indicate food insecurity and special diet needs.
Neighbourhood Equity in Action: Health Domain
Find out what others are doing to improve health equity in Ottawa. Reach out directly to get involved.
Members of the Healthy Transportation Coalition believe there are many needed improvements in the National Capital Region before we will have a truly healthy transportation network.
Community Development Framework (CDF) brings together residents, community organizations, and city services in priority neighbourhoods across Ottawa in order to identify local community issues, decide on the changes and build on neighbourhood strengths.
Community Gardening Network of Ottawa is an information and resource-sharing network that supports the sustainable development of community gardens within the City.
Aptly nicknamed the "grocery store on wheels," Market Mobile helps ensure people living in marginalized neighbourhoods have the opportunity to purchase affordable and fresh produce close to where they live.
A Community Safety and Well-Being Plan (by the City of Ottawa) is a way to work together to address common objectives to ensure Ottawa is a safe, healthy and vibrant community.
To build social capital in priority neighbourhoods in support of the Strong Neighbourhoods goal, United Way and partner agencies engaged key stakeholders and volunteers to establish Ottawa Neighbourhoods Social Capital Forum (ONSCF).
Ottawa Good Food Box is a program within the Centretown Community Health Centre , Community Health and Early Years Program that focuses on delivering affordable boxes of delicious and nutritious vegetables and fruits to 40 neighbourhood locations throughout Ottawa once a month.
(not currently active)
Good Food Markets are community, non-profit markets in Ottawa that sell a variety of high quality, culturally-appropriate fruits, vegetables and dried goods at great value.
815 St Laurent Blvd, Suite 235
Ottawa, ON K1K 3A7
Email: dianneu@spcottawa.on.ca
Ottawa Neighbourhood Equity
History and Partners
Ottawa is rich with data that tells a myriad of stories that provide a snapshot of the everyday lives of the city's residents. The sources of the data can vary in scope from the granular (Ottawa Neighbourhood Study) to the municipal (Ottawa Insights) with each data source designed to improve local service delivery, inform public policy, and/or illuminate city-wide inequities1. Yet, despite the richness in available data, the city is missing a holistic, systematic and defensible data tool to identify inequities and prioritize neighbourhoods that are struggling with the essentials of life. Conceivably such a tool would also help identify priorities for investment and show a trend over time on overall neighbourhood health equity.
To address this gap United Way Ottawa, the City of Ottawa, and the Social Planning Council of Ottawa have adapted the WHO Urban HEART (Health Equity Assessment and Response Tool) approach and developed the Neighbourhood Equity Index (NEI). The NEI methodology closely follows the City of Toronto's Urban HEART methodology with changes where necessary to reflect the uniqueness of the Ottawa context. The Urban HEART approach to measuring and visualizing inequity has been piloted in 10 countries around the world and is widely recognized as a credible tool for informing health equity interventions and system level changes.
The Neighbourhood Equity Index (NEI) works in tandem with various data approaches to understanding and addressing inequity at the neighbourhood level in Ottawa. All of the data approaches have historical roots to place-based community development initiatives, in particular the South East Ottawa 2004 place-based community development approach; the Community Health Resource Centres (CHRC) Community Development Framework (CDF); the United Way Ottawa 2010 Strong Neighbourhood's Priority Goal; and the Ottawa Neighbourhood Social Capital Forum. The NEI builds on past work and serves as a single tool that stakeholders can access to make evidence-based decisions and plan collaboratively for a more equitable, stronger, and healthier Ottawa. The NEI also aims to be a tool that educates, empowers, and mobilizes service providers, policy makers and community members on equity related issues in their communities and across the city as a whole.
Following a widespread consultation process with multiple community health centres, non-profits and City stakeholders, the NEI was designed to include 5 domains (economic opportunity, social and human development, physical environment, population health, community and belonging) and 28 indicators. Each of the selected indicators was determined to be salient for Ottawa, feasible and empirically valid, locally actionable, responsive, specific enough for a small geographic area with flexibility of scaling up to the level of the City, variable with a range of data, and replicable over time. In response to the consultations, the NEI will be at a standard geography, the census tract level, in order to enable comparability and overlap with other data sources and methods and to minimize costs of updating.
To facilitate and mobilize change, the NEI Theory of Change is broadly structured around the Index's production of actionable evidence which by design is meant to activate stakeholders and community partners, and increase geographically based access to equitable resources and opportunities to thrive in every neighbourhood in Ottawa.
The Neighbourhood Equity Index (NEI) is a product of the expertise and commitment of a number of stakeholders at the United Way East Ontario (formerly United Way Ottawa), City of Ottawa, and several Ottawa based data driven non-profit organizations. The Social Planning Council of Ottawa NEI team is indebted to the Steering Committee and the many Working Groups that guided and provided invaluable information necessary for the development of the Index in Ottawa. The creation of the Index was made possible due to the generous funding provided by the United Way East Ontario and the City of Ottawa.
The NEI would not have been possible without the guidance and support of the following working group members: Diane Urquhart (Social Planning Council of Ottawa); Alex Mayer (Centretown Community Health Centre); Kristine Hart (Ottawa Community Foundation); Nathalie Sirois (Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario); Allison Lampi (Local Health Integration Network); Anthong Le (Ottawa Carleton District School Board); Darrell Bridge (City of Ottawa); Elizabeth Kristjansson (University of Ottawa); Joan Oracheski (Ottawa Carleton District School Board); Justin Swan (City of Ottawa); Laura Masson (City of Ottawa); Randy Mar (Ottawa Police Service); Rebecca Aird (Ottawa Community Foundation); Paul Steeves (United Way Ottawa); and Robert Grimwood (City of Ottawa).
Special thanks to the expertise and support of Cinthia Pagé (City of Ottawa); Julie Pearson (United Way); Ben Dick (City of Ottawa); Cameron McDermid (Ottawa Public Health); Clara Friere (City of Ottawa); Kathleen Moss (Ottawa Carleton District School Board); Tamatha Trenholm (City of Ottawa); Vinh Nguyen (City of Ottawa); Brian Schnarch (Local Health Integration Network); Katie Carr (Ottawa Neighbourhood Study); Eva Walrond (City of Ottawa); and Abid Jan (United Way Ottawa).
Lastly, the NEI is a product of the hard work and dedication of the NEI team at the Social Planning Council of Ottawa, in particular Stefka Patchova (lead researcher), Katelynn Martin (GIS Mapper), Vladimir Mikadze (researcher), Nicholas Barrett (GIS researcher), and Sadia Jama (researcher).