The Health Council of Canada has released a guide aimed at helping people better understand the purpose, power and pitfalls of health indicators. Funded by Health Canada, the Health Council of Canada operates as an independent non-profit agency that reports on the progress of health care renewal, on the health status of Canadians and on the health outcomes of the system.
The guide brings together and builds on an array of mostly Canadian resources. It also helps people identify health indicators and learn about them in order to play a bigger part in influencing their own health and the direction of the health care system. The guide is divided into five sections: getting to know health indicators; a closer look at health indicators; challenges in using health indicators; the evolving world of health indicators; and health indicators at work.
See “A Citizen’s Guide to Health Indicators: A Reference Guide for Canadians,” Health Council of Canada, January 2011, available atwww.healthcouncilcanada.ca.