Students’ Corner

CPHA 2011 Annual Conference: A Student’s Perspective

Rehan Lakhani
Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine – Year 1, Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, Toronto, ON

The 2011 CPHA Annual Conference included workshops and seminars that catered to health care professionals as well as students entering the health care field. Presenters from across the country displayed their research to provoke discussion about the different roles public health plays in Canada. The conference also included workshops, seminars and networking events specifically for students. These events allowed for interaction between students from all over the country, which led to many new contacts and ways to get involved in the different areas of public health.

One of the most relevant workshops was about the ongoing research on new HIV prevention technologies. The workshop participants consisted of public health professionals who dealt with HIV in their workplace, as well as interested students. It commenced with a presentation on the new HIV prevention technologies and current research. Questions surrounding the development of this type of technology in Canada were:

• Which level of government would be responsible for delivering these technologies to the public?
• What would be the role of public health care professionals and agencies in implementing and evaluating these methods of treatment?
• What are the possible collaborations between public health and front-line social agencies to efficiently distribute treatments to those who can most benefit from them?

Thought-provoking questions such as these led to breakout groups in which in-depth discussions were held, and lists were created of the benefits and disadvantages of different scenarios. The groups then shared their thoughts and ideas with the rest of the participants, leading to an insightful discussion on the role public health would play with regard to the development and implementation of new HIV prevention technologies.

The highlight of the conference, however, was that students from all levels of education were given the opportunity to have face-to-face interactions not only with the presenters, but also with other students who eagerly answered questions relating to their educational path, their research, the organizations they are currently involved with and how they would do things differently (or the same) if they were to do it again. This was extremely helpful for the students who wanted to explore different career and research opportunities in public health for the future.

I would highly recommend all students to attend the CPHA Annual Conference in Edmonton in 2012, to learn about what is happening in public health in Canada and, if interested, to get involved!

A Brief Overview of Malaria in Canada: From Past Elimination Efforts to Future Risk Factors

Kelly Kavanagh Salmond, BA, BA(h), MA
Department of Health, Aging and Society, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON

Since the establishment of the Millennium Development Goals, the world has experienced a renewed interest in malaria, a disease that kills an estimated 800,000 people every year. The endemicity of this disease is largely considered to be confined to equatorial regions such as sub Saharan Africa, South-East Asia and the Amazon. However, historically the global malaria map has extended much farther. Through global, regional and national public health efforts, many countries have eliminated the disease over the last 100 years, including Canada. Nevertheless, with only three conditions to be satisfied for the autochthonous transmission of malaria – infected and infective humans; presence of competent vectors; and a suitable climate for transmission cycles¹ – the potential for future malaria endemics in Canada remains.

It is believed that European colonialists and the slave trade originally introduced malaria into North America during the 16^th and 17^th centuries. In the 19^th century, incidences of malaria continued and were recorded along the St. Lawrence River and its tributaries with further accounts recorded during the construction of the Rideau Canal.² By the mid-1800s, the disease was endemic along Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair and Lake Ontario, from Kingston to Hamilton, with an occasional outbreak reported in Montreal and even Halifax.² Progress was made during the latter part of the 19^th century when the Canadian malaria incidence map had been successfully confined to only the northern shores of Lake Erie and the western-most settlements of Lake Ontario.² This rapid decline may be attributed to the transformation of the once vast marshy landscapes into farmland through the construction of dykes in the mid- to late 1800s.³ By doing this, the breeding ground for competent vectors was disrupted and limited. By the early 20^th century, the disease was adequately controlled and by 1950, malaria was eliminated from Canada.

Despite the elimination of malaria from Canada, it continues to be a public health concern, with an average of over 500 cases per year since 1990 in travelers and immigrants from endemic regions satisfying the criteria of infected humans. Also, Canada maintains a few known competent vectors, specifically An. Quadrimaculatus and An. Freeborni, found in highly populated areas of Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia.^1,5 Furthermore, parts of Canada meet the climate requirements for the parasite development cycles and transmission cycles for malaria (see Table 1). At present, the potential for the optimal temperatures required is limited to only the summer months.

Almost 100 years after the successful control and elimination of malaria in Canada, there remains a risk of re-emergence. Factors such as climate change, increases in immigration and international travel, and potential for delayed diagnosis¹ due to the lack of experience with malaria at the primary health care level all contribute to the rising risk of future local transmission. Both historical evidence and the continued presence of the three conditions for the local transmission of malaria support the potential for a future re-emergence of malaria in Canada.

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