Tag Archives: society

Open Data: Health and Welfare Canada Drug Studies

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In the 1970s, Health and Welfare Canada sponsored several studies on the use of prescribed drugs, alcohol, and cannabis as well as drug-related deaths. Raw statistical data from four sets of surveys has recently been migrated into ASCII character-encoding scheme. Specialized software such as a spreadsheet or statistical tool is required to open, interpret and analyze the data. A codebook is provided that describes the file structure of the data and defines the variables contained in each field. If you are interested in any of the surveys listed below, they are now available on the Open Data portal.

Consumption of prescribed drugs in Canada 1977

In 1977, Health and Welfare Canada sponsored two studies relating to the use of prescribed drugs in Canada. Some of the main survey findings revealed:

  • Analgesics and antibiotics were found to be the most frequently used in the general population.
  • Anti-hypertensive and cardiac medications were used by elderly respondents.
  • Females were over-represented among users of sedatives and tranquilizers.

National surveys of alcohol consumption in Canada

The purpose of the Dialogue on Drinking Campaign was to increase public awareness of drinking behavior and encourage community involvement in programs directed toward alcohol-related problems. The campaign was carried out in phases using a variety of advertising mediums such as newspapers, magazines, radio and television broadcasts. This advertising was followed up by a series of surveys to investigate the public’s awareness of the Dialogue on Drinking Campaign itself and the drinking habits of Canadians. In 1976, one survey also collected data on the smoking habits of Canadians.

Use of cannabis by adult Canadians

In 1978, Health and Welfare Canada sponsored a survey of adults aged 18 and over. Respondents were interviewed on their use and frequency of use of marihuana and/or hashish. The study was undertaken to determine trends in cannabis use, identify populations at risk, assess social correlates of cannabis use, and formulate policy.

Drug related deaths in metropolitan Toronto

This data was collected in 1973 from the records of 18 full-time and part-time coroners from the Toronto area. The data was extracted from files which recorded alcohol- or drug-related deaths and includes the general drug category, specific drug, form of alcohol, name of solvents and poisons involved.

Open Data: Providing access to historical Government of Canada studies

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Canada’s Action Plan on Open Government details how the federal government is promoting transparency and accountability and encouraging citizen engagement by releasing unrestricted government data and information. Releasable information falls under two categories: structured data (machine readable) and open information (unstructured documents and multimedia assets). To make this information easily discoverable and reusable, it will be located on the Open Government website and made available under the unrestricted Open Government Licence. Structured data is made available through the Open Data portal of the website and unstructured information through the Open Information portal.

Library and Archives Canada is in the process of extracting and preserving datasets from outdated storage devices that are related to studies undertaken by federal departments. The studies cover a wide range of topics, such as the environment, health and immigration. The digital content from these studies, acquired since the early 1970s, is being converted from its outdated file structures and encoding schemes so it can be used by contemporary computers that are based on the ASCII encoding scheme.

Once the datasets are migrated, they will be made available on the Open Data portal. Codebooks that describe the file structure of the data and define the variables contained in each field will also be supplied. These migrated datasets will be in the form of raw data. To interpret and analyze the content in each file, you will require specialized software, such as a spreadsheet or a statistical tool. Raw data preserves the integrity of this archival content and will allow you to perform your own interpretation and analysis.

Stay tuned in the coming months for news about dataset releases.