1. Health Statistics Division
Overview of the Canadian Community Health Survey Annual Component
Health Statistics Division
Statistics Canada
September, 2012 1

2. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Canadian Community Health Survey
Started with Health Information Roadmap
Governing committee – Health Canada, PHAC, STC
Advisory Committee – Health Canada, PHAC, Provinces, Health Regions, CIHI
Expert groups 2
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3. Canadian Community Health Survey Program
How it’s organized
Canadian Community Health Survey Program
Annual Component
Focus Content
Component
Special Projects 3
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4. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
CCHS survey program timeline
Annual
Component
Cycle 1.1
2002
2003
Cycle 2.1
2004
2005
Cycle 3.1
2006
2007
CCHS 2007
2008
CCHS 2008
2009
CCHS 2009
2010
CCHS 2010
2011
CCHS 2011
2012
CCHS 2012 4
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5. CCHS Annual survey program
CCHS Annual Component
Content
General health surveillance
Sample size
Starting in 2007: 65,000 respondents per year
2001, 2003, 2005:
130,000 respondents collected every second year
Frequency
Annual
Geography
Canada, provinces, territories and health regions
Age groups
12+ 5

6. ANNUAL COMPONENT OVERVIEW Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) 6
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7. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Objectives
Health surveillance at the national, provincial and sub-provincial levels
Analysis on small populations and rare characteristics 
Readily available data to a diversified user community in a timely fashion
Flexible survey instrument 7
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8. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Design & Coverage
Residents of private households aged 12 and over
All provinces, territories, health regions
Exclusions:
Indian reserves
institutions (health institutions, prisons, religious institutions, convents, etc.)
members of Canadian Forces
certain remote areas (northern Ontario and Québec)
Coverage (general) ~98% of targeted population 8
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9. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Sample
From 2000 to 2005:
130,000 respondents every 2 years for 3 cycles:
2000/01, 2003, 2005
Starting in 2007
Sample of 65,000 respondents per year
Six non-overlapping 2 months periods
Representative of the Canadian population every 2 months, for all provinces
Sample representative of each of the territories every year 9
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10. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Dual household frames
Household list: area frame from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) (40%)
Telephone frame (59%)
Canada phone directory
Random digit dialing (RDD) (1%) 10
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11. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Respondent selection and collection mode
Respondents selected randomly from the household member list at the beginning of the survey
Computer assisted interview
Survey frame
Collection mode
Area frame
Face-to-face
Telephone
Telephone frame 11
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12. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Questionnaire
Average interview time (45 min.)
Content:
Common annual
Common 1 or 2 year
Optional
Rapid response 12
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13. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Common annual content
Stable content over time
Asked of all respondents
Average length ≈ 20 minutes
Annual common content
(≈ 20 minutes) 13
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14. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Annual common content topics
Alcohol Use
Chronic Conditions
Exposure to Second-hand Smoke
Flu Shots
Fruit and Vegetable Consumption
General Health
Health Care Utilization
Pain and Discomfort
Height and Weight
Physical Activities
Restrictions on Activities
Smoking
Administration
Age
Education
Income
Labour Force
Sociodemographics
Person most knowledgeable about household 14
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15. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Common one year and two-year content
Addresses different data needs
Rotates every 1 year/2 years/4 years
Asked of all respondents
Average length ≈ 10 minutes
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 2 yr
Common 2 yr
Common 2 yr
COMMON ANNUAL CONTENT
(≈ 20 minutes) 15
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16. Common one year and two-year content
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Health services access
Measured height/weight
Chronic conditions screening
Health services access
Health care utilization
Economic burden
Health services access
Chronic conditions screening
Healthy living
Injuries and functional health
Sexual behaviours
Healthy living
Mental well-being
COMMON ANNUAL CONTENT
(≈ 20 minutes) 16

17. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Common two-year content
: Healthy Living & Mental Well-Being
Sedentary Activities
Food Security
Maternal experiences: Breastfeeding
Consultations about mental health
Positive mental health 17
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18. Percentage who were obese (self-reported), by age group and sex, household population aged 18 or older, Canada 2011
Age in years
Source: 2011 Canadian Community Health Survey 18

19. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
One year common content
Chronic disease screening (2012)
Mammography
PAP Test
Colorectal cancer screening
Physical checkups
Blood test
Spirometry
Health services access (2011)
(Sub-sample)
Access to health services
Wait times 19
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20. Optional content COMMON ANNUAL CONTENT Changes every year or two
Decided by provincial ministries of health and health regions
Average length ≈ 10 minutes
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 2-yr
Common 2-yr
Common 2-yr
COMMON ANNUAL CONTENT
(≈ 20 minutes)
Optional Y1-Y2
(10 minutes)
Optional Y3-Y4
Optional Y5-Y6 20

21. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Optional content
≈ 70 unique modules
A few examples
Changes made to improve health
Depression
Alcohol use – Past week
Food choices
Unmet health care needs
Dental visits 21
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22. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Rapid response
Objective : To respond to emerging health data requirements
Asked of all respondents in the provinces
National level estimates (10 provinces only)
2 months of collection only = 1 collection period
Average length ≈ 2 minutes
CAPI and CATI
Aiming for 6 rapid response every year
Cost recovery funded 22
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23. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Rapid Response
Prescribed drug expenses
(Health Canada, Sept-Dec 2007)
Sleep apnea
(Public Health Agency of Canada, Jan – Feb 2009)
Osteoporosis
(Public Health Agency of Canada, Mar – Apr 2009)
Fertility
(Assisted Human Reproduction Canada, Sept –Dec. 2009)
Stigmatisation and mental health experiences (Mental Health Commission – May-June 2010)
Neighbourhood environment (Public Health Agency of Canada, July – Aug 2011)
Awareness and Usage of Canada’s Food Guide (Office of Nutrition Policy and Promotion, May-June 2012)
Food preparation skills (Office of Nutrition Policy and Promotion, May-June 2012) 23
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24. Annual CCHS content structure
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 1 yr
Common 2 yr
Common 2 yr
Common 2 yr
COMMON ANNUAL CONTENT
(≈ 20 minutes)
Optional Y1-Y2
(10 minutes)
Optional Y3-Y4
(10 minutes)
Optional Y5-Y6
(10 minutes)
Rapid response $ (2 minutes) 24
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25. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
ANNUAL CCHS
DATA PRODUCTS 25
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26. DIFFERENT DATA FILES Master, Share Variables Records Share Master 26

27. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Data Release – 2011 Data
June 19, 2012
2011 Master and Share files
CANSIM Table , Health Indicator Profile, Annual Estimates
Health Fact Sheets
Health Trends
Health Indicators
Health at a Glance – Current Smoking Trends 27
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28. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
ADVANTAGES OF THE 1 YR AND 2 YR DATA FILES
Estimates are representative of the average over the time period
1-Year estimates – more timely but less precise
2-Year estimates – more precise but less timely
Multi-year estimates can also be calculated
Health Reports on Combining cycles of the Canadian Community Health Survey, by Thomas and Wannell 28
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29. Master, Share, Public use microdata file (PUMF)
DIFFERENT DATA FILES
Master, Share, Public use microdata file (PUMF)
Variables
Records
Share
Master
PUMF 29 29

30. Master, Share, PUMF, Dummy files
DIFFERENT DATA FILES
Master, Share, PUMF, Dummy files
Variables
Records
Share
Dummy
Master
PUMF 30 30

31. Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
Products on
Survey documentation
Definitions, data sources and methods
Data
Health Profile
CANSIM tables (Health indicators)
Health Trends, Summary tables
Analyses
Health Reports
Health Indicators publication
Health at a Glance 31
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