Statistics Canada has announced that around 500 households in the Peterborough area will be randomly selected to participate in the national Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS).
Statistics Canada has been conducting the CHMS, in partnership with Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada, across Canada since 2007.
The survey will begin in Peterborough on Tuesday, May 9th.
There are two phases to the survey.
The first phase involves an in-home interview with selected participants. They will be asked questions about nutrition, alcohol and tobacco consumption, medical history, level of physical activity, and more.
In the second phase, participants will go to a mobile clinic, temporarily located in the parking lot of the Northcrest Arena in Peterborough, to undergo a number of tests.
At the mobile clinic, health professionals employed by Statistics Canada will take participants’ physical health measures, including height, weight, neck and waist circumference. The specialists will also do tests to measure blood pressure, fitness level, vision and musculoskeletal health.
Finally, biospecimens will be collected to assess participants’ cardiovascular health, nutritional status, and exposure to environmental contaminants.
Participation in the survey is voluntary, but Statistics Canada encourages selected individuals to participate, as data from the CHMS help provide an accurate portrait of the health of Canadians. Various health care stakeholders, including professionals, researchers and public health planners, use this data to adapt programs and services to the population’s needs.
National organizations such as the Canadian Public Health Association and the Heart and Stroke Foundation have shown their support for the survey.
The CHMS is conducted under the authority of the Statistics Act, which guarantees that all the information provided by participants remains strictly confidential. The health specialists hired by Statistics Canada are fully qualified and certified.
