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Health systems in transition Canada 103
Table 5.1
Colorectal cancer testing, self-reported (% of provincial or territorial population), 2008
Province/ Territory % of population
British Columbia 37
Alberta 37
Saskatchewan 38
Manitoba 53
Ontario 50
Quebec 28
New Brunswick 34
Nova Scotia 32
Prince Edward Island 32
Newfoundland and Labrador 34
Yukon (territory) 29
Northwest Territories 30
Nunavut –
Source: Wilkins & Shields (2009).
Note: Residents were asked whether they had had a faecal occult blood test in the past two years or a colonoscopy or signoidoscopy in
the past five years. The sample size for Nunavut was too small for a reliable result.
Immunization planning and programming is also a primary responsibility
for provincial and territorial health ministries (De Wals, 2011). Immunization
can be delivered in a number of ways but the two most common are through
family physicians or regionally based public health offices. The National
Advisory Committee on Immunizations is a pan-Canadian committee of
recognized experts that works with, and reports the results of its deliberations
to PHAC. Its recommendations are conveyed to the public, including health
providers and health system decision-makers, in the Canadian Immunization
Guide, which is published every five years (NACI, 2006).
5.2 Patient pathways
Due to the decentralized nature of health delivery, patient pathways vary
considerably depending on the province or territory of residents. The following
steps are part of a highly stylized pathway of a woman named Mary living in
the more southern and urban part of the country: 1
1 In the far north of the provinces and in the three northern territories, the first point of contact is more likely to be
an RN in a community health centre.