Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to debate the motion today. I do so on behalf of the residents of Waterloo—Wellington.
Canadians place a very high premium on their health and the health of their families. It is a fundamental element of our individual quality of life in Canada. It is more than just the absence of disease. It is a resource for every day living. At a population level we know that a healthy population contributes immeasurably to the social well-being and economic productivity of the country.
Canadians as a population compared to citizens of other countries enjoy very excellent health. Canadians are remarkably healthy by every standard around the world in terms of health such as life expectancy and self-reported health.
Our enviable health status is due in no small part to our commitment to health promotion. That is something of which we an all be very proud because Canada is internationally respected as a world leader in health promotion. The world looks to Canada for leadership in health research, policy and practices that will help all countries make progress in achieving health for all their citizens as well.
For example, Canada was the site of the first world conference on health promotion. We can be proud of this leadership we took in developing a charter for the World Health Organization which set out the prerequisites for a healthy population based on a health promotion approach.
The federal government plays a key role in health promotion. The federal government supports initiatives to help Canadians adopt healthy behaviours: for example, to quit smoking, to achieve a better level of physical fitness, and to have a healthy and nutritious diet.
The results of this work have been truly remarkable. Deaths due to heart disease have declined. Canadians are much more fit than they were even a generation ago. Their eating habits have improved and smoking rates have gone down. We know that by getting Canadians to adopt a healthier lifestyle we can add years of life and health to their lives.
All this is not to say that all Canadians lead a healthy lifestyle. There is much more to be done. The federal government will continue to play a key role in helping Canadians through public education, through education of health professionals such as doctors and nurses, and through supporting action to make our communities healthy and safe places in which to live and to work.
Health is much more than a product of individual choice. We must create the conditions that allow and encourage individuals to make healthy choices: for example, opportunities for healthy child development, for educational and employment opportunities, and safe and healthy workplaces. Most of all we must foster community action which encourages all members of all ages and all levels of ability to contribute to and partake in the benefits of a healthy social, economic and physical environment.
The federal government helps to create the conditions which foster health and healthy choices by all Canadian citizens. How does it do this? It does it by working in partnership with provincial and territorial governments, with the voluntary and community sectors and with the private sector on national strategies to address pressing health issues such as HIV and AIDS, tobacco use, substance abuse, and chronic disease such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Time and time again the federal government has through its work in partnership with others helped Canadians gain an upper hand on the disease and health problems that concern them most.
A good example of Health Canada's partnership work is the heart health initiative. This initiative since its inception eight years ago has created an extensive network involving the federal government, 10 provincial departments of health, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, and over 1,000 organizations in the public, private and voluntary sectors.
The objective of the initiative is the reduction of cardiovascular disease by addressing the risk factors and socioeconomic conditions that underlie it. While good progress has been made Canada still ranks in the middle of industrialized countries with respect to heart disease mortality. Federal leadership in this area will help continue this progress, and this we must do.
Another example of Health Canada's partnership work is in the community action program for children. Health Canada has developed partnership arrangements with all provinces for this very important initiative which helps ensure optimal opportunities for healthy childhood development. Through this program Health Canada works with its partners to support community programs and groups to establish and deliver services that address the developmental needs of our children from birth to six years of age who are at risk of poor health or live in conditions likely to give rise to poor health.
This program has been successful in building community capacity. Health Canada works with the provinces and territories toward a strategy for healthy child development through the federal, provincial and territorial advisory committee on population health. The shared vision of this work is the belief that healthy child development is the foundation of lifelong health and that by working together we can achieve optimal health for all Canadian children.
At the other end of the life course Health Canada works in partnership with the provinces and territories to promote healthy aging. It is well known, for example, that a society which encourages and supports independence, autonomy and a good quality of life for its senior citizens is a society that is characterized by the health, vitality and longevity of its seniors population. Health Canada has developed a framework for aging in partnership with the provinces and territories to help all levels of government see our programs policies and services through a seniors lens, something which is very important.
At no time has this been more important than now. After all, this is the international year of the older person. In the years to come our senior population will grow tremendously. The federal government is committed to continue its work in partnership with others to ensure that as a society our seniors have optimal opportunities for health and good quality life.
The federal government is working on many other fronts in collaboration to support health promotion and disease prevention. One of the most important ways is to track and report on progress on the health of Canadians. Together federal, provincial and territorial governments developed a report on the health of Canadians. The first edition was issued by ministers jointly in 1996. The second edition will be released in the fall of this year updating the trends in health status reported in 1996 and giving us an opportunity to celebrate improvements and to recommit ourselves to work on persistent health problems and inequalities.
The federal government has and will continue to play an important role in the health of all Canadians, and rightfully so. Canadians count on us to work in partnership with others and to promote and protect their health wherever they may live in Canada. The achievements in health status over the last century can be attributed in large part to the efforts of the federal government.
We can be justly proud of our record and our respected place on the world stage. It is second to none in terms of health promotion and in other areas. Our health care system is a core fundamental value for Canadians. Accordingly we at the federal level will continue to work very hard to ensure that our health care system remains one of the best in the world. Canadians expect this. Canadians want this. Canadians need this. Quite frankly, Canadians deserve this. We will continue to do this at the federal level and we will do it well.