The Nishnawbe Aski Nation is calling on Canada to act on a report linking health issues to poor housing conditions.
The Canadian Medical Association Journal study documented indoor air quality and housing characteristics in four remote First Nations communities in Northwestern Ontario.
The review was a partnership with the Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre and Sioux Lookout First Nations Health Authority.
Findings included 25% of children were medically evacuated for respiratory illness and 21% of children in the study were admitted to hospital during the first two years of life.
Eighty-five per cent of homes lacked controlled ventilation, over half had damaged windows, 44% showed water penetration in exterior walls, and 6% had immediate safety issues.
NAN Grand Chief Derek Fox says, “This study confirms what our leaders have been saying for years. That deplorable housing is directly linked to poor health of so many of our people. We have known for years that the quality of health and housing are linked, and we now have solid data to support this.”
He adds they have been advocating for years for substantial improvements to housing, but the government keeps asking for proof that the moldy, drafty houses are connected to poor health conditions.
Fox says he looks forward to partnering with the government to work on the recommendations.
Those recommendations include:
-Improve housing and infrastructure in communities to benefit the overall health of First Nations peoples
-Create economic opportunity, eliminate food insecurity, and access potable water to allow communities to apply more resources to the upkeep of existing houses
-Increase housing stock appropriate for local geographic, climatic, and cultural needs matched to solutions that are First Nations led and governed
Kiiwetinoong MPP Sol Mamakwa is pointing the finger at the Ontario government stating Doug Ford should have acted years ago to fix housing conditions in First Nations communities.
Mamakwa says, “Jurisdictional ping-pong should never be an excuse for inaction when it comes to protecting the health of First Nations children affected by poor housing. Some of our elders have even died because of the mould. Doug Ford never acted, passing on the responsibility to the federal government.”
The NDP member stresses, “Governments must take this study as an alarm bell, and finally take action to prevent our children from getting sick and being hospitalized and our elders from dying.”
Link to full study: Housing and Health Study
