To design innovative, cost-saving solutions to current population health challenges, people require comprehensive data on health costs, health outcomes and social determinants of health. Eliminating knowledge gaps in these three areas is a main objective of the Healthier Societies Initiative’s recently launched website, which provides the following public tools:
* Intuitive, dynamic data visualizations, to help Canadians better understand their health system, both through international and sub-national comparisons.
* Easily downloadable, ready-to-analyze datasets of national health statistics for OECD countries via the OECD Health Data Resource.
* Identification of policy approaches implemented by provinces and territories for addressing risk factors and complications of Type II diabetes.
HSI is a research program at the Institute for Health and Social Policy (IHSP) initiated through the leadership and generosity of McGill’s Chancellor H. Arnold Steinberg. HSI encourages the public, researchers and students to visit the website and to contact the program’s investigators for inquiries, information on current and future research projects, or training opportunities related to the initiative.