April 2010 - Our Voice in Action

OPHA Injury Prevention Workgroup

by Co–Chairs, Kerri Richards and Loretta Bernard, OPHA Injury Prevention Workgroup

The OPHA Injury Prevention Workgroup was created in 2009 to develop policy positions on injury prevention issues for OPHA and to advocate for coordinated injury prevention policy development at the provincial and community levels.

The goal of the Workgroup is to raise the profile of injury prevention across Ontario from a public health perspective via OPHA members and interested others, thereby reducing preventable and predictable injuries in Ontario.

The purpose of the Workgroup is to develop policy responses on injury prevention issues for OPHA, and to advocate for coordinated injury prevention policy development at the national, provincial and local government levels by engaging OPHA members and injury prevention stakeholders across Ontario in a collaborative and participatory process.

Some of the proposed activities of the workgroup include:

  • Assist in the implementation of the Ontario Injury Prevention Strategy;
  • Develop an advocacy agenda for injury prevention in Ontario;
  • Advocate for coordinated injury prevention policy development at the national, provincial and local government levels;
  • Develop policy positions on injury prevention issues for the Ontario Public Health Association;
  • Increase OPHA's collective capacity with its key stakeholders to respond to injury prevention issues;
  • Work with existing OPHA workgroups to integrate key messages and strengthen the public health voice regarding injury prevention;
  • Develop a prioritized workplan and one to two advocacy foci.

The work of the OPHA Injury Prevention Workgroup is guided by the following principles:

  • Injuries are predictable and preventable — this point cannot be overstated;
  • Injury is a universal experience — regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, and socio-economic status, anyone may incur an injury across their lifespan – yet the risk for injury is influenced by these factors or the cross-section of these factors;
  • Injury prevention takes into account the various social determinants of health and their influence in determining injury risk and prevention;
  • A comprehensive approach to injury prevention reflects health promotion approaches, particularly those that address the social determinants of health;
  • Advocating for injury prevention is accomplished in a manner that also addresses social justice;
  • Injury prevention efforts include collaborations between interested individuals representing a variety of disciplines and perspectives reflecting diverse communities across Ontario.

 

Advocating for Healthy Public Policies

OPHA and its workgroups have been very active in advocating for healthy public policies. We have recently:

OPHA is a supporting member of the Ontario Campaign for Action on Tobacco (OCAT). As many of you know, contraband cigarettes are a major source of cheap tobacco for our youth. Recently OCAP has called for the provincial government to take a number of actions on contraband; check out their media release [PDF] for more information.