Grant: Planning Grants - Priority Announcement: Gender, Sex and Health Research

Throughout the life course, men tend to access health care services less frequently than women. Often by the time they do seek medical care, their type 2 diabetes (T2D) or the metabolic syndrome (MetS) conditions would have progressed and are advanced with associated comorbidities (such as hypertension, hyperglycemia, high blood lipids). Furthermore, the life expectancy for northern BC men is shorter than their male counterparts in other urban/suburban regions of Canada (Men's Health Report, 2010). Specifically, workers in the mining, forestry, and commercial transport sectors were responsible for 65% of the total deaths (BC Coroners Service, 2010). Rationale: Gender as a construct represents the complex interaction of social relations and practices attached to biological sex. It is one of the most important sociocultural factors affecting behavioural lifestyle factors and overall health (Evans, Frank, Oliffe, & Gregory, 2011). While there have been multiple reports and programs focused on Women's health in Canada, there has been no consideration of the equally significant health issues faced by men or the striking differences in morbidity, mortality, and life expectancy, and the underlying determinants of health which give rise to these differences. Men's health is rarely analyzed through the lens of gender despite the fact that a large body of health research indicates that men with comparable social disadvantages as women experience worse health outcomes with respect to injury rates, disability, chronic diseases, and mortality. The purpose of this planning meeting will be to bring together a number of experts (Shubair, Spence, Patrick, Raine) and strategic partners from a variety of stakeholder organizations (NHA, ImpactBC) in order to develop a conceptual framework within which partnerships can operate with relevance to Men's Health in northern BC. We will build upon a series of ongoing research projects and meetings conducted over the past year (2011/2012).