The Joint Canada/U.S. Survey of Health (JCUSH) Catherine Simile, PhD, U. S. Project Officer Division of Health Interview Statistics National Center for Health Statistics
Background Collaborative project undertaken by Statistics Canada (STC) and NCHS Additional funders include The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research One-time telephone survey Sample of 3505 Canadians and 5,183 U. S. residents
Background, cont’d Data collected from November March 2003 One adult 18 years of age and older living in private dwellings Stratified for age and sex
Survey Purpose To develop, implement, and document a collaboration between national statistical offices To enhance comparability between the two countries’ ongoing national surveys To produce highly comparable data on the Canadian and American populations
Survey Content Health status Limitation of activities Asthma, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, and depression Contact with mental health professionals Smoking Height and weight
Survey Content, cont’d Health care utilization Use of prescription medications Pap smear test and mammography Dental visits Insurance, including single service plans Patient satisfaction Physical activities
Data Files Microdata files released June 2, 2004 on both websites Microdata files accompanied by –Analytic highlights report –User’s Guide –Questionnaires in English, French, and Spanish
Possible Analytic Uses Questions taken from ongoing surveys: NHIS and CCHS Comparisons between JCUSH and NHIS Comparisons between JCUSH and CCHS Direct comparisons between US and Canada using JCUSH
YANK GIRLS ARE FATTER!!!!
Findings Overall, most Canadians (88%) and U.S. residents (85%) reported they were in good or better health US slightly higher rate of unmet needs (13% v. 11%) Reasons different: waiting time most often reported in Canada, cost in U.S. Data source: The Joint Canada/U.S. Survey of Health Preliminary Data
Findings, cont’d Rate of obesity higher in US (21% v. 15%) Primarily because of differences between U.S and Canadian women (21% v. 13%); no significant differences between men Canada had a slightly higher percentage of current daily smokers compared with U. S. (19% v. 17%). Data source: The Joint Canada/U.S. Survey of Health Preliminary Data
Percent with regular medical doctor, Canada and United States, 2002/03 Data source: The Joint Canada/U.S. Survey of Health Preliminary Data
Percent Obese by Income Quintile, Canada and United States, 2002/03 Data source: The Joint Canada/U.S. Survey of Health Preliminary Data
Access to Data and Reports NCHS website at Statistics Canada website at