Ottawa Charter & Bias

Is the Ottawa Charter still relevant? Yes.

Have we used it well? No.

Is there cultural or other bias? Yes.

As we know, the 2SLGBTQIA+ community has faced numerous challenges around equity and equality in relation to rights. This should not be something they have to face when looking for healthcare! Mule, N.J., et al. (2009) noted that there are limitations within population health, the social determinants of health, and public health goals in relation to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. There are ongoing issues with recognizing the diversity amongst this group, and their unique needs.

Even the fact that the charter is 37 years old can tell me that it would not meet the needs of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, however, since its inception we have had almost 40 years to adapt the way we care for this community, and other communities that are facing inequity. First, we need to acknowledge the exceptional health and social care needs of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, then encourage, educate, and employ anti-oppressive, health promotion and population health measure to support them. Mule, N.J., et al. (2009) also noted that the design of public health promotion policy needed to be more gender and sexual diverse and to support that there needed to be better health promotion research and practice with representation for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

Mule, N. J., Ross, L. E., Deeprose, B., Jackson, B. E., Daley, A., Travers, A., & Moore, D. (2009). Promoting LGBT health and wellbeing through inclusive policy development. International Journal for Equity in Health, 8(1), 18. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-9276-8-18