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The Physical Activity Benchmarks Program is a joint venture
of the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute, Fitness/Active
Living Unit of Health Canada, and the Interprovincial Sport
and Recreation Council.
What are we doing?
We established and now monitor changes of physical activity
benchmark indicators to enable governments to be accountable
for expenditures with respect to the outcomes and impacts achieved
by the investment of public dollars in support of physical activity.
The benchmarks/monitoring program serves as a tool to help policy
makers measure progress in increasing the population levels
of physical activity and provides information for setting policies
and strategies for joint action, and monitoring the results
of implementation strategies and initiatives within the joint
governmental framework entitled, Physical Inactivity: A Framework
for Action. (Federal, Provincial and Territorial Fitness and
Recreation Committee. (1996). Physical Inactivity: A Framework
for Action. Ottawa, ON: Health Canada.) The program supports
the information requirements to monitor the progress of toward
the joint governmental objective to increase physical activity
by 10 percentage point nationally and in each jurisdiction by
the year 2010 (Federal, Provincial and Territorial Governments.
(2003). Bathurst, NS), and by contributing to stated health,
social, and economic aims in the Framework for Action.
What are benchmark indicators?
Benchmark indicators provide information to track change, measuring
whether the physical-activity-related aspects of the quality
of Canadian life are improving, deteriorating or staying the
same. They also provide information to guide the development
of strategies to increase physical activity levels. The Institute
established a series of benchmarks indicators during the years
1997-2001. In 2002, we began monitoring the changes to these
indicators over time.
Why develop benchmark indicators?
- to serve as a tool to help policy makers measure Canada's
progress in achieving higher levels of physical activity;
- to monitor progress against national and provincial/territorial
benchmarks for physical activity, active living and fitness;
- to assess psychological, environmental and cultural determinants
which enhance and detract from participation;
- to identify factors that influence the process of behaviour
change;
- to examine the overall effect of programs and policy interventions;
- to describe long-term participation patterns and changes;
- to evaluate the overall implementation of the action plan
and the cost of change;
- to identify and formulate recommendations.
Benchmarks program
The benchmarks program serves as a tool to help policy makers
measure progress in reducing population levels of physical inactivity
and provides information for monitoring the results of implementation
strategies and initiatives within Physical Inactivity: A Framework
for Action. (Reference: Federal, Provincial and Territorial
Fitness and Recreation Committee. (1996). Physical Inactivity:
A Framework for Action. Ottawa, ON: Health Canada.)
Monitoring framework
The framework supports the information requirements to monitor
progress of Physical Inactivity: A Framework for Action toward
its objective to reduce physical inactivity by 10% by the year
2003 and contributing to its stated health, social, and economic
aims. In addition, the framework supports information required
for policy and strategies for joint action.
Key elements of the framework
| Capacity of the system to provide opportunities |
Determinants of participation |
Participation levels |
Contribution to aims and outcomes |
Partnerships
Leadership
Leverage
Resources |
Physical environment*
Social environment*
Individual
Policies and supports |
Physical activity
Physical recreation sport |
Health
Social
Economic |
* Environments include: home, work, school, community, health
care and other systems with which individuals come into contact.
The program also encompasses
- settings and channels: work, school, home, community, health
care system, recreation system, government levels, media
- population sub-groups: age (including youth-at-risk), sex,
education, income (including children in poverty), cultural
groups (particularly aboriginals)
- equitable access including actual level of initiatives,
services and opportunities, versus perceptions of level, actual
use, and the factors encouraging and detracting from usage
Physical
Activity Monitor
The Physical Activity Monitor is part of the benchmarks/monitoring
program. It is an annual telephone survey that tracks changes
in physical activity patterns, factors influencing participation,
and life circumstances in Canada. As such, it tracks outcome
indicators of the efforts to increase physical activity among
Canadians.
Survey partners can purchase customized questions and add sample
either nationally or for a particular province or region.
To date, twelve waves of the Physical Activity Monitor have
been completed:
Reporting on physical activity indicators
For each year in the five-year plan, the Canadian Fitness and
Lifestyle Research Institute published an annual Physical Activity
Benchmarks report with a new focus to help policy-makers and
program leaders to
- assess psychological, environmental determinants which enhance
and detract from participation;
- identify factors that influence the process of behaviour
change;
- provide a comprehensive picture of settings and channels
employed to create change by examining capacity of the setting
or channel, opportunities and supports provided by the system,
determinants of participation, participation rates and outcomes
relevant to the specific setting or channel;
- describe long-term participation patterns and changes;
- plan and develop effective strategies by examining physical
activity trends;
- determine which activities are most appealing to Canadians;
- maximize the use of scarce resources.
For a list of reports published so far, see our list of publications.
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