Background

Development of the Alberta Injury Control Strategy
This backgrounder provides information on the development of the Alberta Injury Control Strategy and an overview of the Alberta Injury Control Alliance that was established as a result of the Strategy. It invites injury control stakeholders to formally support and endorse the Strategy by becoming a member of the Alliance and joining this coordinated provincial effort to make Alberta the safest place to live. A membership form and brief overview of the Strategy are provided.

As the leading cause of death for Albertans 44 and under, injuries rank among the most serious health challenges that Alberta faces. In fact, Alberta has one of the highest injury rates in Canada. Many stakeholders have been addressing this problem over the years without a coordinated framework to guide effective planning and implementation of injury control initiatives among all stakeholders in the injury control field in Alberta.

Given these concerns, and with direction from the Alberta Centre for Injury Control & Research (ACICR) Advisory Body and Alberta Health and Wellness, in the spring of 2002 ACICR initiated, facilitated and funded the Alberta Injury Control Strategy project to develop a provincial strategy for injury control. A consultant was hired to work with a Coordinating Team of ACICR representatives and an Advisory Committee comprised of a number of key players in injury control in Alberta. A broad range of injury control stakeholders from across the province provided input and feedback through regional and provincial consultation sessions and a provincial Summit.

As a result, an Alberta Injury Control Strategy document was completed in the spring of 2003. With the vision of “Making Alberta the Safest Place to Live”, the Strategy sets out seven strategic goals with specific objectives and recommended actions. Both the executive summary and complete document are available on this website. The Alberta Injury Control Strategy also outlines five recommendations seen as key to the successful implementation of the Strategy. In order to fully and successfully implement the recommendations, the Advisory Committee and ACICR are seeking broad, high level, cross-ministerial, acceptance, policy participation and implementation support for the Strategy from the Government of Alberta. The Advisory Committee approved the recommendation that ACICR assume the coordination role in moving the Strategy forward, within the limitations of current human and financial resources, while awaiting government acceptance and implementation support for the Strategy. A Steering Committee was set up to guide and oversee the project and ACICR assigned a staff member to coordinate activities.

 

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Overview

Injury and Injury Control
While the term injury has a technical definition, it may more simply be viewed as a broad term that encompasses numerous situations in which people are hurt or killed. Injuries can be unintentional or intentional. Unintentional injuries result from incidents such as motor vehicle collisions, falls, fire, drowning and poisoning. Intentional injuries result from incidents such as suicide attempts, assault, family violence and homicide.

Injury control is an all-encompassing term that includes injury prevention, and in the event of an injury, emergency response, acute care and rehabilitation. The AICS addresses the full continuum of injury control with a focus on prevention.

Major Causes of Injury in Alberta
The major injury causes leading to death, hospitalizations and/or emergency department visits in Alberta:
Suicide/self-inflicted injuries
Motor vehicle-related injuries
Unintentional poisonings
Falls
Other injuries due to being struck by an object/person or cutting and piercing
Other significant injury causes are homicide, drowning, fire and burns, assault, adverse effects, exertion, and suffocation.
Injuries involving Aboriginal people are two to four times higher than the general population.
Farming and workplace injuries are a significant concern.
Alcohol is a major factor in injuries.

Vision
Making Alberta the Safest Place to Live

Mission
Contribute to a healthy Alberta and healthy Albertans by:

• Engaging Albertans in making the injury issue a priority.
• Reducing the frequency and severity of injuries in Alberta.
• Reducing the impact of and improving the outcomes for those affected by injury.
  

Strategic Goals

1. Increase the awareness and commitment of Albertans to injury prevention.
2. Promote the development and enforcement of healthy public policies and legislation aimed at injury prevention.
3. Build and sustain the capacity and capability to deliver effective injury prevention programs.
4. Increase the availability of and access to comprehensive provincial injury surveillance data.
5. Increase research and program evaluation on injury causes, injury programs and practices.
6. Optimize emergency response, acute care and rehabilitation services to those who are affected by injury.
7. Strengthen partnerships among injury control stakeholders.

Stakeholders Involved

• Individual Albertans and their families.
• Injury survivors.
• Communities.
• Community based and not-for-profit organizations.
• Professional groups.
• Health authorities.
• Education system.
• Business and industry.
• Municipal governments.
• Provincial government.
• Federal government.

Values and Underlying Principles

• Injury prevention focus and attitude.
• Holistic focus on people and their environments.
• Shared responsibility.
• Strong stakeholder coordination and collaboration.
• Diverse strategies.
• Competency and organizational capacity.
• Quality programs and services.
• Evidence-based practices.

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Executive Summary

Executive Summary PDF Full Version Click Here

Injuries in Alberta are unacceptably high with Alberta having one of the highest rates in Canada. Given these concerns, a broad range of stakeholders involved in the field of injury control came together to develop a coordinated and collaborative strategy to address injury control in Alberta. The Alberta Injury Control Strategy was developed with the assistance of an Advisory Steering Committee and reviewed and validated by stakeholders across the province through regional and provincial consultation sessions. This executive summary contains the highlights of the Alberta Injury Control Strategy.

The Alberta Injury Control Strategy provides a framework to guide effective planning and implementation of injury control initiatives among all stakeholders in the injury control field in Alberta.

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Complete Document

Full PDF Version

For the full version of the Alberta Injury Contorl Strategy click here

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Moving Forward

Strategy Recommendations

 

The Alberta Injury Control Strategy document identified five recommendations seen as key to the successful implementation of the strategy.  They are summarized in the Strategy executive summary as the following “next steps”:

• Enhance provincial coordination and collaboration.  Authorize and approve the Alberta Centre for Injury Control & Research (ACICR) with a broad provincial mandate and broad stakeholder endorsement for injury control coordination and collaboration support.

• Develop and sell the business case.  Develop a compelling business case to reinforce the cost benefits of effective injury prevention programs, followed by effective treatment, management and rehabilitation services.

• Develop an implementation plan.  Entrust the coordinating body of ACICR and a broadened advisory body of stakeholders to develop a plan for implementing the Alberta Injury Control Strategy.

• Facilitate stakeholder development of injury control plans.  Stakeholders need to participate in, contribute to and collaborate on the development of provincial, regional, and local injury control initiatives.

• Monitor implementation and report progress.  Stakeholders need to contribute annual information and data on their injury control programs as part of the overall monitoring of the strategy. 

 

Who is responsible for ensuring the Strategy is implemented?

 

The Alberta Injury Control Strategy does not belong to any one group, organization or sector.  Rather, it is intended to belong to all injury control stakeholders in Alberta.  The Strategy cannot successfully implemented by any one group nor by many groups acting in isolation.  Successful implementation of the Strategy requires collaboration of all stakeholders, buy-in and support of all key stakeholder government departments, provincial coordination, and resources.  In fact, thirteen of Alberta’s government ministries have been identified as having specific roles and responsibilities related to preventing injuries to Albertans. Therefore, in order to fully and successfully implement the Strategy, the Alberta Injury Control Strategy Advisory Committee and ACICR are seeking broad, high level, cross-ministerial, acceptance, policy participation and implementation support for the Strategy from the Government of Alberta.

 

In the meantime, to ensure the Strategy moves forward, the Advisory Committee acted on the Strategy’s recommendation that ACICR assume the coordination role, within the limitations of current human and financial resources, while awaiting government acceptance and implementation support.  The Advisory Committee continues to serve in an advisory capacity offering perspectives from a range of constituencies to provide periodic conceptual or big picture input, observations and recommendations to ACICR and the Steering Committee on moving the Alberta Injury Control Strategy forward.

 

 

Overview of key activities

 

2003

• Report publication and distribution – ACICR printed and distributed a limited number of coiled versions of the full document as well as 1500 executive summary documents in the summer of 2003. The document was also put on the ACICR website.  In spring 2004, ACICR had another 1000 executive summary documents printed.

• Government of Alberta - ACICR met with a group of six Ministers and Deputy Ministers representing Agriculture, Aboriginal Affairs, Learning, Human Resources & Employment, Transportation and Children’s Services to discuss the possibility of a cross-ministerial committee taking ownership of the strategy.  This was followed by a presentation to the Standing Policy Committee (SPC) on Health and Community Living in November 2003.  SPC was well-attended by several Ministers and the presentation was well-received. 

2004

• Regional Health Authorities - ACICR made a presentation to a joint meeting of the RHA Council of Chairs and Council of CEOs in the spring of 2004 with a positive reception.  A follow up letter went out offering a presentation in each health region.

• Other stakeholder groups - ACICR presented the Strategy to the Rural Safety Network of Alberta and a number of industry-related meetings and conferences.  Information on the Strategy was provided to Don McDermid who is doing an independent review of Traffic Safety in Alberta for Alberta Transportation’s Traffic Collision Fatality and Injury Reduction Strategy.  The Strategy goals were used as a template in the development of the Canadian Injury Prevention Strategy framework.

• Advisory Committee revitalization - The Advisory Committee developed new Terms of Reference with the purpose of providing advice and recommendations on moving the strategy forward, since the original Terms of Reference related to developing the Strategy.  Former Advisory Committee members were invited to remain on the Committee, to which others were added. 

• Priorities set - The Alberta Injury Control Strategy Advisory Committee decided to focus its current efforts on the following two areas:

1. Building broad community, regional and provincial multi-stakeholder buy-in, participation and support for the Alberta Injury Control Strategy by establishing the Alberta Injury Control Alliance to provide a concrete way for organizations, business and industry, schools, communities and other stakeholders to ‘sign on’ and help move the Strategy forward.
2. Seeking broad, high level, cross-ministerial acceptance, policy participation and implementation support for the Strategy from the Government of Alberta.

• Staff and Steering Committee – In mid 2004, ACICR assigned a staff member to manage the project and coordinate activities and a Steering Committee was set up to guide and oversee the project.

• The Alberta Injury Control Alliance was established in late 2004.

  

2005

• Membership Drive Communication Plan – A communication plan was developed and carried out with the goal of creating awareness of the Alberta Injury Control Alliance and the Alberta Injury Control Strategy and to persuade a wide range of stakeholders from across the province representing various sectors to join the Alliance as either Active or Associate members.  The plan identified communication goals and objectives, challenges, key stakeholder groups, priority target groups, key messages, strategies, materials and information needed, a workplan and evaluation.  Those joining the Alliance prior to the fall launch event were given Founding Member status.  The effort resulted in 159 Founding Members joining the Alliance prior to its launch in December 2005.  Strategies included:  development and distribution of promotional materials (brochure, website business card, elevator conversation, Quick Facts, Frequently Asked Questions, briefing template, letters, display), email taglines, newsletter articles, presentations, news release, website, word of mouth, Founding Member status and recognition, and a launch event.

• Membership packages were provided to all new members and included a membership certificate and welcome letter as well as a number of other materials related to the Alliance and Strategy.

• Government Support Communication Plan – a second communication plan was developed and carried out with the following purpose:
  1. To increase awareness with the Government of Alberta of the burden of injuries for Alberta and Albertans and the Government’s responsibility to address the problem.
  2. To create awareness of the Alberta Injury Control Strategy and Alberta Injury Control Alliance with the Government of Alberta.
  3. To demonstrate to the Government of Alberta the strength and scope of support and endorsement for the Alberta Injury Control Strategy and Alliance from a wide range of stakeholders across the province.
  4. To create understanding of the need for broad, high level, cross-ministerial acceptance, policy participation and implementation support for the Alberta Injury Control Strategy from the Government of Alberta. 
  5. To build and strengthen relationships with the Government of Alberta, its representatives and Ministries.
     
     
• Presentation to Standing Policy Committee (SPC) on Health and Community Living in September 2005.  Other key Ministers were also invited to attend.  This presentation had the following purpose:
  1. To remind Ministers of the impact of injuries in Alberta.
  2. To update them on the Alberta Injury Control Strategy which was developed to help reduce the burden of injuries in Alberta.
  3. To introduce the Alberta Injury Control Alliance and demonstrate the support of stakeholders for the Strategy.
  4. To engage the Government of Alberta in supporting and implementing the Strategy.
  
  

Three requests were made at that time in order to achieve the Strategy’s 7 goals:  

1. Buy-in and support of the Government of Alberta for the Alberta Injury Control Strategy and Alliance.
2. Financial support to develop and coordinate an implementation plan for the Strategy.
3. A broad, high level, cross-ministerial committee involving all stakeholder Departments that accepts joint responsibility for seeing that the Strategy is implemented.

 

The Standing Policy said they would consider our requests and get back to us.  They also suggested that we should consider pursuing corporate support.  We are currently awaiting their reply.

 

• Presentations were made to other groups including the RHA and Community Coalition Safety Promotion Network and the 2005 Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

• Honourary Patron – Norman L. Kwong, Lt. Governor of Alberta, agreed to lend his name as Honourary Patron of the Alberta Injury Control Strategy and Alliance.

• AICA Launch Celebration Event – Over 100 people turned out at the Royal Alexander Museum in Edmonton on December 1, 2005, for the official launch of the Alberta Injury Control Alliance (AICA).  Guests included representatives of several key government departments and about 85 of the Alliance’s 159 Founding Members.  The celebration event resulted in some valuable media coverage, government attention, several donations, and contacts by others who wanted to get involved.  See full article on home page.

 

2006

• Click here to view the 2006 AICA Annual Report (PDF 680 kb).

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Advisory Committee

Representation Click Here (PDF 35kb)

 

Terms of Reference Click Here  (PDF 130 kb)

 

Focus

The Alberta Injury Control Strategy Advisory Committee is currently focussing its efforts on the following two areas:

 

1. Building broad community, regional and provincial multi-stakeholder buy-in, participation and support for the Alberta Injury Control Strategy by establishing a provincial alliance or coalition to provide a concrete way for organizations, business and industry, schools, communities and other stakeholders to ‘sign on’ and help move the Strategy forward.
2. Seeking broad, high level, cross-ministerial acceptance, policy participation and implementation support for the Strategy from the Government of Alberta.
   
   
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Stakeholder Ministries

 

Information click Here  (PDF 39 kb)

 

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