Council Representation on the Board of Health

The Board of Health recommends that :

1. effective May, 1999 Council representation on the Board of Health, which is presently seven members of Council, be reduced to six members of Council and that the remaining Board composition consist of one elected school board representative and six citizen members to a total membership of 13; and

2. the City Solicitor be requested to prepare the necessary By-law if Council increases or decreases the membership composition on the Board of Health.

The Board of Health reports for the information of Council having:

(1)adopted Option (iv) contained in the report (July 7, 1998) from the Medical Officer of Health and in so doing established a School Health Subcommittee of the Board of Health with representation from all school boards and private schools with a mandate to make recommendations to the Board of Health on school health policy and advocacy issues, and adopted the report as so amended; and

(2)requested the Medical Officer of Health to report to the Board of Health in the Fall of 1998 on the present staff organization in place to relate to school boards, and on staff's working relationship with the Children's Advocate.

The Board of Health submits the following report (July 7, 1998) from the Medical Officer of Health:

Purpose:

This report outlines options for School Board representation on the Board of Health and mechanisms for liaison between Public Health staff and School Board staff.

Source of Funds:

Not applicable.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1)the Board of Health choose one of the options for School Board representation detailed in this report; and

(2)the Medical Officer of Health approach the public and separate school boards to establish management committees to address school health issues and services.

Council Reference/Background/History:

On May 12, 1998, the Board of Health requested staff to review the proposal to establish four Advisory Committees (Food Policy Council; Animal Services; School Health; and Substance Abuse/Alcohol Advisory) and report further addressing the following issues:

(1)purpose of each committee: e.g. mandate; Terms of Reference; composition - board members/citizen members/staff members; identification of need;

(2)expected outcomes of each committee;

(3)analysis of potential duplication or overlap of its mandate in other City of Toronto agencies, boards and committees (ABC's); and

(4)designation as an internal or external committee, and its connection to the Board of Health.

This report addresses these issues relating to the proposed School Health Advisory Committee.

Comments:

Programs that focus on children and youth are an integral building block of Public Health. Primary prevention early in the life cycle has been proven effective in creating a healthy beginning to a healthy lifestyle. Early interventions are enshrined identified in the goals of the mandatory guidelines of the Health Protection and Promotion Act. Therefore, schools are one of the most important venues by which Public Health reaches children and youth.

The six former municipal Boards of Health had a variety of structures to establish and maintain relationships with school boards in their jurisdictions. In some cases, specific seats for school trustees were allocated on the Board. Additionally, one Board created a school health subcommittee and several Boards had high-level management committees that met regularly to identify and resolve issues.

The value of school trustees sitting on the Board of Health includes:

(a)their experience with the issues that have an impact on children and youth;

(b)increased understanding of public health issues leading to increased awareness on the school board; and

(c)their position on another Board which allows for collaborative advocacy on behalf of children and youth.

The former City of Toronto Board of Health School Health Subcommittee did not work optimally as most issues requiring resolution or collaboration were not policy related; rather they were program related and operational in nature. However, the high level management committees of the other boards did work well in facilitating the implementation of programs and the resolution of operational issues. Policy and advocacy issues which required Board decisions were sent from the senior management committee members to their respective Boards.

Based upon the collective past experiences of the Boards of Health, high level management committees should be established with the two larger School Boards and a high level manager should be identified as a lead contact for the French Language Board. These committees would address school health issues such as curriculum support and services to students in areas such as immunization, TB, sexual health, substance abuse, nutrition and dental health. Given the complexity of issues of amalgamation at the Toronto District School Board, it would make sense initially to have at least two committees.

As there are only 13 positions on the Board of Health (including 7 members of Council and 6 citizens) and 4 School Boards, it is not feasible for each to be represented on the Board of Health. The Toronto District School Board has approximately 304,063 students, the Toronto Catholic District School Board 102,243 students, the French School Board 1,930 students and the French Catholic School Board has 1,596 students. Private schools number about 150 and have approximately 35,000 students. There is no one board for private schools.

The Board has several options:

(I)continue to formally invite the two larger school boards to have a trustee assigned to the Board as a regular attendee with a voice but no vote;

(ii)when the term of the present councillors is up, designate one of the current councillor positions for a school board trustee and designate the spot for the school board with the majority of students (invite the other boards to assign a trustee to attend regularly with voice but no vote); and

(iii)same as (ii), rotate the two larger school boards through the spot on an 18 month basis.

Conclusions:

Public Health and school boards have had long and fruitful relationships. There are many examples, such as child nutrition, which demonstrate the advantage of these relationships. The above options detail the mechanisms by which these relationships may continue to be fostered in the future.

Contact Name:

Liz Janzen

Regional Director

Toronto Office

Tel:392-7458

Fax:392-0713