Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
Symbol of the Government of Canada

Human Resources and Skills Development Canada

www.hrsdc.gc.ca

Advancing the Inclusion of People with Disabilities 2009

Foreword

Advancing the Inclusion of People with Disabilities 2009 is the Government of Canada’s seventh annual report on disability. This report looks at the experiences of Canadians with disabilities and notes changes over time.

Following the 2001 and 2006 censuses, surveys were conducted of adults and children who have difficulties with daily living activities, or who indicated that a physical or mental condition or health problem reduces the kind or amount of activities they can do.1

This report presents a statistical comparison of those surveys, building on Advancing the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities 2004, which examined disability issues using 29 indicators of progress. This report uses many of the indicators identified in the 2004 report, as well as new indicators.

Advancing the Inclusion of People with Disabilities 2009 explores indicators of change in the following outcome areas:

  • Disability supports and services: Required supports and services vary since each person with a disability has unique needs, goals and challenges. Inadequate access to needed supports and services can create unnecessary barriers to inclusion for people with disabilities.
  • Education and training: Access to education is often an important measure of full participation in society. Children and adults with disabilities may experience obstacles to education and training, including physical, attitudinal and financial barriers.
  • Employment and income: Employment contributes to both economic and social quality of life for working-age adults and is an important measure of inclusion. Canadians with disabilities are likely to have lower incomes than Canadians without disabilities. Access to sufficient income is essential, since higher income is associated with better quality of life and increased participation in society.
  • Health and well-being: Health and well-being are fundamental to a full life and full participation in society. Physical, mental and emotional health impact virtually all aspects of people’s lives and are linked to other outcomes such as level of education, employment, income and participation in the community.

Research projects exploring further questions around the situation of Canadians with disabilities are planned, and some are currently underway. Publications examining Aboriginal, age-specific and gender-specific disability issues are also planned.

A complementary publication planned for release in early 2010, Disability in Canada: A 2006 Profile, will present national, provincial and territorial statistics for 2006.

The Government of Canada is pleased to share with you Advancing the Inclusion of People with Disabilities 2009. We look forward to your feedback and to continued collaboration in moving towards the full inclusion of people with disabilities in Canada.

About the data

This report focuses on data from the Participation and Activity Limitation Surveys conducted in 2006 and 2001. These surveys used the Census of Canada as a sampling frame to identify their populations.

The 2006 Census questionnaire included two filter questions on activity limitations. Survey respondents were selected through the responses to these two filter questions and census information on age and geography. The survey repeats the two census disability filter questions and follows them with a series of detailed screening questions on activity limitations. The responses to these questions were used to select individuals for the survey interview, which collected information on the impact of disability on respondents’ everyday activities and other aspects of their life, such as education, employment, leisure and transportation.

The survey sample was 48 000, consisting of approximately 39 000 adults and 9 000 children. The interviews were conducted by telephone, and the interviewers used a computer-assisted collection methodology. Two questionnaires were used, one for adults aged 15 and over and one for children under the age of 15. The interviews for the children’s questionnaire were conducted with the parent or guardian of the child. The overall response rate was 75%.

The population covered by the survey consisted of people residing in private households and certain types of collective households in the ten provinces and three territories. People living in institutions and on First Nations reserves were excluded from the survey.

The 2006 survey followed the groundwork laid by the 1991 Health and Activity Limitation Survey (HALS) and the 2001 survey. The HALS data cannot be compared with the 2001 and 2006 data because of significant differences in sampling plans, the operational definition of the target population and the content of the questionnaires. This report compares findings from the 2006 and 2001 surveys to identify trends in the previous five years.

Methodology for comparison of 2001 and 2006 surveys

The 2006 survey was expanded to include specific groups that were not included in the 2001 survey. Three main groups that were included in 2006 but not in 2001 are:

  1. People living in the territories.
  2. People living in off-reserve Aboriginal communities. In 2001, they were surveyed separately under the Aboriginal Peoples Survey.
  3. People living in non-institutional collective dwellings such as supported living apartment buildings. This does not include people who live in institutional collective dwellings such as nursing homes and palliative care homes.

To allow more accurate statistical comparisons with the 2001 data, the above groups were removed from the 2006 data for the purposes of this report. The adjusted data set will be known as “2006 comparable” data and will be used for all data comparisons throughout this report.

The impact on disability rates resulting from removing the above groups is displayed by age in Chart 0.1. For ages 0 to 64, there is no material impact on the disability rates. For seniors, the overall disability rate drops by 0.2% when the above groups are removed. As a result, the disability rates shown in this report are, on average, slightly understated.

Chart 0.1 — Prevalence of disability by age group, 2006 and 2006 comparable
Age group 2006 2006 Comparable
Total Population Population with Disabilities Disability Rate Total Population Population with Disabilities Disability Rate
Total: 0 to 14 5 471 350 202 350 3.7% 5 408 580 200 460 3.7%
0 to 4 1 656 040 27 540 1.7% 1 635 860 27 280 1.7%
5 to 14 3 815 310 174 810 4.6% 3 772 720 173 180 4.6%
Total: 15 and over 25 422 290 4 215 530 16.6% 25 172 660 4 162 690 16.5%
15 to 64 21 373 150 2 457 940 11.5% 21 175 880 2 437 610 11.5%
65 and over 4 049 140 1 757 590 43.4% 3 996 790 1 725 080 43.2%
Total: All ages 30 893 640 4 417 880 14.3% 30 581 240 4 363 150 14.3%

The impact on disability rates by disability type is similar, as shown below in chart 0.2. Disability types for which seniors have a relatively large incidence rate (agility, hearing, mobility, pain and seeing disabilities) experienced slight rate decreases due to the data adjustment.

Chart 0.2 — Prevalence of disability by disability type, 2006 and 2006 comparable
Disability type 2006 2006 Comparable
Population with Disabilities Disability Rate Population with Disabilities Disability Rate
Agility/Dexterity 2 856 820 9.2% 2 818 860 9.2%
Communication 557 980 1.8% 547 980 1.8%
Developmental 207 400 0.7% 205 330 0.7%
Emotional 649 780 2.1% 645 760 2.1%
Hearing 1 289 410 4.2% 1 264 960 4.1%
Learning 752 110 2.4% 746 290 2.4%
Memory 495 990 1.6% 491 400 1.6%
Mobility 2 946 160 9.5% 2 908 650 9.5%
Pain 2 965 650 9.6% 2 928 290 9.6%
Seeing 835 960 2.7% 822 810 2.7%

1 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey 2006: Technical and Methodological Report, page 8. Available online at: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-628-x/89-628-x2007001-eng.htm.

Footer

Date Modified:
2011-08-09