Population Studies

The Public Health and Regulatory Policy Research Section is comprised of a multidisciplinary group of researchers, including epidemiologists, sociologists, psychologists, and criminologists. Investigators also serve as experts to governmental, non-governmental, and international agencies such as the World Health Organization, the Pan American Health Organization, and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Scientists hold appointments with University of Toronto departments, including the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Psychology, Psychiatry, Sociology, and Pharmacology.

One objective of this research section is to describe the extent of addiction and mental health indicators in the general population and monitor trends over time. This includes: providing and disseminating accurate and timely data regarding alcohol use, other drug use and mental health indicators among the general population and special sub-populations; and monitoring and identifying risk and protective factors for alcohol, other drug use and mental health indicators.

CAMH Population Health Surveys
The Public Health and Regulatory Policy Research Section oversees two ongoing CAMH population surveys:

(1) The Ontario Student Drug Use and Health Survey (OSDUHS) is the longest ongoing school survey of adolescents in Canada. The OSDUHS (formerly known as the OSDUS) began in 1977 and is conducted every two years. The survey examines trends in alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use, as well as physical health, mental health, gambling, and risk behaviours among students in grades 7 to 12 in publicly-funded schools across Ontario.

(2) The CAMH Monitor is the longest ongoing addiction and mental health survey among adults in Canada. This survey, first conducted in 1977, interviews about 2,400 Ontario adults by telephone every year. The CAMH Monitor tracks alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use, as well as mental health and gambling problems.

Other Population Health Surveys
Research staff members are also involved in other national population surveys. One example is the 2004 Canadian Campus Survey (CCS), which was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. The 2004 CCS surveyed over 6,000 university undergraduate students from almost 50 campuses, making this one of the largest university surveys ever conducted in Canada. In addition to CAMH researchers, the project team involved researchers from the University of Montreal, University of Alberta, and Dalhousie University. The 2004 questionnaire is available to download: English questionnaire (PDF, 104 Kb) and French questionnaire (PDF, 109 Kb).

The 2004 CCS descriptive report is available to download in English and French:

Canadian Campus Survey 2004 [PDF, 1.4 Mb]
Enquête sur les campus canadiens 2004 [PDF, 1.4 Mb]

CAMH Population Studies eBulletins
Highlights of findings from most of these surveys are disseminated in our quarterly eBulletin. In addition to being posted on our website, the eBulletin is distributed to public health and education professionals in Ontario.