title: Housing conditions in 2 Canadian First Nations communities.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Housing conditions were assessed in 2 Canadian First Nations communities. Possible associations with tuberculosis (TB) were explored. Study design. Participatory community-based survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Qualitative and quantitative data on housing and health were collected in the northern Dené community at Lac Brochet (LB), which has experienced endemic and epidemic TB, and the southern Ojibwa community at Valley River (VR), which has not. Results. 72 of 135 (53%) houses at LB and 57 of 95 (60%) houses at VR were enrolled. Houses in both communities were small (mean 882 and 970 sq. ft., respectively) compared to the Manitoba average (1,200 sq. ft.). Crowding was evident at LB (mean persons per room [ppr] 1.1) and VR (mean ppr 0.9). The provincial mean ppr is 0.5. However, only 49% of householders at LB and 19% at VR felt "crowded" in their homes. More than two-thirds of houses had absent or non-functional heat recovery ventilation systems. Mould was observed in 44% of LB houses and 19% of VR houses. At LB a significant association was found between the number of permanent residents in the house and the presence of selfreported latent or active TB, either currently or during residence in that house (p=0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Houses that were studied in these 2 First Nations communities were predominantly small, crowded and in poor repair. An association was found between the number of persons in a house and self-reported TB. Improved housing conditions in First Nations communities are indicated to promote and sustain health as well as human and Indigenous rights.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Winnipeg, MB, R3E 0J9, Canada. llarcombe@hsc.mb.ca
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Larcombe
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nickerson
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Singer
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Robson
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dantouze
authors.forename: Lloyd
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: McKay
authors.forename: Pamela
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Orr
mesh_terms: D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis; D006798:Housing / Q000592:standards; D006806:Human Rights; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American; D008350:Manitoba; D018570:Risk Assessment; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology