Definition:
A set of values that indicate the highest level of education attained by the client prior to the initiation of treatment at an agency.
Guide for Use:
Record only the highest level of education completed. When a client has attended some of the next level of education but not completed or graduated from that level select the level as not complete. Clients who have attended school outside of Canada, record the grade level in Canadian equivalency.
This information is typically client self-reported. However, it may also be obtained from referral documentation or from family members. All information collected is to be confirmed by the client or by the substitute decision maker.
Format:
| Permissible Values | Definition |
|---|---|
| No Formal Schooling | Selected when the client has not received any formal schooling. |
| Some Primary School | Selected when the client has completed some primary school but has not completed grade 8. |
| Primary School | Selected when the client completed primary school (grade 8) and but did not attend secondary or post-secondary school. |
| Some Secondary or High School | Selected when the client has completed some high school but has not completed grade 12. |
| Completed Secondary or High School | Selected when the client completed high school (grade 12) and but did not attend post-secondary school. |
| Some Community College, Technical College, CEGEP | Selected when the client has completed some college/post-secondary, but did not obtain a diploma or certificate. |
| Completed Community College, Technical College, CEGEP | Selected when client completed a diploma or certificate at the post-secondary level. |
| Some University (Not Completed) | Selected when the client has completed some university, but did not obtain a degree. |
| University Degree (Completed): Bachelors, Masters | Selected when the client has completed university and received a bachelors degree, masters, doctorate etc. |
| Unknown | Selected when the level of education is not know. |
Context:
- Used to develop client typologies and or profiles for service planning and delivery for both client and or the province.
- May serve as a rough proxy for literacy/numeracy status.
- Potential use in monitoring treatment outcomes for both the client and the province.
- To address disparities in health service delivery and planning requires a solid understanding of key barriers to equitable access to high quality care and of the specific needs of health-disadvantaged populations; this requires an array of effective data. The Public Health Agency of Canada has identified social determinants of health as having the potential to clarify important pathways to health outcomes and may suggest powerful approaches to address identified health inequities. These data can be used alone and or in conjunction with other social determinants of health to:
- Monitor service utilization by vulnerable or marginalized groups within a general population
- Identify barriers to service for vulnerable or marginalized groups within a general population
- Assess issues of access equity among the population seeking and being admitted to SA and/or PG treatment
- Assess whether programs are appropriately available and targeted.
- Develop recommendations for adjustments to mitigate negative impacts as well as maximize positive impacts on the health of vulnerable and marginalized groups
- Embed equity across the organization and the system
- Support equity-based improvement in program/service and system design
- Raise awareness about health equity as a catalyst for change throughout the organization and the system
- The creation of a specific care plan for the client to meet their personal need(s)
