In Canada, the designations remote, isolated, outport and fly-in refer to a settlement that is either a long distance from larger settlements or lacks transportation links that are typical in more populated areas.

Definition

In responding to the

avian flu outbreak of 2009 The global spread of H5N1 influenza in birds is considered a significant pandemic threat. While other H5N1 influenza strains are known, they are significantly different on a genetic level from a recent, highly pathogenic, emergent strain of H ...

, a Canadian government body (Public Health Network H1N1 Task Force) published the following

working definitions A definition is a statement of the meaning of a term (a word, phrase, or other set of symbols). Definitions can be classified into two large categories: intensional definitions (which try to give the sense of a term), and extensional definitio ...

. The definition of isolated is borrowed from

Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people Indians or Indian people are the citizens and nationals of India. In 2022, the population of India stood at over 1.4 billion people, making it the world's second-m ...

(INAC) and the definition of remote is borrowed from Health Canada. Canada also has ''fly-in communities'' that lack road, rail, or water connections and rely entirely on

bush aviation Bush flying refers to aircraft operations carried out in the bush. Bush flying involves operations in rough terrain where there are often no prepared landing strips or runways, frequently necessitating that bush planes be equipped with abnormally ...

. Other remote communities lack road and rail but have water access, such as the Newfoundland ''outports'', and those that have road access part of the year on ice roads, or can only be reached by

gravel road A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and the Uni ...

. One academic measure of remoteness used in Canada is

nordicity Nordicity () is the degree of northernness. The concept was developed by Canadian geographer Louis-Edmond Hamelin in the 1960s based on previous work done in the Soviet Union. Hamelin's system defined northern territories – like northern Can ...

, i.e. "northerliness".

Healthcare in remote and isolated communities

In Canada, there were 79

nursing stations Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ca ...

and over 195

health centres A healthcare center, health center, or community health center is one of a network of clinics staffed by a group of general practitioners and nurses providing healthcare services to people in a certain area. Typical services covered are family pr ...

servicing remote communities in

Northern Canada Northern Canada, colloquially the North or the Territories, is the vast northernmost region of Canada variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three territories of Canada: Yukon, Northwest Territories and ...

or on

Indian reserves In Canada, an Indian reserve (french: réserve indienne) is specified by the ''Indian Act'' as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." Indi ...

in the south. In about half these facilities,

registered nurses A registered nurse (RN) is a nurse who has graduated or successfully passed a nursing program from a recognized nursing school and met the requirements outlined by a country, state, province or similar government-authorized licensing body to o ...

are employed by Health Canada, a ministry of the

government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown-i ...

. In the other communities, nurses are employed by the Band Council.

Policing in remote and isolated communities

Policing in remote areas presents many challenges, most obviously logistical, but also social and even psychological. The

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...

had 268 "isolated posts" in 2009. Isolated posts are defined by the

Treasury Board of Canada The Treasury Board of Canada (french: Conseil du Trésor du Canada) is the Cabinet committee of the Privy Council of Canada which oversees the spending and operation of the Government of Canada and is the principal employer of the core public s ...

as communities that face "unique challenges" related to small populations, harsh climates, and/or limited access by commercial transportation or all-weather roads. All posts located in Canada's three northern territories are considered isolated as well as many in the ten provinces. Many of these posts are "fly-in only"; the police force has its own RCMP Air Services, which does everything from ferry prisoners to court to bring in new computers to offices. In 2009, in the territory of

Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the '' Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'' ...

there were 25 detachments, all fly-in (no roads), and only one RCMP airplane.

References

{{reflist Geography terminology Types of populated places Geography of Canada Northern Canada Demographics of Canada *

Definition

Healthcare in remote and isolated communities

Policing in remote and isolated communities

See also

References