About the Pan-Canadian Public Health Network

On this page

• Governance
• About the network
• Public Health Network Council
• Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health
• Public Health Network Secretariat
• Steering committees
• Special advisory committee

Governance

The Pan-Canadian Public Health Network (PHN) is composed of the PHN Council, the Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health (CCMOH), the PHN Secretariat and 3 steering committees.

The PHN Council is accountable and reports to the Conference of Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) Deputy Ministers of Health, which is accountable to FPT Ministers of Health.

The work of the PHN is supported by 3 steering committees that report to the PHN Council:

1. Healthy People and Communities Steering Committee
2. Communicable and Infectious Disease Steering Committee
3. Public Health Infrastructure Steering Committee

Steering committees may establish time-limited, expert-based task groups to advance the priorities of the PHN.

The steering committees and their task groups draw on Canada's best available public health expertise through a talent pool of expertise composed of:

• communities of practice
• FPT liaison committees
• government ministries and departments
• Indigenous organizations
• local, regional, and provincial and territorial health authorities
• national collaborating centres for public health
• non-governmental organizations
• provincial public health agencies
• research institutes and academia

Structure of the Public Health Network

About the network

The PHN was established in 2005 and is the formal governance for FPT governments across Canada. We:

• strengthen and enhance public health policy and practice in Canada
• anticipate, prepare for and respond to public health events and threats
• enable FPT governments to better work together to address public health priorities

The PHN supports horizontal linkages across public health science, policy and program priorities through close collaboration of senior government decision makers and other key players in the public health system and related sectors.

In undertaking its work, the PHN:

• respects the authority and jurisdiction of each government to manage public health operations within their domain
• embraces the differences in how each jurisdiction exercises its public health responsibilities, establishes priorities and manages its public health infrastructure and resources
• recognizes that there is no 'one size fits all' approach to public health
• includes as part of the scope of its activities, collaboration with and participation of:
  • Indigenous partners
  • non-governmental organizations
  • researchers
  • other public health and multi-disciplinary experts

Vision and mission

Our vision is for Canadians to benefit from an effective federation dedicated to collaboratively addressing current and emerging issues in public health.

Our mission is to:

• protect and promote the health of Canadians
• improve health outcomes and reduce health inequities
• promote the importance of public health in the development of a sustainable Canadian health system

Public Health Network Council

The PHN is governed by the PHN Council. The PHN Council:

• is responsible for managing PHN priorities and deliverables in support of the PHN mandate
• ensures that the work of the PHN is regularly reported to the Conference of FPT Deputy Ministers of Health
• provides advice and direction to FPT Deputy Ministers of Health on public health policy and risks
• identifies shared public health priorities and develops strategies and resources to address them
• facilitates the sharing of best practices and learning across jurisdictions
• oversees the work of the PHN steering committees
• collaborates with and supports public health groups and organizations across Canada through guidance and technical resources
• translates research, science and evidence into policies, programs and practice to support public health

Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health

The membership of the CCMOH includes:

• the chief medical officer of health for each province and territory
• Canada's chief public health officer
• chief medical advisor of Health Canada
• chief medical officer from the B.C. First Nations Health Authority
• chief public health officer of the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch of Indigenous Services Canada
• medical representatives of the federal government departments of:
  • National Defence Canada
  • Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
  • Correctional Service Canada

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C. Provincial Health Officer, is the chair of the CCMOH.

The CCMOH is a technical public health forum for:

• promoting excellence in population and public health decision making and practice through communication, collaboration, and the exchange of knowledge and best practices on public health issues
• providing guidance and recommendations on technical public health issues relating to the work of the network, including on public health emergencies and crises
• providing integral feedback and evidence-based public health advice on a variety of public health initiatives to a range of stakeholders

Refer to our position statements for public health advice from the CCMOH.

Public Health Network Secretariat

The PHN Secretariat functions as the governance and operations management support for the PHN Council and Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health. It provides support to the members and facilitates collaboration and sharing of information within the PHN, including between PHN steering committees and their secretariats.

Key roles and responsibilities of the PHN Secretariat include:

• providing strong context, content and process knowledge of science, policy and program areas in public health that are of concern to the PHN Council
• providing strong decision making, governance and operations support to advance priorities for and on behalf of members
• providing broad context and intergovernmental policy support concerning the inter-governmental agenda and processes
• leading priority setting, planning, monitoring and reporting for the PHN

Steering committees

The work of the PHN is managed by 3 steering committees. The steering committees provide advice and recommendations to the PHN Council on collaborative approaches to public health surveillance, policy and practice. They may establish time-limited, expert-based task groups to advance the priorities of the PHN.

The membership of each steering committee is composed of senior government officials appointed by their federal, provincial or territorial jurisdictions.

Healthy People and Communities Steering Committee

This committee provides an integrated, national approach to chronic disease prevention and health promotion through:

• effective knowledge mobilization
• development and coordination of national strategies and recommendations

Communicable and Infectious Disease Steering Committee

This committee provides an integrated, national approach to communicable and infectious disease prevention and control through:

• technical work on guidance, risk assessment and surveillance
• effective coordination of national strategies and recommendations, including on immunization

Public Health Infrastructure Steering Committee

This committee advances the development of public health infrastructure, such as:

• formal information-sharing agreements
• emergency preparedness and management plans, which are required to enable core public health functions

Special advisory committee

As per the terms of reference of the PHN and the FPT Public Health Response Plan for Biological Events, a time-limited FPT special advisory committee:

• may be established to lead a pan-Canadian response to a significant public health event in Canada
• has a mandate to provide advice to the FPT Conference of Deputy Ministers of Health on the coordination, public health policy and technical content related to a significant national public health event, emergency or crisis

When activated, a special advisory committee is composed of members of both the PHN Council and the CCMOH.

Active committees

For information on the Special Advisory Committee on the Epidemic of Opioid Overdoses, refer to:

• Opioid overdose crisis

Deactivated committees

In January 2020, the PHN activated the Special Advisory Committee on COVID-19 to facilitate a coordinated FPT response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As COVID-19 no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern, the committee was deactivated on July 6, 2023. Work continues under the PHN’s Communicable and Infectious Disease Steering Committee.

For information, refer to:

• COVID-19 response
• Federal, Provincial and Territorial Public Health Response Plan for Biological Events: De-escalation

In July 2022, the PHN activated the FPT Special Advisory Committee on Monkeypox. As cases worldwide and in Canada continue to trend downwards, the committee was deactivated on December 15, 2022. Work continues through routine channels and governance structures, as we recognize the importance of continuing to monitor and report case data.

For more information, refer to:

• Monkeypox (orthopoxvirus simian)

Date modified:

2023-07-24