Scoping review on the state of the environment reports in Ontario

Under the purview of the Ontario Public Health Standards, specifically the Environmental Health Program Standards, Boards of Health (BOHs) are required to identify and report potential public health risks, health hazards, and conditions that can affect healthy environments. BOHs often utilize State of the Environment (SOE) reports to fulfill this mandate. The purpose of SOE reports is to disseminate vital information regarding the status of environmental factors that can impact human health and their related effects. Currently, BOHs in Ontario do not use a common approach to SOE reporting. A scoping review methodology was adopted to evaluate the range of content and level of information covered within the most recent SOE reports from 14 BOHs. The scoping review provided an opportunity to catalogue common themes and information contained within each of the reports. This information was then used to create a framework that could serve as a guideline for future SOE reporting.