COVID-19 Survey

BC COVID-19 SPEAK Round 2 Survey is now closed.

Thank you to all British Columbians who participated in the Survey on Population Experiences, Action and Knowledge (SPEAK).

Approximately 200,000 people from across the province lent their voice to the BC COVID-19 SPEAK Round 2 Survey. The information participants shared about their experiences with the pandemic will help public health professionals and others better respond to the key, ongoing challenges facing British Columbians as we recover.

A team of data analysts are now working to prepare the survey results and complete an analysis, taking into account geographic and socio-demographic factors, like education, income, and ethnicity, to ensure all segments of our population are properly represented.

Initial results will be available in summer 2021 and will be available on the BC COVID-19 SPEAK Dashboard. The dashboard currently reports results from the first BC COVID-19 SPEAK Survey, held in May 2020.

Protecting your privacy

Safeguards are in place to ensure your privacy. Data collected in the COVID-19 survey follows strict privacy practices under the B.C. Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. The act governs how your information is collected, who sees it and how the information is used. Read the complete privacy statement.

Funding support

We are grateful to the BCCDC Foundation for Public Health for its financial support of this survey.

Questions?

Send your questions about the survey to covid19.speak@bccdc.ca

Frequently Asked Questions

How were the questions in the survey developed?

The BC COVID-19 SPEAK survey questions have been drawn from validated sources where possible such as Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), national and international COVID-19 Population Health Surveys including specific tools from Statistics Canada and the World Health Organization, and the national Census. The survey was developed through extensive consultation with stakeholders and partners across British Columbia.

Is the information that I provide on the UBC Qualtrics survey tool then stored in the U.S.?

No. Qualtrics specifically configured the UBC instance to save all data to Canadian servers. Specifically, the survey information collected using this tool is stored in Toronto, Ontario and backed up in Montreal, Quebec.

What types of research projects may I be asked to participate in if I indicate I am interested?

The continuing global spread of COVID-19 requires ongoing public health surveillance and response activities into the coming months and years. Understanding the unintended impacts on the social, economic, physical health, mental wellness and resiliency of communities is important for British Columbia’s response and recovery. By providing your contact details including your PHN, meaningful population level analysis can be done by linking your responses to administrative health databases to better understand healthcare use and guide health system planning and recovery from the pandemic.

Providing your contact information does not automatically enrol you in research opportunities to help with recovery from the pandemic. You will be contacted and then you can choose if you would like to participate.

Was COVID-19 serology (antibody testing) done after the first survey with participants who indicated their interest and will there be antibody testing after this survey?

Many survey respondents were interested in taking part in COVID-19 serology after participating in the BC COVID-19 SPEAK survey in 2020. In the months after the survey was closed, research and other evidence showed that one per cent or less of the B.C. population experienced a COVID-19 infection during the first wave. This meant, the vast majority of the population had no immune protection against COVID-19 and pursuing population-level serology testing at that time was not a good use of resources.

Antibody or serology testing, which involves taking a blood test to determine whether you had COVID-19 in the past, is not part of this year’s survey.

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Where can I find the results from the first survey?

Results from the first survey, BC COVID-19 SPEAK: Your story, our future, are available on the B.C. COVID-19 SPEAK Survey Dashboard. The dashboard is an interactive tool that provides insights into the experiences of British Columbians during the first wave of the pandemic. Results are available at a regional or community level on healthcare, social and economic impacts, behaviour changes, risk factors, resilience and more.

How have the results from the first survey been used by public health?

The data has been used by Public Health, government and community stakeholders in government to inform different public health guidance. For example the return to in-class learning for K-12 schools was a priority where we learned three in four households with children reported impaired learning and decreased social connections, which can have lifelong impacts.