A Telling Text

With efforts being made to address the many Indigenous health issues in Canada, the recommendations put forth by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and the high suicide rate in some Indigenous communities, a text sent out by an Alberta Health Services employee has generated much anger and disappointment.

According to an article found on the CBCNews Calgary website,

An Alberta Health Services employee has been suspended after using a racial slur in a text message to refer to a Kainai Board of Education school principal.

The texts sent by the AHS employee on Monday refer to a colleague apparently being disciplined during a training event on the Kainai First Nation, also known as the Blood Tribe First Nation, which is southwest of Lethbridge and about 200 km south of Calgary.

However, the AHS employee accidentally sent the texts to an employee at the Kainai Board of Education.

Ramona Big Head — principal of Tatsikiisaapo’p Middle School in Stand Off — said she’s referred to in one of the texts as a “rabid squaw.”

Click here to read the full CBC story.

Here is a follow-up article pertaining to the above story.

Dr. Nadine Caron on her trailblazing path as a First Nations surgeon

A member of the Pts4Chg community recently brought this presentation to our attention.  If you have not already done so, you may wish to give it a listen.  (Thanks, Troy!)

As the first female indigenous woman to graduate from UBC’s medical school, Dr. Nadine Caron says there’s so much to be done to ensure Canada’s Aboriginal people get the health care they need. And she knows how hard it can be from her own experience.

Click here to listen to the audio presentation from The Current with Anna Maria Tremonti – CBC Radio

Physicians gather to address First Nations health

At a recent event held in Vancouver, physicians came together to discuss a very important topic – namely, First Nation health.

The nearly 7,000 emotional and often tragic stories from the survivors of Canada’s residential school system gathered by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada provided a powerful backdrop to a standing-room only gathering of physicians and other health care providers at a special pre-General Council session on Indigenous health, held Aug. 20.

Truth and Reconciliation commissioner, Dr. Marie Wilson, set the tone for the discussion, saying she wanted to serve as a “channel for the survivor’s words” at the session.

“The ongoing work of truth and reconciliation going on in this country is not in fact just about Indigenous wellness,” said Wilson. “It’s about the wellness of our shared country.”

Click here to continue reading.

Closing the Gap: Indigenous Health Innovations Forum

In partnership with the Indigenous Peoples’ Health Research Centre, Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, and the First Nations University of Canada, and The Conference Board of Canada, the Closing the Gap: Indigenous Health Innovations Forum will be taking place on May 25, 2016 at the Delta Regina in Regina, Saskatchewan.  “The Forum will explore key policies and activities that are improving the health and care experiences for Indigenous people in Saskatchewan, and will also serve as the qualitative first step in a Conference Board research study on this topic.”  Topics to be discussed include:

  • Community engagement to minimize health inequities;
  • Innovative models for improved service delivery;
  • Data on health status improvement;
  • Program delivery in communities;
  • Providing an indigenous lens to policy;
  • Integrated health solutions

Click here for more information, including speakers, conference fees etc.