2. One Story of 2-Eyed Seeing BC School Superintendents Association Thursday, November 8th, 2018
Evan Adams, MD, MPH
Tla’amin Nation

4. My family Tla’amin Nation

5. Two-eyed Seeing

6. Two-eyed Seeing

10. Beauty, Balance, Fairness

11. learning to see with the strengths of each & together
“Two-Eyed Seeing”
learning to see with the strengths of each & together
Indigenous
Western
Mr. Albert Marshall, Mi’kmaq Elder
Eskasoni First Nation

19. Following my dreams took me away from home for many years …

20. The Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1996) concluded:
“Aboriginal people are at the bottom of almost every available index of socioeconomic well-being, whether [they] are measuring educational levels, employment opportunities, housing conditions, per capita incomes or any of the other conditions that give non-Aboriginal Canadians one of the highest standards of living in the world.”

21. Presented to Premier Campbell at the Wosk Centre for Dialogue
16 September 2002
British Columbia (BC), Canada
32 First Nations languages
203 First Nations
270,585 Aboriginal identity
172,520 First Nations
+ 89,405 Métis
+ 1,615 Inuit
We are 5.9% of BC’s population of 4,560,240
50% of our population is ≤ 25 years old
Approximately 60% of the First Nations languages of Canada are spoken in BC.
We are diverse.
Presented by the First Nations Summit

23. Canada’s Truth & Reconciliation Commission
As with all other Truth & Reconciliation Commissions internationally, Canada’s TRC gathered testimonials of (state-sanctioned) human rights violations against certain segments of their population.
In Canada, these were human rights violations against Indigenous children via the residential school system.
The important work of truth-gathering happened from coast to coast to coast, as Survivors of the Residential School system shared their experiences with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

25. The TRC’s Principles of Reconciliation:
TRC Principle 2: “First Nations, Inuit, & Métis peoples, as the original peoples of this country & as self-determining peoples, have Treaty, constitutional, & human rights that must be recognized & respected.”
TRC Principle 4: “Reconciliation requires constructive action on addressing the ongoing legacies of colonialism that have had destructive impacts on Aboriginal peoples’ education, cultures & languages, health, child welfare, the administration of justice, & economic opportunities & prosperity.”

26. The TRC’s Principles of Reconciliation:
TRC Principle 5: “Reconciliation must create a more equitable & inclusive society by closing the gaps in social, health, & economic outcomes that exist between Aboriginal & non-Aboriginal Canadians.”
TRC Principle 6: “All Canadians, as Treaty peoples, share responsibility for establishing & maintaining mutually respectful relationships.”
TRC Principle 9: “Reconciliation requires political will, joint leadership, trust building, accountability, & transparency, as well as a substantial investment of resources.”

27. TRC Call to Action #22:
“We call upon those who can effect change within the Canadian health care system to recognize the value of Aboriginal healing practices & use them in the treatment of Aboriginal patients in collaboration with Aboriginal healers & Elders where requested by Aboriginal patients.”

28. TRC Call to Action #71:
“We call upon all chief coroners & provincial vital statistics agencies that have not provided to the Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada their records on the deaths of Aboriginal children in the care of residential school authorities to make these documents available to the National Centre for Truth & Reconciliation.”

29. Child Deaths at Residential Schools
My office is examining 4,900 child death records in BC’s residential schools

30. Statement of the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Ministers of Health – January 2016
“We, as Health Ministers, will work together & within our jurisdictions with Indigenous leaders to determine areas of shared priority, & to improve the co-ordination, continuity & appropriateness of health services for Indigenous peoples as part of a population health approach to improving Indigenous peoples’ health in Canada.

32. “Astronautics is synonymous with exploration.”
Dr. Robert Thirsk, a Canadian engineer & physician,
& former Canadian Space Agency astronaut

36.
At one point, if you drew a circle, the medicine people were Aboriginal, the medicine was Aboriginal, nurses, teachers were Aboriginal. But as colonization evolved and you looked at the circle there were no Aboriginals.
– Chief Robert Joseph

37. The Challenge
The difference in health outcomes between First Nations & other Canadians is unacceptable, unethical, & unsustainable.

38. A First Nations Health Authority
The Governing Body will provide for the effective participation of FNs in:
enacting policies;
identifying the results to be achieved in the delivery of programs; allocating resources;
establishing service standards;
implementing ongoing reciprocal accountability requirements; &
other key functions of governance.
In the interim, the Parties will support a process for FNs to have greater control over augmented resources dedicated to improve health services.
[Tripartite First Nations Health Plan, 2007]

39.
Heading
Text
October 2011

40. “What happens to communities happens to us.”
~ First Nations Health Authority
CEO Joe Gallagher

41. It starts with me… BC First Nations Perspective on Wellness – holistic
Our vision of health and wellness comes from the ancestors and is relational
Colonization interrupted this worldview
Each of us own our own Health and Wellness Journey
FNHA role as a partner to support our customer owners on their Health and Wellness Journey

42. Tripartite First Nations Health Plan
One Plan
Governance
Health Actions

43. Makara’s Story

47. Declaration of Commitment
Declaration of Commitment on Cultural Safety & Humility in Health Services for First Nations & other Aboriginal people in BC

48. ... ideally, everyone should have Cultural Humility
Cultural Humility is …
A life-long process of self-reflection & self-critique to understand personal biases & to develop & maintain mutually respectful partnerships based on mutual trust.
... ideally, everyone should have Cultural Humility

49. Cultural Safety
Cultural Safety means an environment free of racism & discrimination, one where people feel safe receiving care.

50. Transforming the Health Care System
2016: 2 of 8 Aboriginal UBC Medicine grads / doctors.

51. “The Declaration is important because it gives us all permission to do what we need to do to achieve Cultural Safety with the services we provide through the incorporation of Cultural Humility. It starts with the individual. We can all make a difference.”   

52. FNHA’s vision for Cultural Humility & Safety
The FNHA envisions a future where First Nations people have a new relationship with their care providers.
Respect
Understanding
Accountability
Equal balance of power
Mechanisms to address appropriate & inappropriate actions

53. Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada
A landmark decision to make Indigenous health a mandatory component of postgraduate medical education.
A focus on improved health and health care of Indigenous Peoples

54. Systemic barriers to achieving the vision
“I’m sorry, I’m embarrassed to say that when I faced someone who was being ‘culturally unsafe’ to patients, instead of confronting the person, I left. I didn’t feel like I could do anything. There’s such a hierarchy.”
~ BC healthcare worker

59. Someone may have cursed you…
… But you can call your spirit back. You can call your heart and your mind back.
Empowered to heal.
Culture as healing.
A traditional life is always better than a colonized one.

60. A Gardener’s Tale

61. Dr. Camara Jones: Undoing Racism
"...the gardener notices that the pink flowers flourish while the red flowers languish, but has forgotten her original decision to separate the seeds into the two types of soil (one rich, one poor). Instead, she proclaims, "I was right to prefer pink over red!".

63. Thank You