UBC Learning Circle, the Indigenous Research Support Initiative at UBC (IRSI) and the Centre for Excellence in Indigenous Health recently partnered on a COVID-themed webinar looking at informing First Nations, Inuit and Métis on ways in which to protect reserve communities. The webinar, “kitatipithitamak mithwayawin: Indigenous-Led Planning and Responses to COVID-19 and other Pandemics, Then, Now, and Into the Future,” included panelists Dr. Myrle Ballard and Dr. Stéphane McLachlan (University of Manitoba) and Dr. Ramona Neckoway (University College of the North).
“Kitatipithitamak mithwayawin,” a Cree phrase for “sovereignty over health and wellbeing,” is an Indigenous-led initiative examining ways that health care systems and services have responded to the needs of First Nations communities during health emergencies and pandemics such as COVID-19. With more than 12 partners including First Nations, health authorities, researchers and community members, the initiative has mobilized resources and information for Manitoba communities.
The initiative was created in order to close the gap between Indigenous peoples and scientific information during pandemics. In the past Indigenous and other marginalized peoples have been disproportionally affected by pandemics, which has led to higher infection and mortality rates.
In the webinar, the researchers discussed historical responses, and how Indigenous peoples dealt with pandemics. Indigenous peoples often took matters into their own hands, as the governmental practices were lacking or further harmed Indigenous communities. Even today, access to healthcare is not uniform because northern and rural communities may face barriers to accessing services.
Dr. Myrle Ballard talked about “services that we take for advantage in the south” while emphasizing the discrepancy between rural and urban Indigenous peoples and their access to healthcare. To ameliorate lack of access, reserves created plans to decrease the spread of disease, while also using traditional practices to uplift their communities. Some of the measures for dealing with pandemics include social distancing, control of entry onto the reserve, and use of traditional medicines. The webinar also provided excellent examples of communicating information to community members.
The Kitatipithitamak mithjwaywin website also provides Indigenous communities access to relevant information around COVID-19. Their website, covid19indigenous.ca, provides “real-time information to people in the community,” says Dr. Neckoway. On the website, Indigenous peoples can access the number of cases on reserves, videos about COVID-19, and other pandemic related information. Information about the pandemic and other events can also be found on their Facebook page.
Watch the full webinar on Youtube.