Committee Member – Aboriginal Mental Wellness Advisory

Interior Health is hoping to increase Aboriginal volunteer engagement in an advisory committee that will assess current mental health and substance use services/programs. A second phase of this committee’s work will be to use the information gathered to develop an Aboriginal Mental Wellness Strategy to guide Interior Health over the coming years.
Open to: Aboriginal volunteers living on or off reserve in the Interior Health Region

Lead Organization or Department

Interior Health – Aboriginal Heath

Aim

To develop an Aboriginal Mental Wellness Strategy which will guide Interior Health over the coming years.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of collaborate (at a system-wide strategic leadership level) on the spectrum of engagement (www.iap2.org) .  The promise to you is that the health care partner will look to you for advice in developing, implementing and evaluating national, provincial and regional policy and/or research to ensure the health care system is responsive to the patients’ experience as much as possible.

Eligibility

This opportunity is open to Aboriginal Volunteers who:

• Have experience with Interior Health Mental Health and Substance Use Services as a patient or family member.
• Volunteers who have previously attended a PVN orientation session.  If you have not attended an orientation but are interested please contact Jacquelyne Foidart, 250.879.1077  jfoidart@bcpsqc.ca directly to see if accommodations may be possible.

Logistics

• Vacancies: 1 (to join 2 existing patient volunteers on this committee)
• One year term with opportunity to extend up to two years
• Meetings are held via video and teleconference every 3-4 weeks.

Reimbursement

If in-person meetings are attended, pre-approved expenses will be reimbursed in accordance with Interior Health’s policy.

Background

Interior Health for a number of years has developed an Aboriginal Health & Wellness Strategy to identify work needed to improve the health of the Aboriginal population in the Authority boundary.  The new 2015-2019 Aboriginal Health & Wellness Strategy - https://www.interiorhealth.ca/YourHealth/AboriginalHealth/Documents/AboriginalHealthStrategy.pdf , has been approved at all levels of Interior Health leadership and is made up of 4 core areas of work; one area is specific to mental wellness which is the engagement opportunity currently being presented.   The individuals that will be involved is still under development, but will include participation from: IH Aboriginal Health Practice Lead, member(s) from the IH Evaluation Team under James Coyle, Mental Health & Substance Use Program Lead(s) and Operations Manager (s); a member(s) of the First Nations Health Authority.  We are currently in process of sending an invitation to the First Nations Technical Team to select membership from the 7 First Nations, and will also be forwarding an invitation to the Metis Nation BC Health Director, as well, to the Urban Aboriginal Organizations i.e. Friendship Centres.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Jacquelyne Foidart
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Thompson Cariboo
250.879.1077
jfoidart@bcpsqc.ca