Patient Speaker, Indigenous Medicine and Food, Coast Mountain College, 2020

Why would it be important for Nursing Students to have knowledge related to Indigenous traditional foods and medicine? How can they use this knowledge to improve the health and wellness of the Indigenous Population in the care that they provide? Share your knowledge related to Indigenous Traditional Foods and Medicine with these inquiring minds. Help them to become better health care providers!

Open to: Patient partners from NH Region

Lead Organization or Department

Nursing Faculty, Coast Mountain College Terrace Campus

Aim

The main goal of the initiative is to broaden the Nursing Students' understanding related to Indigenous traditional foods and medicine and the roles that these play in contributing to the health and wellbeing of the Indigenous Population. To provide the Nursing Students with an awareness of the traditional practices related to medicine and food and how we might incorporate these into our health care planning when a patient/family has identified that they practice and use traditional medicines and foods as part of maintaining their own health and wellness and that of their family. The Patient Partner would provide first hand knowledge about these practices and thus stimulate discussion and reflection on how we as nurses could incorporate this into our nursing practice and care.

Level of Engagement

This opportunity is at the level of consult on the spectrum of engagement. The promise to you is that the health care partner will listen to and acknowledge your ideas and concerns, and provide feedback on how your input affected the decision.

Eligibility

• A patient or a family member of someone who has experience gathering and preparing traditional foods • Comfortable sharing your story • Patients should have previously attended a PVN orientation session. If you have not attended an orientation but are interested please contact Cathy Almost directly to see if accommodations may be possible.

Logistics

• 1-2 patient speakers • Monday, November 23, 2020. could be flexible with this date between 9am – noon, speak for 30-45 minutes • Coast Mountain College, Terrace campus

Reimbursement

Pre-approved mileage (if meeting in person) otherwise if online, no meeting expenses anticipated.

Background

Students have a keen interest in learning more about Indigenous traditional medicines, ceremonies, and foods and the significant role that this plays in the health and welling of Indigenous Population. We will be learning about how practicing traditional medicines and eating traditional foods may have been lost through colonization and assimilation. We will, also, be learning about how these medicines, foods, and ceremonies contribute to improved health and wellbeing in the Indigenous Population. Having someone come tell their own story about their experience using traditional foods and medicines would provide the students with a richer experience that could not be gained from a textbook. The class is made up of second year nursing students currently taking an introductory course on First Nations Health.

Health Care Partner Contact Information

Cathy Almost
Engagement Leader, Patient and Public Engagement | Northern Region
250.615.9932
calmost@bcpsqc.ca