journal of aboriginal health, communities in crisis

National Aboriginal Health Organization

Journal of Aboriginal Health

“Communities in Crisis” Volume 5

Paulette C. Tremblay, PhDSeptember 9, 2010

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First Nation Communities in Crisis

• Health Canada collaborated with NAHO to commission 12 research papers on First Nations Communities at-risk and in crisis.• Journal of Aboriginal Health: 3 Issues of Vol. 5

Issue 1 – 4 ArticlesIssue 2 – 4 ArticlesIssue 3 – 3 Articles

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9 Discussion Papers & 3 Literature Reviews• Colonialism & State Dependency• Cultural Safety• Culture & Language• Intergenerational Trauma• Justice & Security• Resilience• Self Determination• Spirituality• Traditional Health & Healing

• Resilience• Social Capital• Traumatic Stress

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Definition of Crisis

• Crisis – a community is unable to mobilize its own natural problem-solving and coping skills and needs help to recover.

• A shared history of colonization and its legacy of cultural trauma have put all First Nation communities in Canada at risk of crisis.

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Communities & Protective Factors

• Every First Nation community is different.• Not all are in crisis–some are very successful.• Each possesses different protective factors that contribute to their balance & stability.• Protective factors refer to conditions that build resilience, serve as buffers against risk & may be able to prevent risk.

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Language and Culture as Protective Factors for At-Risk Communities

Onowa McIvor and Art Napolean

November 2009, Volume 5, Issue 1, pp.6-25

Literature Review: Examined studies on the use of language or culture and the effects on the health of Aboriginal People.

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The Link Between Language and Culture

• Language is one of the most tangible symbols of

culture and group identity

• The loss of language is tied to a deep sense of

loss of a group’s identity and culture

• Language is one of the main ways to transfer a

culture from one generation to another

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Language and Culture as Protective Factors in 6 Linked Themes

1) Connection Between the Land and Health

2) Traditional Medicine

3) Spirituality

4) Traditional Foods

5) Traditional Activities

6) Language

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Community Resilience: Models, Metaphors and Measures

Laurence Kirmayer, Megha Sehdev, Rob Whitley,

Stéphane Dandeneau & Colette Isaac

November 2009, Volume 5, Issue 1, pp.62-117

Assessed definitions of resilience,examined links between resilience and social capital, and considered interventions that promote resilience and well-being in Aboriginal communities.

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Definition of Resilience•Individual resilience – a person’s ability to overcome stress and adversity.•Community resilience – how people overcome stress by drawing from cultural networks that constitute communities.•Resilience is a dynamic interaction of individual and collective processes that contribute to adaptability, strength, the ability to surmount obstacles, meet challenges and recover from setbacks.•Resilience exists at the level of families, groups, communities and larger social systems.

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Sources of Aboriginal Community Resilience

• Connections to family and community–interdependence & caring• Oral tradition & storytelling–ways to transmit cultural knowledge• Connection to the land, environment & nature• Healing traditions–paths for personal transformation & conflict resolution• Ceremony & spirituality-access collective wisdom, humility & being connected• Cultural knowledge, identity & language• Cultural continuity-way individual & group moves from past through present to future with hope & possibility• Collective & political action-tools to challenge oppressive forces to create own future

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Ways to Promote Community Resilience

• Strengthen social capital, networks and support.• Find ways to revive language, culture and spirituality.• Support families and parents to ensure healthy child development.• Enhance local control and group effectiveness.• Build infrastructure at many levels (buildings, human resources).• Increase economic opportunity and diversification.• Increase human diversity.

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Traditional Medicine and Restoration of Wellness Strategies

Dawn Martin Hill

November 2009, Volume 5, Issue 1, pp.26-42

Literature Review – Examined traditional medicine and Indigenous knowledge as protective factors for Aboriginal populations and communities.

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Factors that Sustain Communities in Crisis

1) Colonialism is the root cause

2) Education is a tool for assimilation

3) The loss of value and support for women

4) The prevalence of youth suicide

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Recommendations

• Traditional knowledge and medicine can be protective factors.

• Indigenous knowledge and traditional healing are keys to empowerment and prevention.

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Emerging Themes Across Papers, #1

• First Nations community imbalance in all social determinants of health can be traced to colonization as the root cause.

• To deconstruct crisis an Indigenous world-view is essential in knowing how to move forward.

• Take a strengths-based approach: understand resilience and how protective factors work.

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Emerging Themes Across Papers, #2

• Balance, social determinants and an Indigenous world-view.

• Problem of separate departments and programmatic silos – horizontality.

• Community-Centredness – requires a team approach that is flexible and responsive to needs.

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Conclusions

Investments in protective factors may promote resilience and increase the likelihood of community success:

– cultural continuity (language, identity, traditional healing)

– self-determination– Leadership– economic sustainability– spirituality