Improving access to Indigenous medicine for patients in hospital-based settings: a challenge for health systems in northern Canada

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Nicole Redvers, Justina Marianayagam, Be’sha Blondin
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2019
• Subjects: indigenous health; aboriginal health; traditional medicine; healing; northwest territories; health systems; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic; Northwest Territories; Canada; Circumpolar Health; First Nations; International Journal of Circumpolar Health; inuit
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2019.1577093; https://doaj.org/article/4d55ee3134ce485f8b215e58f9ced51d

In this commentary, we argue that Indigenous patients in the Northwest Territories (NWT) have a right to access traditional medicine and related practitioners as a part of the continuum of medical care. Indigenous people make up over half of the NWT population, spread over vast geographic areas with representation from First Nations, Inuit and Métis (FNIM) people. Ensuring barrier-free access to traditional medicine and providers in a culturally respectful environment is a challenge that requires structural transformation in the territorial health system. The ongoing transmission of knowledge about Indigenous traditional medicine in Northern Canada and the collective survival of Northern peoples is a testament to the applicability of traditional medicines in a self-determined wellness system. Through a discussion of the barriers to policy development and implementation, this commentary aims to elevate Indigenous perspectives and offer recommendations for integrating traditional medicines into Northern health systems.