The Nak’azdli Whu’ten is a First Nations community located in northern British Columbia Canada. They have prioritized support for the mental health and wellbeing of their Elders and were keen to strengthen intergenerational linkages in the community to preserve cultural wisdom held by the elders for future generations. We co-created a digital storytelling workshop using technology to facilitate knowledge-sharing between Elders and youths. This pilot 10 session workshop involved all grade 6 and 7 students at a First Nations school and 20 First Nations Elders. Students recorded the Elders who orally shared stories and then added imagery and sounds to capture their understandings and create a digital story. The workshop was led by elders. Our project demonstrates one way to document oral histories while simultaneously building intergenerational relationships. We will discuss how this project successfully fostered intergenerational relationships, helped preserve cultural identity, and reduced social isolation of First Nations Elders.

• Published in: Innovation in Aging
• Main Author: Thiamwong, L
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 2018
• Subjects: Abstracts; British Columbia; Canada; First Nations
• Online Access: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6228190/; https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igy023.1375

This study aims to empower community-dwelling older adults for addressing falls risk and falls prevention and to make informed health decisions. The framework is guided by the WHO falls preventive model which include three pillars: 1) developing awareness of the importance of fall prevention; 2) enhancing the appraisal of falls risk factors; and 3) promoting culturally appropriated evidence based interventions (WHO, 2007). This study provides the opportunity for older adults to share their experiences, learn from the experiences of others, take an active role in preventing falls based on their health status and context, keep track of their outcomes, and give input into prevention strategies. However, due to liability issues, promoting older adults’ independence and empowerment may not follow the same direction in the health care facilities, which put high priority on safety and less emphasis on allowing older adults to make their own choices.