DFCM Annual Report 2017-2018

GLOBAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY
Working with
the World Health
Organization to
promote Family
Medicine and
Primary Care
around the World
For over two decades, the Department
of Family and Community Medicine
(DFCM) has collaborated with
international partners to strengthen
family medicine and primary care
around the world. In sharing our
expertise in education, research and
advocacy we have contributed to and
learned from countless collaborations.
Keen to build on our rich international
experience, Dr. Katherine Rouleau,
DFCM Vice-Chair of Global Health and
Social Accountability, has been working
with the World Health Organization
to contribute to the primary health
care renewal heralded by the 40th
anniversary of the Declaration of Alma
Ata. This declaration was made by the
World Health Organization (WHO) in
1978 and identified primary health care
as the key to the attainment of the goal
of Health for All. DFCM looks forward
to celebrating the anniversary in the
fall of 2018.
Addressing Gaps in
Care for Indigenous
Communities
Addressing the health needs of
Indigenous communities both at home –
one out of five Indigenous peoples in the
province live in Toronto – and across
Ontario continues to be a priority for the
Department of Family and Community
Medicine (DFCM).
Overall, the department has settled on
two overarching initial goals: creating
a culturally safe environment within
DFCM and supporting the development
of Indigenous leadership within our
department. Formal acknowledgement
of the traditional owners of the land and
waters where we hold our departmental
meetings has also been instituted.
Our faculty members are working
to define our role as an academic
department in improving Indigenous
health across Canada and so far, we have
made initial steps with support from
faculty members including Dr. Janet
Smylie. Dr. Smylie, a family physician
and researcher at St. Michael’s, has
focused her career on addressing
inequities in the health of Indigenous
peoples in Canada by bridging gaps in
health knowledge and practice. This
work includes developing a highly
productive Indigenous health research
unit – the Well Living House – which
is uniquely co-governed by a counsel
of Indigenous grandparents and St
Michael’s Hospital.
Dr. Katherine Rouleau, DFCM’s
Vice-Chair for Global Health and
Social Accountability, has also been
meeting with members of Indigenous
communities to identify mechanisms
by which we can provide opportunities
for faculty and learners to enhance their
knowledge and understanding.
Some faculty members have completed
the Indigenous Cultural Safety (ICS)
program offered by Southwest Ontario
Aboriginal Health Access Centre
(SOAHAC) over the past year. It is a
foundational course that provides health
professionals with the opportunity to
examine ways in which our own culture,
education and history have shaped our
health practice, especially regarding
stereotypes that affect Indigenous
experiences in the health system. The
training also reiterates the present-day
realities of colonization that shape
Indigenous health and wellness.
This year, Dr. Angela Mashford-Pringle,
from the Waakebiness-Bryce Institute
for Indigenous Health, led a session on
the History of Indigenous Peoples in
Canada at the Global Health, Equity
and Primary Care course. The session
included the Kairos Indigenous Blanket
Exercise. Dr. Michael Anderson, a surgeon
from the Mohawk nation and current
Ph.D. candidate, also delivered a session
focused on Death, Dying and Palliative
Care among Indigenous Peoples.
A workshop focused on Indigenous
health was also held at the 2018 DFCM
Conference Day which included
discussion of the historical and
political underpinnings of the current
health outcomes in many Indigenous
communities. Attendees have reported
that the session confirmed their desire
to enhance their knowledge and
understanding of Indigenous health.
While there is still much more we can
and will do, DFCM’s faculty, residents,
students, staff and partners are doing
important and impactful work toward
improving the health outcomes for this
nation’s Indigenous communities, in both
urban and rural and remote locations.
Department of Family & Community Medicine | Annual Report 2017–2018 35