The Division of Aboriginal People’s Health, within the Faculty of Medicine at UBC, exists to support and develop Aboriginal health programs, curriculum, research and advocacy with Aboriginal communities and partners on local, national and international levels.
Aboriginal people make up approximately 5% of the population of British Columbia. Over the last twenty years there has been significant improvement in the health of Aboriginal people in particular domains, example, infant mortality rates, overall mortality rates and gains in life expectancy. Despite these improvements, the health status of Aboriginal peoples in British Columbia remains markedly worse than the health status of the rest of the population.
Statistics place the health of Aboriginal people significantly lower than the general population in many areas such as: life expectancy at birth is approximately 9 years less; death rates are almost twice as much, particularly by cervical cancer, digestive system diseases, cirrhosis of the liver, motor vehicle collisions, accidental poisonings, accidental falls, and suicides; and 1.4 times the hospitalization rate. As this gap in health status remains unacceptably wide, it is imperative that we train medical practitioners with knowledge and skills to address this imbalance.
Vision
Skilled and motivated Aboriginal and other physicians working in partnership with Aboriginal people and communities to improve health.
Mission
To work respectfully with Aboriginal peoples to strengthen their health and well being through collaborative partnerships in education and training of physicians; research with community partners; and promotion of effective service delivery.
Guiding Principles
- An increase in the number of Aboriginal physicians will benefit all of society.
- Acknowledges the need to work collaboratively with Aboriginal communities, the Institute for Aboriginal Health and other Aboriginal programs, and relevant community and government agencies.
- Acknowledges the cultural diversity and belief systems of Aboriginal peoples, which include First Nations (status and non-status), Metis and Inuit.
- Acknowledges the skills, experience and cultural diversity of medical students, physicians, health care providers and educators who desire to work with Aboriginal people.
- Recognizes the social, historical, political and economic factors that have influenced the health and well being of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada.
- Acknowledges that the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well being of Aboriginal people is in relation to family, community, nation and environment.
- Values and respects traditional knowledge and practices of Aboriginal people that promote health and well-being.
I am Dr. Shawna B Fiske, a Doctor of Chiropractic and owner of Fiskco Chiropractic Inc. The foundation of Fiskco Chiropractic is to provide professional health services and treatment to remote and local aboriginal communities. I am a member of the Heiltsuk First Nation of Bell Bella, B.C and I have always had a strong passion to be of service to our people.
Many aboriginal communities lack the resources of Chiropractors or have not integrated complementary care into the health paradigm. My proposal is to supplement the existing health care in order to strive to enhance quality of life, diagnose and treat disorders of the neuromusculoskeletal system. Chiropractic care is one of the largest and fastest growing professions and is especially sought after, for its drug-free and non-invasive methods.
I am contacting your department to see if you may know of health programs in support of complementary care and inter-disciplinary collaboration. I have reached out to the Chief Councillor of Bella Bella who is in support of Chiropractic care, however, the issue seems to be one of financial support difficulties. On a better note, i have also reached out to the Sts’ailes First Nations and have a meeting to talk about the future of chiropractic care in their community.
Basically, i believe many aboriginal communities lack multi-disciplinary health care options. I want to start off by integrating chiropractic care in a few communities and once positive outcomes have been accomplished more communities can participate in the future. If there is anyone you may know of that would be in support of my idea i would greatly appreciate it if you could point me in the right direction for network possibilities.
Thank you for your time and i hope to hear from someone soon!
shawnafiske@hotmail.com
Regards,
Dr. Fiske