This session will provide background information to help attendees understand the current situation of how members of First Nations communities access healthcare and social care services. Current research will be presented on the challenges and barriers that may contribute to disparities in the ability to access necessary services, and which may present challenges to improving health and educational outcomes for children with First Nations communities.
Dr. Josée Lavoie and Dr. Pat Blakley will use case studies that will include access to Early Childhood Intervention Programs on reserves, access to therapeutic equipment, and access to nutritional supplements. These case studies will compare and contrast the availability and access to services for children that on or off reserves.
Presenters
Dr. Patricia Blakley
Dr. Pat Blakley is an Associate Professor and Division Head, Developmental Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics, University of Saskatchewan. She provides clinical services to children with physical and/or intellectual disabilities living in central and northern Saskatchewan. She is also the Chair, Board of Directors, Saskatoon Region Early Childhood Intervention Program and provides an Outreach Developmental Clinic in collaboration with Children North Early Childhood Intervention Program in La Ronge, SK.
Dr. Josée Lavoie
Dr. Josée Lavoie is an Associate Professor with the Department of Community Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Manitoba, and Director of Manitoba First Nations Centre for Aboriginal Health Research at the University of Manitoba.
Josée holds a BSc in Dietetics & Nutrition (1986) and a MA in Medical Anthropology from McGill University (1993); and a PhD in Health Policy and Financing (2005) from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK. Before beginning her research career, Josée spend 10 years working in Indigenous controlled health services in Nunavik, Nunavut and Northern Saskatchewan.
Josée's program of research is located at the interface between policy and Indigenous health services, with a focus on contracting, accountability and responsiveness. She is particularly interested in how western and indigenous knowledge systems interface in the provision of health services in Indigenous communities. She maintains on-going partnerships with the British Columbia First Nations Health Authority and the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs. She is actively engaged in collaborations in Australia and New Zealand, and in circumpolar health research.
