Indigenous Cultural Safety TRaining  

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN

To begin the registration process, please email ics@iphcc.ca

 

 

The IPHCC is proud to announce the successful launch of our Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety, the first course in our training program Anishinaabe Mino’ayaawin – People in Good Health.  

 

 

Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety has been created for individuals working in the health care system to learn the importance of adopting culturally safe and appropriate practices when serving Indigenous clients and patients. This training will be hosted online and will take users approximately three hours to complete. It is our belief that cultural safety is the necessary next step towards a health-care system that provides more equitable care for First Nations, Inuit and Métis people. The course is designed to promote a combination of cultural competency education and training in cultural safety so that participants understand historical and cultural knowledge as it applies to health settings. The information and curriculum are accompanied by tools, resources, assessments, and checklists so that individuals are better equipped to respond and provide safer care to Indigenous clients and patients.

What to Expect in our course

The following outlines some of the content included in our training:

Real World Situations

Our course will take learners through real-world situations that will grow learners’ cultural humility by making their cultural biases apparent through critical reflection exercises

Safety as Transformative Change

Our course recognizes that cultural competency is limited to simply acquiring knowledge about a culture. The IPHCC’s cultural safety approach accounts for the social and historical contexts, as well as structural and interpersonal power imbalances that shape ones’ health experiences. The approach integrates awareness, sensitivity, competency, and humility.  

Indigenous Cultural Safety

Our course values Indigenous models of wellness and health, and strives to find balance between mainstream clinical health approaches and Indigenous ways of healing. At the core of Indigenous cultural safety, there is an understanding that Indigenous health lies in Indigenous hands.   

Evaluate Your Learning

Our course will provide learners with an opportunity to test their knowledge of cultural safety and related concepts before and after completing the training. Additionally, there are reflection check points throughout the course in order to exercise learners’ critical thinking towards the concepts explained and covered. 

Language barriers and diversity

The lack of health services offered in Indigenous languages can impede the delivery of care for Indigenous populations. Our course emphasizes a need for the inclusion of various Indigenous languages and recognition that there are unique non-verbal cues that providers should be aware of.  

Microaggressions

Microaggressions are subtle, discriminatory comments, and could be intentional or unintentional in perpetuating harm. They are informed by biases and stereotypes that exist in mainstream society as a result of the preconceptions that were promoted through legislation, such as The Indian Act. Our course strives to dismantle the roots of associated stereotypes by exploring various

MiiGwech | Thank you

The IPHCC would like to thank our Knowledge Keepers’ Circle, bioethicists and Indigenous patient navigators from across Ontario for their contributions in developing the course.

Want more information? 

Find out more!

Anti-Indigenous racial discrimination and bias have profound negative impacts on the health and wellness of Indigenous communities in Ontario. The Ontario Indigenous Cultural Safety (ICS) Program is focused on supporting Indigenous Health transformation as part of the overall health and social service systems transformation underway in Ontario.

The goal is to improve Indigenous healthcare experiences and outcomes by increasing respect and understanding of the unique history and current realities of Indigenous populations. We facilitate and promote transformative decolonizing, Indigenous specific anti-racist education using evidence informed and coordinated approaches and strategies. We also work in collaborative partnerships and support organizational change initiatives, seeking to improve awareness about how colonialism is embedded in services, and motivating people with influence to address anti-Indigenous racial discrimination.

There are a number of ways that the Program advances its mission:

  • Online training for health and social service professionals (see below)
  • In-person workshops, training and meetings convened to support organizational and system level transformation.
  • Planning, monitoring, evaluation and research initiatives related to ICS
  • Strategic, collaborative partnerships

Our small Ontario team supports organizational and system level coordination and planning related to ICS. If you have questions, or if you have taken the online training and would like to discuss how to improve Indigenous cultural safety in your organization, we would love to hear from you. We are also interested in collaboration and knowledge exchange opportunities with existing Indigenous cultural safety initiatives.