Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region
Tags: health, social sciences, wellness, traditional knowledge, social services, nursing, Inuit
| Principal Investigator: | Heffel Ponting, Heffel Ponting (1) |
| Licence Number: | 13345 |
| Organization: | University of Calgary, Faculty of Nursing |
| Licensed Year(s): |
2003
|
| Issued: | Jul 09, 2002 |
| Project Team: | Agnes Rube |
Objective(s): Plans to transfer the responsibility of health services to Aboriginal peoples are well underway. It is intended that this transfer process will reflect the principles of primary health care, increased public participation and responsibility, community based programming, as well as more effective management of the health care systems. Success in the assumption of these new responsibilities will be enhanced as members of the Inuit population begin to assume greater responsibility for their personal and community health outcomes. Nurses, the providers of the majority of existing health care services to the Inuit population, assume an ideal position in terms of their opportunities to influence health promotion activities and programs. The current state of nursing knowledge does not support the provision of culturally appropriate health care to the Inuit population, as reflected in the lack of supporting literature. Epidemiological data, which reveal a high rate of illness and disease among the Canadian Inuit people, may provide further evidence for the need for valid knowledge. Expanded understanding of the meaning of the wellness experience, as perceived by the Inuit, may encourage the development of culturally specific health programs that could lead to an overall improvement to the health of this population.
