Indigenous (Métis, First Nation, and Inuit) peoples and communities in Canada, especially in the prairies, continue to experience disproportionate levels of tuberculosis (TB) compared to the rest of the Canadian born population. This inequitable distribution of TB disease burden demands effective policy, program, and practice responses. These have so far failed to materialize, perhaps in part because of limitations in the approaches we have taken to understanding the issue. As well, these responses have largely been grounded in western scientific paradigms. Science is the search and the re-search for knowledge and this varies according to the perspectives and paradigms of the researcher(s) and stakeholders. In this project, the student researcher collaborated with the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan (MN-S) and two volunteer health researchers to adapt and ground a western paradigm and methodology (System Dynamics and Group Model Building) to a Métis research paradigm to understand experiences of tuberculosis (TB) among Métis people. Data collection took place in a 2-day Métis-adapted group model building (GMB) workshop. The outcome is a causal loop diagram with associated stories co-created by the team and the workshop participants. The workshop was evaluated using a storytelling and story listening method that explored the appropriateness of adapting GMB within a Métis research context. The approach was determined to be successful methodologically, and substantively new knowledge was created in our Métis community about the determinants of TB. This research was a journey of diversity, working at the intersection of knowledge systems to produce a new understanding of a health issue as complex as TB.

In Canada, accessible and culturally relevant population health data for urban First Nations, Métis and Inuit people are almost non-existent. There is a need for Aboriginal community centric research and data systems, specifically in the area of mental health and substance misuse. The goal of this research was to address these knowledge gaps. The three linked studies being presented were nested in the Our Health Counts (OHC) project, a multi-partnership study aimed at developing a baseline population health database for urban Aboriginal people living in Ontario. In the first study, concept mapping was used to engage urban Aboriginal stakeholders from three culturally diverse communities in identifying health priorities. After completing brainstorming, sorting and rating, and map interpretation sessions, three unique community specific maps emerged. Map clusters and their ratings reflected First Nations, Inuit, and Métis understandings of health. Concept mapping encouraged community participation and informed the development of three health assessment surveys. The second study generated a representative sample of First Nations adults and children living in Hamilton, Ontario by utilizing Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS), a modified chain-referral sampling approach. Population estimates were generated for household and personal income, mobility, over-crowding and food availability. Results revealed striking disparities in social determinants of health between First Nations and the general population. The third study used the RDS generated sample to examine mental health and substance misuse among First Nations adults living in Hamilton. Prevalence estimates were generated for diagnosis and treatment of a mental illness, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), suicide, alcohol and substance misuse, and access to emotional supports. Findings indicated that First Nations adults living in Hamilton experience a disproportionate burden of mental health and substance misuse challenges. The three linked studies make innovative contributions to Aboriginal health research. Results clearly exemplify the effective application of community-based research methods that are grounded in local knowledge and built on existing community strengths and capacities. Representative population health data for urban First Nations will contribute to current deficiencies in health information; will shape policy and programming priorities as well as future research directions, particularly with respect to health and social disparities among this population.

Chronic non-communicable diseases related to excessive or unbalanced dietary intakes are on the rise among some Indigenous populations in Canada. Nutritional problems of Indigenous peoples arise in the transition from a traditional diet to a market diet characterised by highly processed foods with reduced nutrient density. This study used food frequency and 24-hour recall questionnaires to quantify traditional food intake in 18 communities in Denendeh (Western Northwest Territories) and the Yukon. These data allowed comparisons between the two regions (Yukon and Denendeh) and the two seasons of data collection (summer and winter, perceived to be the seasons of highest and lowest traditional food intake, respectively). Food choice in general is affected by a multitude of factors determined by individual, societal and environmental influences. In this study, individual, household, and community correlates of traditional food intake were assessed in order to construct a multivariate statistical model to describe the correlates of the quantity and diversity of traditional food intake in the Western Canadian Arctic. The variables used in this study reflected household demography, market food affordability, access to traditional food, individual characteristics such as age and gender, and perceptions about traditional food. The analysis of the associations between the traditional food correlates and traditional food intake in terms of quantity and diversity allowed for the description of the profile of men and women who are high consumers of traditional food in both regions. This study described and used a tool to measure traditional food diversity, which may be an appropriate indicator of the process of dietary change experienced by Indigenous Peoples in Denendeh and the Yukon.

Métis people in Canada experience Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) at a rate that is substantially higher than the general Canadian population, and therefore require medical and public healthcare for diabetes complications. Despite a growing literature examining Aboriginal health, little is known about how diabetes healthcare interventions are being delivered to the Métis in Canada. Culturally competent medical and public health interventions, those that are sensitive to the culture, history and the beliefs people hold, are known to produce better patient outcomes. These interventions are also known to deliver greater patient satisfaction, and may reduce existing health inequities. This thesis explores the extent to which community-level diabetes healthcare interventions in Saskatoon are being delivered to the Métis people in a manner that is appropriate and sensitive to their culture. Data were collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews with seven Métis participants living with diabetes. Structured in-depth interviews were conducted with one key informant from Central Urban Métis Federation Inc. (CUMFI), and five healthcare practitioners tasked with providing T2DM interventions. Observations and documentary materials were used to supplement the interview data for the study. The study identified two main community-level diabetes healthcare interventions in Saskatoon with a series of activities organized under them. Although the study found no Métis specific T2DM healthcare intervention, participants identified that Métis cultural activities such as jigging and community gardening were incorporated into some of the interventions. However, language, Métis traditional foods, and traditional approaches to teaching were not incorporated into these programs. These omissions, coupled with barriers such as limited spatial accessibility, lack of funding and community poverty have repercussions on participation levels, participant retention and health outcomes for participants living with diabetes. Respondents are less inclined to participate if interventions are generic (non-Métis specific), which are considered less satisfactory. In turn, this may affect the sustainability of the healthcare program resulting in poor health outcomes. In this way the Métis continue to struggle with these community-level diabetes healthcare intervention programs. This study supports the need for Métis-specific community-level diabetes healthcare interventions as a means of improving health outcomes for the fight against T2DM among Métis people.

The purpose of this study was to interview elite First Nations, Inuit, and Métis athletes to gain an in-depth understanding of their personal journeys to excellence. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and a narrative analysis was used to analyze the research findings. The three objectives were to find success strategies, obstacles and advice the elite athletes would provide to Aboriginal youth. The main success strategies were found to be Aboriginal elements, focus, mental preparation for competition, parental support, passion, and positive self-talk. Multiple obstacles were faced by the athletes in this study, with racism and leaving home being the commonalities. The advice they provided for young First Nations, Inuit, and Métis athletes was rich and inspiring. The findings of this study provide useful information for aspiring Aboriginal athletes, and for future ongoing meaningful research, that may lead to reducing the gaps in the literature.

In Canada, accessible and culturally relevant population health data for urban First Nations, Métis and Inuit people are almost non-existent. There is a need for Aboriginal community centric research and data systems, specifically in the area of mental health and substance misuse. The goal of this research was to address these knowledge gaps. The three linked studies being presented were nested in the Our Health Counts (OHC) project, a multi-partnership study aimed at developing a baseline population health database for urban Aboriginal people living in Ontario. In the first study, concept mapping was used to engage urban Aboriginal stakeholders from three culturally diverse communities in identifying health priorities. After completing brainstorming, sorting and rating, and map interpretation sessions, three unique community specific maps emerged. Map clusters and their ratings reflected First Nations, Inuit, and Métis understandings of health. Concept mapping encouraged community participation and informed the development of three health assessment surveys. The second study generated a representative sample of First Nations adults and children living in Hamilton, Ontario by utilizing Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS), a modified chain-referral sampling approach. Population estimates were generated for household and personal income, mobility, over-crowding and food availability. Results revealed striking disparities in social determinants of health between First Nations and the general population. The third study used the RDS generated sample to examine mental health and substance misuse among First Nations adults living in Hamilton. Prevalence estimates were generated for diagnosis and treatment of a mental illness, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), suicide, alcohol and substance misuse, and access to emotional supports. Findings indicated that First Nations adults living in Hamilton experience a disproportionate burden of mental health and substance misuse challenges. The three linked studies make innovative contributions to Aboriginal health research. Results clearly exemplify the effective application of community-based research methods that are grounded in local knowledge and built on existing community strengths and capacities. Representative population health data for urban First Nations will contribute to current deficiencies in health information; will shape policy and programming priorities as well as future research directions, particularly with respect to health and social disparities among this population.

Cette étude examine les rapports politiques entre les communautés métisses de la vallée de la rivière Rouge et le gouvernement colonial que la Compagnie de la baie d’Hudson (CBH) a implanté dans la colonie de la rivière Rouge. L’argument principal de cette étude avance que les dirigeants de la CBH ont été obligés de nouer des alliances avec les principaux leaders métis de la région pour accorder de la légitimité aux institutions politiques et juridiques de la colonie. Chaque fois que les gouvernants de la colonie ont tenté d’imposer leur autorité sur les communautés métisses sans leur consentement, ces dernières se mobilisent au sein de leurs propres formes d’organisation politique pour réaffirmer leur indépendance et rétablir une forme d’équilibre dans leurs rapports politiques. Pour démontrer cet argument, nous combinons l’approche de l’analyse des réseaux aux concepts arendtiens de la grammaire de l’action et de la syntaxe de la puissance. L’analyse des réseaux nous permet de cartographier les rapports politiques entre les leaders métis et le gouvernement de la CBH. Les réseaux présentés dans cette étude illustrent le fait que les Métis ont d’abord effectivement résisté à l’implantation d’un gouvernement colonial à la rivière Rouge et ensuite réussi à imposer leur présence au sein des institutions politiques et juridiques de la CBH. Le vocabulaire conceptuel inspiré de la pensée politique d’Arendt nous permet de réfléchir à la formation et à l’organisation du pouvoir. La grammaire de l’action, d’une part, désigne les pratiques par lesquelles les acteurs créent des espaces publics et génèrent de la puissance par le fait même qu’ils agissent ensemble. La syntaxe de la puissance, d’autre part, désigne les pratiques par lesquelles les acteurs structurent, articulent et coordonnent les espaces publics en un corps politique cohérent pour leur conférer de la permanence et empêcher que la puissance ne se dissipe lorsque les participants se dispersent. Ces deux concepts nous permettent d’analyser le processus de formation et d’organisation du pouvoir qui est illustré dans les réseaux. La contribution principale de cette étude consiste à renverser le narratif dominant de l’historiographie canadienne qui insiste que les Métis étaient soumis au gouvernement colonial de la CBH en démontrant au contraire que ce sont les Métis qui ont fini par contrôler le gouvernement de la CBH.

The purpose of the thesis is two-fold: to document the results of a language survey of Northern Métis languages which examines the language practices and attitudes of those Northern Métis people who participated, and to reflect upon the research process by examining the assumptions I bring to the research and my role and the role of other Masters level researchers in language revitalization projects. The research presented here has been conducted within the Community-based language revitalization (CBLR) research model (Czaykowska-Higgins 2009), a model which can be a powerful way to frame linguistic research and which is increasingly called upon when undertaking language revitalization projects. This thesis addresses the application of CBLR practices to a language revitalization project undertaken in collaboration with the North Slave Métis Alliance in the Northwest Territories, Canada. Along with positioning myself in the research, I provide an in-depth description of the historical, political, and social landscape in which the research takes place. My epistemologies and the CBLR model are informed by feminist and Native American methodologies, as well as participatory, participatory-action and action frameworks. Through this lens, I reflect on the academic context of language revitalization and offer my own model of collaborative language research which builds upon work done by Leonard & Haynes (2010). Applying this model, I present the results of the North Slave Métis Language Survey, conducted in 2013 in collaboration with the North Slave Métis Alliance. This thesis contributes to the body of work on Métis languages, and is the first to thoroughly examine and document the language practices of Métis people of the NWT. It also contributes to the growing body of work on CBLR research. / Graduate

The purpose of this study was to interview elite First Nations, Inuit, and Métis athletes to gain an in-depth understanding of their personal journeys to excellence. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and a narrative analysis was used to analyze the research findings. The three objectives were to find success strategies, obstacles and advice the elite athletes would provide to Aboriginal youth. The main success strategies were found to be Aboriginal elements, focus, mental preparation for competition, parental support, passion, and positive self-talk. Multiple obstacles were faced by the athletes in this study, with racism and leaving home being the commonalities. The advice they provided for young First Nations, Inuit, and Métis athletes was rich and inspiring. The findings of this study provide useful information for aspiring Aboriginal athletes, and for future ongoing meaningful research, that may lead to reducing the gaps in the literature.

No description available.