Schedule

“Nothing about me without me” – the Indigenous voice in an international nursing education collaboration (E/SI)

April 24, 2023 | 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Stream: Advancing Indigenous Education
Location: 520 DEF

In Australia and Canada, Indigenous peoples face significant health disparities compared with non-Indigenous peoples. Attributing factors include socioeconomic disadvantage, social exclusion, and racism. Nursing education plays a key role in reducing Indigenous health inequities, yet many educational approaches have historically come from a place of colonialism, privilege, and power. Successful immersive training experiences in Indigenous health have been implemented in both countries however not all Indigenous peoples have been included in creating and delivering these experiences. Presenters will share their experiences of developing a Collaborative Online International Learning program between Holmesglen Institute in Melbourne, Australia and Northwestern Polytechnic in Alberta, Canada. As part of the learning experience, a virtual reality (VR) module was created on Indigenous Health focused on the First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples of Canada. Members of the local Indigenous ‘Friendship Centre’ played a pivotal role in developing the script, and two Indigenous actors played lead roles. The actors shared their firsthand experiences of receiving health care with students and discussed their appreciation of being able to make a significant contribution. This Indigenous led module represented an authentic way to teach culturally safe clinical encounters to students and teachers where the voice of Indigenous peoples could be genuinely heard. Regardless of their country of origin, students valued the actor’s portrayal in the VR and the opportunity to hear their lived experience stories. Teachers gained insights into Indigenous history and culture and how to apply that to their own nursing and teaching practices.

Speakers
Darlene Horseman, Professor and Native Studies Instructor, Northwestern Polytechnic
Debra Kiegaldie, Clinical Chair (Applied Research, Health Workforce and Simulation), Holmesglen Institute
Joan Jacobson, Chair, Department of Nursing Education & Health Studies, Northwestern Polytechnic
Michelle Turick, Nursing Instructor, Northwestern Polytechnic
Sustainable Development Goals

Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 3
Good Health and Well-being
Goal 4
Quality Education
Goal 9
Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
Goal 10
Reduced Inequality
Goal 17
Partnerships to achieve the Goal