Grant: Operating Grant - PA: First Nations, Inuit and Metis Health

Aboriginal women in Northern Canada are more likely to die and to become ill during pregnancy than women in the south of Canada. Sometimes the doctor or nurse does not speak Inuktitut or the local language and may not be familiar with the culture. Some women may not always have access to any female doctors and may have to fly to another larger community to have their baby or to get better health care. This can make things very difficult for the women as she had to be away from her partner and children, and be in a community where she may not have friends or family support, or even the country foods she would normally eat at home. All these things may make the women feel uncomfortable to go to see her doctor to have her check-ups and she may not get the information she needs to be healthier during her pregnancy. We would like to improve the situation for all women and especially those who get pregnant. We want to find out about what women eat, what they do during pregnancy, how their situation is at home and how they feel about their health care in the North. We will ask all the men in the communities their thoughts on the current situations and how they can be improved to support the health of the women. With this information we hope to develop a program with the community to improve access to a more culturally appropriate health care system for women in the North and those who become pregnant. We want to build a partnership between the communities, the health centers and the health researchers at the University to improve Aboriginal women's health.