Grant: Project Grant

COVID-19 affects patients with pre-existing chronic diseases, like diabetes, more than others. Because we have been focused on caring for and managing COVID-19, other critical care that patients need for chronic diseases may not be happening (e.g. regular check-ups and referrals to specialists). Although COVID-19 is expected to affect all Canadians with chronic diseases, we think the impact on First Nations (FN) people will be much higher due to a lack of health, social, and other supports. Yet, to date, the potential impact is unknown. In partnership with FN health leaders, knowledge users and using appropriate methods for FN people, we will examine how the pandemic is affecting chronic disease care among FN people in Alberta. We will use healthcare usage data, person-reported measures, and storytelling interviews with FN people. We will examine changes in disease diagnosis and healthcare utilization before and after COVID-19. Driven by FN health leaders and knowledge holders, we will also collect person-reported measures from FN people in Alberta with chronic diseases to understand FN views and how COVID-19 has affected their care during the pandemic. Finally, individual stories will further help us understand how COVID-19 has affected chronic disease care among FN peoples. Our novel study with FN people is urgent. This work will allow front-line health directors and leaders within FN communities to understand how COVID-19 is influencing their communities and people and will assist in service planning post-pandemic. Our existing partnerships with the FN communities will enable the co-creation of materials, use of the data to inform the current and future public health response, and deepen the understanding of how care was affected during the pandemic. We will build awareness and share results together.