Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Research Scholarships - Master's program

My research addresses persistent health inequities faced by Indigenous Peoples in Canada by identifying effective, culturally safe care practices and exposing gaps that hinder equitable healthcare. While Indigenous communities are reclaiming traditional knowledge to strengthen well-being, many healthcare environments remain culturally unsafe despite national commitments to reconciliation. Existing frameworks on cultural safety are often theoretical, and although cultural safety training extends beyond theory, it has not consistently led to meaningful improvements, highlighting the need for practical, community-led research grounded in lived experience. The project has two phases. First, through the IndWisdom Realist Review, I will analyze peer-reviewed and grey literature to identify wise and promising practices, and recurring gaps in culturally safe care across Canada. Second, I will interview members of my community, Mattagami First Nation to explore how their experiences align with, challenge or extend the literature. Guided by Etuaptmumk (Two-Eyed Seeing), this phase will connect Indigenous and Western perspectives to ensure findings are relational, community-validated and grounded in lived/living experiences. Findings will be shared with participants, and presented at the International Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Conference and the Indigenous Advisory Committee at the Timmins and District Hospital. This research will generate actionable strategies to strengthen cultural safety training, support Indigenous-led health initiatives and guide equitable policy, and help healthcare institutions learn from patients about culturally safe care. Feasible within a master's program, it will strengthen partnerships and advance reconciliation through evidence-based change.