Sault Area Hospital’s Indigenous Health Strategy is beginning to show some encouraging results.
“This is key work in our strategic plan. It's work that the team is very, very proud of, about the relationships that we've built through this journey thus far,” said Shauna Hynna, SAH vice president people, planning and partnerships in a report to the hospital’s board of directors at its monthly meeting held Monday.
Approximately 700 SAH staff and partners, including board members, have attended cultural sensitivity training at the hospital.
Hynna said SAH has an Indigenous System Navigator — a Maamwesying North Shore Community Health Services employee — guiding Indigenous patients through the SAH patient experience.
“We're capturing voluntary (Indigenous self-identification) information at registration, which is how the navigators get connected to the patients that may want discharge support here in the hospital or support from the First Nations directly. That's been a work-in-progress and we continue to do that work. We also have hired two patient navigators in the emergency department. That began in December,” Hynna said.
Their work has had some encouraging results so far.
“We most certainly are getting great comments and great feedback from a lot of the Indigenous clients, families, and the First Nations directly,” Hynna said.
SAH wants to see its Indigenous Health Strategy grow with expanded voluntary Indigenous self-identification of patients in helping them get the care they need.
“There are also a lot of great services offered by the First Nations that sometimes people don't know about or we are not aware of. The navigators are a critical resource in helping make that connection. We're excited to see the improvements from that work,” Hynna said.
SAH has been building trusting relationships with Batchewana First Nation, Garden River First Nation and the Metis Nation Of Ontario, Hynna said.
“It really is at their pace and comfort level in building those relationships, to have discussions openly to make improvements downstream,” Hynna said.
The journey to better care for Indigenous patients is one without a fixed timeline, Hynna said.
“We often want to have a strategy on a page. That is not how this work is. So it is really good that we build this relationship and start with really listening and figuring out what we can focus on to drive better care outcomes for our Indigenous patients and clients and families,” Hynna said.
Hynna pointed to SAH’s partnership with Nogdawindamin Family And Community Services, signed in December, as an example of working more closely with Indigenous clients.
“We've done some great work with our partnership with Nogdawindamin, which really helps families and children connect to services and that's really what it is about. It's about transitions in care and so together we can do this in a much better way,” Hynna said.
SAH also signed a collaboration agreement with Maamwesying North Shore Community Health Services — a core partner of the Maamwesying Ontario Health Team (MOHT) — in February.
The agreement formalizes a commitment to delivering culturally sensitive and equitable healthcare for Indigenous peoples in the North East Region.
Hynna said SAH will be exploring the possibility of adding an Indigenous health department or program.
The hospital intends to have meetings in April in which it will get feedback from First Nations chiefs and band council members.
“We have a calendar of events coming up for June for our Indigenous People's History Month and there'll be lots of great activities that our organization and partners can participate in,” Hynna said.
“This starts to put real meat on the bone and shows that there are actually actions that have been taken. I know there's a lot more to do but this is great progress,” said Lisa Bell-Murray, SAH board chair.