Modeling the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on First Nations, Metis, and Inuit Communities: Some Considerations

Objectives: This article articulates the complexity of modeling in First Nations, Metis, and Inuit contexts by providing the results of a modeling exercise completed at the request of the First Nations Health and Social Secretariat of Manitoba. Methods: We developed a model using the impact of a previous pandemic (the 2009 H1N1) to generate estimates. Results: The lack of readily available data has resulted in a model that assumes homogeneity of communities in terms of health status, behaviour, and infrastructure limitations. While homogeneity may be a reasonable assumption for province-wide planning, First Nation communities and Tribal Councils require more precise information in order to plan effectively. Metis and urban Inuit communities, in contrast, have access to much less information, making the role of Indigenous organizations mandated to serve the needs of these populations that much more difficult. Conclusion: For many years, Indigenous organizations have advocated for the need to have access to current and precise data to meet their needs. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates the importance of timely and accurate community-based data to support pandemic responses.

95 Child Health Promotion Through Community Educational Sessions in an Urban Inuit Community: A Needs Assessment

Introduction/Background Canadian Inuit children experience significant health disparities compared to their non-Inuit counterparts. Despite almost one-fifth of Canadian Inuit living in urban centres, few studies have explored their health needs. Current literature surveying Indigenous leaders identifies the need for improved access to child health and parenting knowledge. Community-based initiatives have been shown to improve Indigenous maternal and child health outcomes. Our study aimed to describe urban Inuit parents’ perspectives on accessing child health knowledge to guide development of Inuit-specific health knowledge-sharing initiatives. Objectives Design/Methods In conjunction with community partners, we conducted a qualitative needs assessment through focus groups at an urban-situated organization that provides cultural, educational, and social services to Inuit children and families. Participants were parents and caregivers of Inuit children. All focus groups were recorded, transcribed, and imported into NVivo software. Inductive coding was used to identify themes related to participants’ sources of health knowledge, barriers and facilitators to accessing health knowledge, and health topics that participants hoped to learn more about. Results Twenty-four individuals participated in four focus groups, of which twenty-one (88%) identified as Inuit. While participants represented a range of ages (19-40 years), most participants (42%) were 31-40 years old. The majority of participants (88%) identified as female. Participants had lived a median of 15 years in an urban setting (interquartile range 10-23). Seventeen participants (71%) cared for children aged 5 or younger. The main sources of health knowledge reported were Indigenous-focused services, online resources, telehealth and social networks (e.g. family and peers). The most notable barrier to accessing child health information was cultural differences (i.e. lifestyle and parenting practices). Discrimination and challenges with systems navigation also emerged as themes. Key health topics of interest included common childhood complaints (e.g. infections and immunizations), infant care, nutrition, parenting and development, mental health, and sexual education for adolescents. Preferred modes of child health information delivery were in-person sessions, pamphlets, and online videos with preferences for both health care providers and Inuit Elders as facilitators. Key access factors included Inuit language/translation, convenience of location, transportation, scheduling, and presence of food and childcare. Conclusion Our results reveal important factors affecting access to child health knowledge among Inuit families in a large urban setting, as well as key child health topics of interest to this population. Informed by these findings and with help from our community partners, we are co-developing child health knowledge-sharing initiatives specific to the needs of the Inuit community in our region.

Pedagogy in Action

While anthropology students may receive general instruction in the debates and critiques surrounding public and/or engaged anthropology, attention to the growing intersection between participatory action research (PAR) and anthropology is often overlooked. I contend that to think of PAR as a complementary approach to conventional anthropological fieldwork (i.e. interviews, participation observation, and focus groups) is problematic in that it runs counterintuitive to the former’s transformative logic. Drawing from my work co-leading a radio-based partnership project with urban Inuit organisations in Montreal and Ottawa, I repurpose Sol Tax’s ‘action anthropology’ to discuss an attitudinal shift that our team’s use of PAR has provoked, reconceptualising the aims and practice of our ethnographic enquiry in the process. I consider the effects of this shift for anthropological training and pedagogy in PAR projects and propose the use of ‘training-in-character’ as an organising principle for the supervision of student research.

Homeless Inuit in Montreal

Migration of the Inuit into southern Canadian cities from the Arctic increased substantially during the 1980s. Approximately 10,000 out of a total of 50,000 Inuit lived outside the Canadian Arctic regions in 2006. As the number of urban Inuit is increasing, so too is that of homeless Inuit in large southern cities. It is estimated that there are more than 90 homeless Inuit in Montreal, which has an Inuit population of about 800. This paper describes the life and characteristics of homeless urban Inuit in Montreal, and the activities of the Native Friendship Centre of Montreal and of the Association of Montreal Inuit, which are essential for their survival. The Inuit of Montreal have yet to form useful social networks to ease their urban adaptation. An Inuit community centre, where information and food can be shared, should be established in Montreal to change the present situation of homeless Inuit.