REGIONAL BOARD REPORTS

Aboriginal Nurse, The, Summer 2009

ALBERTA REGION

Lisa Bourque-Bearskin

TANSI NITOTEMTAK!

Hello my friends, Summer is here! I want to wish you all an enjoyable and safe summer travels. May the Creator guide you safely in your journeys!

The time for a new Board Member is here. I hope that one of the Alberta Nurses will step up and express interest in taking on the Board of Directors seat. I would be pleased to assist you in this transition if you are interested please let myself or the office know. It is a very worthwhile experience that not only benefits the community but your own professional development. Opportunities to work with other Nurses across Canada has been the greatest benefit.

Our numbers are growing. Alberta has the third largest number of Aboriginal Nurses - Welcome to the new and returning members.

Alberta A.N.A.C. has been involved in a number of activities creating partnerships and collaborating on initiatives. During nursing week A.N.A.C. shared in a wonderful day with First Nations and lnuit Health Nurses from Hobbema. To honour all their hard work and commitment to Aboriginal Health, A.N.A.C. sponsored Bannock, Berries and Tea. Elder Rose Martial shared a honouring prayer for the Nurses and thanked them for their diligence to improving community and individual health. As we sat nestled in a corner of a quite quaint resort in MaMeO Beach, Joyce Cardinal thanked all her nurses for the commitment and hard work. We heard stories Sharon Ramstad on her beginning career and work with communities in the Arctic region of Cambridge Bay. A wonderful reflection of the role of nurses in community health. A big Thank you Alice Adams (CARNA) for presenting the nurses with a beautiful sentiment regarding the work nurses engage in, and for the vibrant red roses were provided to all. (Printed with Permission: Bonnie Healy, Bonnie Graham, Tammy Bruno, Dorothy Jenetteski, Darlene Gladue, JoAnne Buffalo, Sharon Ramstad, Helen Littlechild & Joyce Cardinal).

Recruitment and retention continues both formally and informally. Four school conference were visited and presentations on "What it Means to be a Nurse" were completed. Talking and working together with other organizations such as the FNIH - Alberta Region, CIHRIAPH, Alberta Treaty 6 Office, M�tis communities, and the University of Alberta is ongoing.

NurseOne Portal: The Canadian Nurses Portal and the First Nations and lnuit Tab was rolled out during nurses week and it will be an excellent tool for the fast and efficient retrieval of important health information. If you require further information or would like to access the NurseOne Portal please send an email to ONS_FNIH_PORT@hc-sc. gc.ca.

Finally, as my last edition I want to thank all the Nurses who work with Aboriginal individuals.familiesandcommunitiesarebuildinga renewed vision for nursing services. The incorporation of traditional knowledge of our Indigenous people in education and health presents many exciting opportunities for community wellness. Honouring Indigenous knowledge is a responsibility and vital to the work of Aboriginal Nurses. I am humbled by the vast experiences of other Aboriginal nurses who work on the forefront of Aboriginal health. Collectively and locally we need to continue to foster this knowledge exchange so that our diverse communities can benefit and develop appropriate nursing services that aim to promote culturally safe nursing practice.

I am looking very forward to seeing you all at our National Conference in Alberta in the Fall. We are still in need of volunteers so please send a note to rbourque@ualberta.ca.

Forever In Community Spirit

R. Lisa Bourque Bearskin

ONTARIO SOUTHREGION

Carne McCallum

HELLO from Southern Ontario!

I can only hope that sunshine & warm temperatures will soon be upon us for the summer months. Our spring has been unusually cold & wet so warm temperatures are long overdue!!

These past few months have been busy. I continue to work full time in the out-patient department of Royal Victoria Hospital. I have attended a couple of conferences on Aboriginal Health in the spring & spent two days on a jury for NAAF reviewing student applications for postsecondary education. It was exciting to be part of a national team to help dispense funding.

The purpose of the conferences were to bring together leading researchers, physicians, established scholars all working in the field of Traditional & Western Medicine. The CEO of the South West Local Health Integrated Network (LHIN) was present for the day at one of the conferences. He encouraged development of an Aboriginal Committee to work in conjunction with the LHIN to better care for the needs of the local Aboriginal communities. Knowledge we all took away from each conference was a reminder that as national organizations we work cross country so some of the emphasis was placed on what can be done to bring the organizations together & break down the silos that still exist. Our identity as Aboriginal people & western training were two recommendations suggested that would help to strengthen the networks both nationally & locally. The national hope is to incorporate Traditional & Western medicine that will be accepted & respected in the Western world.