Fostering Relationships, Connections, and Health in Kenhte:ke
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Authors
John, Jodi-Mae
Date
2025-01-09
Type
thesis
Language
eng
Keyword
Indigenous health , Relational ethics , Indigenous healthcare providers , Community-based health
Alternative Title
Abstract
Grounded in relational worldviews, Indigenous health once thrived. However, colonization disrupted and delegitimized Indigenous relationships, having devastating impacts on Indigenous health and contributing to persistent Indigenous health disparities. Making matters worse, Indigenous Peoples face barriers to engagement in mainstream Canadian healthcare, including racism and the marginalization of Indigenous relational conceptions of health and ways of caring. As a Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) healthcare provider in my own community, the goal of my research was to explore Kanyen’kehá:ka relational ethics of care between community members, and how these ways of relating shaped relationships and engagement in community-based healthcare. To do so, I used Kanyen’kehá:ka relational methodology grounded in the Ohén:ton Karihwatéhkwen (Thanksgiving Address) and community visits (n=25). Research demonstrates that healthcare grounded in Indigenous conceptions of health are more likely to bring about health improvements in Indigenous populations. However, there remains scant literature in the Canadian context of Indigenous Peoples’ perspectives of receiving community-based care from members of their own community; my research makes a contribution to this field. Participants illuminated that community healthcare relationships grounded in connection and shared conceptions of health and care facilitate greater engagement in care, and for some, motivated improved self-care. Further, by using an Indigenous resurgence approach, this research provides insights into the multifaceted potential of community-based healthcare to reproduce and fortify collective health promoting and protecting practices and perpetuate shared identity as a Kanyen’kehá:ka community.
During the early stages of research, the need for a culturally appropriate community research ethics protocol that asserts community autonomy over research was voiced in community. As such, a corollary goal was to develop a preliminary framework for a research ethics protocol in Kenhté:ke, informed by community conversations (n=12), worldviews and values. The findings of this exploration revealed the centrality of relationships, connection, and responsibility to who we are as a community, which will provide the basis for a culturally continuous research ethics protocol moving forward. Through the resurgence of our knowledge systems, including our own conceptions of health, our unique health promoting and protecting practices, and our ethical values, we can nurture strong community relationships and connection.
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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
ProQuest PhD and Master's Theses International Dissemination Agreement
Intellectual Property Guidelines at Queen's University
Copying and Preserving Your Thesis
This publication is made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner.
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International