Outcomes from a collaborative project developing and evaluating a community rehabilitation worker program for Northwestern Ontario First Nations

CONCLUSION: The process of iteratively developing and evaluating a CRW program resulted in a Northwestern Ontario college welcoming the first cohort of students to the CRW program in March 2022. The program is co-facilitated with a First Nations Elder and includes components of local culture, language, and the reintegration of First Nations elders into community as part of the rehabilitation efforts. In addition, to appropriately support the quality of life, health, and wellbeing of First Nations elders, the project team called upon provincial and federal governments to work with First Nations to make available dedicated funding to address inequities in resources available to First Nations elders in Northwestern Ontario urban and First Nations remote communities. This included elder-focused transportation options, mental health services, and gathering places. The program implementation will be evaluated with the first cohort of CRWs for further adaptations considering potential scale and spread. As such, the project and findings may also represent a resource for others wishing to pursue similar development using participatory approaches in rural and remote communities both nationally and internationally.PMID:37429740 | DOI:10.22605/RRH7809

Source: Rural and Remote Health - July 10, 2023 Category: Rural Health Authors: Helle M øller Robert Baxter Alison Denton Esme French Mary Ellen Hill Taryn Klarner Garth W Nothing Marlene Quequish Joan Rae Kirsti Reinikka Shane Strickland Denise Taylor Source Type: research