This text is part of the special section Indigenous Development
The only Indigenous person invited to sit on the board of directors of the new Santé Québec agency, Stanley Vollant intends to take advantage of his appointment to give voice and improve access to care for First Peoples. A big challenge that the medical advisor is ready to take on by tackling, among other things, the thorny case of cultural security.
On May 22, the Innu doctor of the Pessamit community was given new responsibilities. Already a member of the Health and Social Services Commission of the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador, Stanley Vollant has joined the board of directors of Santé Québec, the new agency placed under the direction of Geneviève Biron. With this appointment and his extensive experience in the field, the first indigenous surgeon in Quebec intends to continue his efforts to improve the accessibility of First Peoples to health care and social services.
“I want to make sure their voice is heard on the board,” he said. My role will be to place cultural security at the center of all the changes that we are going to propose. » The Dr Vollant is well aware of the immensity of the task that awaits him to reestablish the bond of trust between the First Nations and the province’s hospitals. “For as long as I can remember, Aboriginal people have always been afraid of going to the hospital. This distrust does not date from Joyce Echaquan, it goes back much further,” he testifies.
Cultural security
Developed in New Zealand in the 1980s, in response to the discrimination suffered by Maoris in the non-Native health system, cultural security certainly represents a model of reconciliation for Indigenous people, in Quebec as elsewhere. “I will be a fervent defender of this concept at the level of Santé Québec,” assures the Dr Flying. “The words “savage” and “kawish”, we unfortunately still hear them in the hospital. There is a significant need to instill cultural safety in our health system. »
The 59-year-old surgeon is the first to recognize it. It will undoubtedly take years for First Nations to feel welcome and treated as equals in our hospitals. “We must reestablish a relationship of trust brick by brick,” insists Stanley Vollant, who has been navigating the health system for 35 years. “This involves educating staff, doctors, nurses and auxiliaries. But welcoming the person by simply saying “hello” in their language and extending your hand is also part of cultural security. »
One step after another
Launched in 2008, the First Nations and Inuit Medical School Program in Quebec has borne fruit by allowing more and more Indigenous students to pursue medical training. Which was not always necessarily the case. “When I entered medicine in 1984, there were only five or six indigenous doctors in Quebec,” recalls Dr.r Flying. “It was a difficult first step for us. And today we are pushing to have more and more Indigenous people in health care settings. »
By training more staff from First Peoples, we are fighting against the shortage of doctors which is cruelly hitting communities. And at the same time, we contribute to establishing a culturally safe climate. At least within certain limits. “It’s sure that it will help, but it will always be insufficient,” explains Stanley Vollant. “There are not enough of us, and we will always need others. Others must be open, respectful and know us better. It’s going to be a long road. But we have to take it one step at a time. »
A first culturally safe family health clinic in Montreal
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