Global Health and Indigenous Integration

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Our School of Nursing’s focus on global health and equity prepares our students as global citizens attentive to health determinants and illness needs both locally and globally. Foundational courses in health promotion, global health, and community health equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care in complex health environments in Canada and beyond. 

Concepts of cultural safety and anti-racism are layered throughout the curriculum. In the first year, a course in Indigenous health provides students opportunity to learn about Canada’s history and the recent responses to key documents such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (2015), the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls Report (2019), and In Plain Sight (2020), a report on Indigenous-specific racism in British Columbia. Through experiential learning activities such as engaging with Indigenous elders and clinical placements in Indigenous communities, students develop self-knowledge, an appreciation for traditional Indigenous knowledge, and culturally safe nursing practice.

In a second year course, students learn about global health, planetary health, health equity, and humanitarianism and Christian missions with implications for nursing and intersectoral care.  For example, students complete a country-specific case study exploring the role that nursing and other health disciplines have in addressing the global health challenges of the country.  

In the third year, a course in community health provides opportunities for students to learn about how nurses ameliorate structural vulnerabilities and health disparities through population health strategies, community assessment and development, communicable disease control, advocacy, and health policy. 

In fourth year courses on nursing leadership and nursing ethics, students learn about advocacy, policy, and leading for change.

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