KO team presents at e-Health 2010: From Investment to Impact Conference in Vancouver
From e-Health 2010: From Investment to Impact Conference web site
Above and Beyond: Embedding Community Values and Beliefs into an Evolving First Nation IT Health System
Penny Carpenter, Tina Kakepetum-Schultz
Keewaytinook Okimakanak, Sioux Lookout and Balmertown offices, ON, Canada
Value to Participants: The presentation provides details on the importance of embedding First Nations values and beliefs into a First Nation Information Technology health system as a strategy for sustaining effective and integrated health information services in remote First Nations. It highlights the value of respecting local beliefs and culture to accelerate adoption and acceptance of new health tools and methods. The ability of a First Nation to demonstrate ownership and control of a service improves the service delivery.
Purpose: Beginning in the 1970s, service providers have tried to utilize ehealth applications to increase health service access in remote First Nations with limited success. The emergence of First Nations owned and operated broadband networks in the late 1990s and the introduction of community-based methodologies for managing and sustaining change supported the adoption of ehealth systems. The purpose of this presentation is to demonstrate how a health system that incorporates First Nation values and beliefs is able to more effectively serve its population.
Methodology: In 1998, a First Nation Health Service successfully introduced a telephyscriatry pilot project that responded to demand for urgent access to mental health professionals and respected local standards of care for community members. While the project was designed to comply with clinical and privacy standards, the project went 'above and beyond' provincial telemedicine requirements and embedded tacit principles of care for creating a safe distributed environment for community members. The service model allowed participating First Nations the ability to adapt to telephyscriatry and adopt it as part of the community health services. This model continues to demonstrate its ability to be scalable to other First Nation communities as they migrate to Information Communication Technology-enabled health services such as telemedicine.
Results/ Outcomes: First Nations in northwestern Ontario have the highest telemedicine acceptance rate in North America.
Conclusions: Successful health services respect local traditions and cultures. Today, First Nations in Northern Ontario manage, control, and own their own broadband managed network and telemedicine program. Success is linked to organizational capacity to address cross-cultural barriers while implementing institutionalized medicine and embedding traditional knowledge into business practice and change management approaches.
Recommendations: Letting a community shape how it will own and control the change and adoption processes is a good practice. First Nations maintain a holistic health system with its own beliefs and values which is important for all service providers, funding agencies and government to respect and understand.