The importance and promise of integrating Indigenous knowledges in nursing education

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25071/2291-5796.46

Keywords:

Canada, Decolonization, Nursing Ethics, relationality, holism

Abstract

This paper explores the relevance of Indigenous perspectives within the nursing profession, and the importance of weaving these perspectives into nursing education. We suggest that Indigenous perspectives can support nursing’s core ethical values of relationality and holism and may hold representational and transformational possibilities for students and educators alike. Guided by principles of Indigenous learning, we provide several exemplars from Canadian schools of nursing that have already begun the process of decolonizing their programs. We conclude by describing some of the challenges and considerations that may arise when Indigenous perspectives and approaches are considered for inclusion into nursing education programs.

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Author Biographies

Vanessa Van Bewer, University of Manitoba

Vanessa Van Bewer, RN, MN, is a Métis francophone multidisciplinary artist, registered nurse and doctoral candidate at the College of Nursing, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba.. With an affinity for storytelling and spoken word, Vanessa’s performances as well as written work explore themes that run the gamut from Indigenous identity and culture to relationships and nursing ethics. She is passionate about encouraging others to use the arts to think creatively about justice in their own lives and in their own communities.

Roberta L. Woodgate, University of Manitoba

Roberta L. Woodgate PhD, RN.,  holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair Award in Child and Family Engagement in Health Research and Healthcare and was a former Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Applied Chair Award in Reproductive, Child and Youth Health Services and Policy Research (ranked #1 in the competition). Her research program, IN•GAUGE, embraces a dynamic approach to: involve children, youth and families; interact with researchers and knowledge users in the research, intervention and evaluation process; and be innovative in the use and exchange of knowledge with the combined goal of improving health care and access to care for children and youth.

Donna Martin, University of Manitoba

Donna E. Martin, RN, PhD, Associate Professor, Associate Dean, Graduate Programs, College of Nursing, University of Manitoba

As a nurse researcher, Dr. Martin works collaboratively with interdisciplinary teams and marginalized groups to conduct community-driven research focusing on health equity and social justice. Primarily through the use of qualitative methods, her research explores health equity and social justice from the perspective and lived experience of marginalized groups. She has served as a co-principal investigator on a CIHR-funded study to explicate the micro- and macro-construction of induced displacement from the perspectives of Little Saskatchewan First Nation youth impacted by the 2011 human-made flood.  Dr. Martin was the recipient of three teaching awards and she’s a Past President of Xi Lambda Chapter, Sigma Theta Tau International (Nursing Honor Society). She supervises students with interests in health equity and social justice and students passionate about quality nursing education and health services

 

Frank Deer, University of Manitoba

Frank Deer, BEd, MEd, PhD, Canada Research Chair & Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, University of Manitoba

Dr. Frank Deer graduated from the University of Saskatchewan in 2008 with a PhD in Educational Administration. Dr. Deer also completed an MEd in 2003 and a BEd in 1999 at the University of Manitoba. Dr. Deer has served as a classroom teacher in the Frontier School Division, Pembina Trails School Division, and the Winnipeg School Division. Dr. Deer has also served as an instructor at the University of Manitoba and the University of Saskatchewan. Dr. Deer’s scholarly interests include: Indigenous Education; Philosophy of Education; Indigenous Language Education; Identity Studies.

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Published

2020-06-06

How to Cite

Van Bewer, V., Woodgate, R. L., Martin, D., & Deer, F. (2020). The importance and promise of integrating Indigenous knowledges in nursing education. Witness: The Canadian Journal of Critical Nursing Discourse, 2(1), 11–24. https://doi.org/10.25071/2291-5796.46

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2020): Special Issue: Nīpawīstimatowin -“bearing witness for one another”

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Articles

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Witness publishes under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC 4.0). Read the license terms at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/. The author(s) retain copyright to their works.

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