Study tracks impact of racism on Indigenous health care

By Phoebe Melvin

Health sciences PhD candidate Krista Stelkia, who is of Syilx/Tlingit descent, is exploring how racism influences the higher rates of chronic disease such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease found among Indigenous peoples in Canada.

Her research is funded with a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Doctoral Award.

“I feel very driven to conduct research that addresses the issues of neglect and racism against Indigenous peoples throughout the health care system,” says Stelkia, a member of the Osoyoos Indian Band in B.C. “It’s a topic that First Nations communities have been asking for.”

She says the funding award ensures she has ample time to engage First Nations communities in a meaningful way, right from the beginning.

Her research includes interviewing Indigenous people living with chronic health conditions and analyzing data from two Canadian health surveys. This approach, she says, will help tease out the complex ways in which racism can influence risk factors, disease prevalence, access to treatment, and health outcomes.

“I am passionate about uncovering the stories and experiences of Indigenous peoples who have lived with, and continue to live with, the impacts of racism on their health and well-being,” she says.

She hopes her findings will help to identify gaps in health-care delivery, treatment and screening, which in turn can be used to develop culturally safe interventions for improving health outcomes, and for a more patient-oriented care journey.

Stelkia will carry out her research under the supervision of SFU health sciences professor Jeff Reading, who is the First Nations Health Authority Chair in Heart Health and Wellness. Other supervisors include the I-HEART Centre, based at the Providence Health Care Research Institute at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver, and First Nations community partner Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council.