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There is national recognition of the need to incorporate Aboriginal health issues within the medical school curricula. This study aims to evaluate changes in medical students' knowledge and attitudes about Aboriginal health, and their preparedness to work in Aboriginal communities after attending a 3-hour Aboriginal health seminar. A cross-sectional survey was administered before and after the seminar for Year 1 and 2 medical students at the University of Western Ontario. The survey included four true or false questions and 24 questions using a seven-point Likert scale (1--strongly disagree, 7--strongly agree). Eighty two of 130 (64 per cent) Year 1 students and 55 of 86 (63 per cent) Year 2 students completed both questionnaires. Knowledge-based questions were answered correctly by most students before the seminar, with an increasing number of correct responses noted after the seminar (p less than 0.05). Students' perceptions about sociocultural and economic factors affecting health showed uncertainty before the seminar, but changed towards greater agreement regarding its impact on health after the seminar (p less than 0.05). Students initially felt unprepared to care for Aboriginal patients before the seminar, but felt more prepared after the seminar (p less than 0.05). A 3-hour seminar using both didactic and non-traditional teaching methods appears to be effective in the short term in improving knowledge, changing attitudes and reversing some of the uncertainties medical students have about practicing in Aboriginal communities. (Contains 2 tables.)

Objectives. We examined the importance of social support in promoting thriving health among indigenous Canadians, a disadvantaged population. Methods. We categorized the self-reported health status of 31 625 adult indigenous Canadians as thriving (excellent, very good) or nonthriving (good, fair, poor). We measured social support with indices of positive interaction, emotional support, tangible support, and affection and intimacy. We used multivariable logistic regression analyses to estimate odds of reporting thriving health, using social support as the key independent variable, and we controlled for educational attainment and labor force status. Results. Compared with women reporting low levels of social support, those reporting high levels of positive interaction (odds ratio [OR] = 1.4; 95% confidence interval [Cl]= 1.2, 1.6), emotional support (OR = 2.1; 95% Cl = 1.8, 2.4), and tangible support (OR = 1.4; 95% Cl = 1.2, 1.5) were significantly more likely to report thriving health. Among men, only emotional support was significantly related to thriving health (OR = 1.7; 95% Cl = 1.5, 1.9). Thriving health status was also significantly mediated by age, aboriginal status (First Nations, Metis, or Inuit), educational attainment, and labor force status. Conclusions. Social support is a strong determinant of thriving health, particularly among women. Research that emphasizes thriving represents a positive and necessary turn in the indigenous health discourse. (Am J Public Health. 2007;97: 1827-1833. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2006.096917)