Indigenous approaches to healing in critical care settings: Addressing the Truth and Reconciliation Report's calls to action.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada Report: Calls to Action (2015) has proposed that the health of the Indigenous population of Canada has been significantly impacted by colonization. Currently, members of the Indigenous communities often cite experiencing prejudice and systemic racism in the healthcare setting (MacDonald & Steenbeek, 2015). Hospital policies and healthcare professionals' attitudes pose barriers to Indigenous healing practices, which results in a delay in seeking help until critically ill (Stamler, Yiu, & Dosani, 2016). During a voluntary summer clinical project, six undergraduate nursing students developed a semi-structured interview to explore the knowledge of the TRC among 25 nurses in various critical care settings across Canada. Following data collection, the authors determine that due to a lack of cultural competency and safety in such fast-paced units, holistic and personalized care can often be impaired for Indigenous peoples. They further propose that non-Indigenous nurses caring for Indigenous patients have a responsibility to reach a greater understanding of colonial history tofully comprehend power imbalances that are often replicated (Stamler et al, 2016). In this paper, the authors will share the findings from their clinical project and compare them to the application of the TRC's Calls to Action in Canada and internationally. Strategies to improve care to the Indigenous peoples will be explored. The aim is for all nurses to become familiar with how to implement the TRC Calls to Action into practise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]