The First Nations Health Authority (FNHA) and Health Standards Organization (HSO) are proud to celebrate their five-year partnership in advancing cultural safety and humility in British Columbia's (BC) health system.
FNHA and HSO first partnered in 2018 to begin work on the British Columbia Cultural Safety and Humility standard, which was published in 2022. The first of its kind, the BC Cultural Safety and Humility standard was developed by BC Indigenous thought leaders, patient partners, knowledge keepers, clinicians, and academics. It sets a clear standard of care for the BC health care system and organizations to ensure Indigenous people are treated with dignity and respect, and have access to culturally safe care and services. To learn more about the standard, watch this short documentary recently released by FNHA.
“It has been our honour to partner with FNHA over the past five years on this important work," said HSO CEO Leslee Thompson. "Together, we have made significant strides towards advancing cultural safety and humility, and we look forward to our continued collaboration."
“Our partnership with Health Standards Organization is integral in advancing cultural safety and humility through the spectrum of health care service organizations throughout BC," said FNHA CEO Richard Jock. “Their knowledge on the processes that can bring cultural safety to bear is crucial as we move forward to implementing the BC Cultural Safety and Humility standard."
FNHA and HSO have continued their partnership in a new joint project with the Canadian Indigenous Nurses Association (CINA) and Accreditation Canada (AC). The new project, Advancing Cultural Safety and Humility Through Standards and Accreditation, will prepare and test the BC Cultural Safety and Humility standard for use by health and social services organizations across BC.
The project will also enable engagement and dialogue with Indigenous governing bodies, communities, and peoples across Canada to scope the needs and design of a national Cultural Safety and Humility standard that health and social service organizations across the country can use. CINA and HSO are conducting a national survey to gather feedback. The survey is open until November 10, 2023.
