McGill Newsroom – The Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s (CIHR) Institute of Indigenous Peoples’ Health has awarded a CAD$3.5 million operating grant to Dr. Treena Wasontí:io Delormier of McGill University’s School of Human Nutrition. The grant will help to establish a Network Environment for Indigenous Health Research (NEIHR) over the next five years in the province of Quebec. The purpose of the NEIHR program is to establish a network of centres focused on capacity development, research and knowledge translation centred on Indigenous Peoples, and is an integral component of CIHR’s $100 M action plan for building healthier futures for Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit and Métis) peoples living in Canada.
Multiple indicators show that Indigenous Peoples across Canada suffer a significant health gap compared to non-Indigenous populations. This includes reduced life expectancy, higher children mortality rates and increased rates of Tuberculosis infection, all of which underline the pressing need for medical research that focuses on Indigenous health issues. The network is entitled: Tahatikonhsontóntie’ – ‘the faces that are coming ’– Community Mobilization for Indigenous Health Research Capacity and will be hosted at the Kahnawake Schools Diabetes Prevention Project (KSDPP) in the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake. The Kahnawake Schools Diabetes Prevention Project is a nationally and internationally recognised best practice in community-based research with 25 years of experience