“Being collectively mindful is about being aware of the complexities within a situation and the different perspectives from which it can be viewed. When leaders are present, they are attuned to other people and their context. . .The paradox is that the more a leader is present, the more he or she is able to get out of the way and become more available for other people.”
— Voyageur et. al., 2015
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Finding: Relationship are central to my practice as a leader and relationships sometimes supersede the issues that are important to me, such as how I can offer more culturally safe care.
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Finding: Per Cynthia, “Healing isn’t linear” – My Western mental model is deeply engrained; I will experience failure and setbacks as I engage in a process of learning and unlearning.
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Finding: As a leader, I can model the way.
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Finding: Learning and sharing about and through culture is medicine.
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Finding: I must put Indigenous people and voices first.
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Finding: I care deeply about supporting care in rural and remote communities, but I don’t understand the needs of these communities.
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Conclusion: I am taking steps to be accountable in my practice cultural safety by exploring my own identity, practicing deep listening, and by hiring and promoting Indigenous staff.
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Conclusion: Cultural safety is ongoing, lifetime work which settlers must carry while understanding only Indigenous peoples can determine if the work is successful.
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Conclusion: To support more cultural safety in health care, we must engage with, hire, and promote Indigenous peoples to design, implement, and evaluate policies and practices and principles.
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Conclusion: Accountability and relationship are fundamental grounding principles to culturally safety in MAiD, and health care more broadly.