Presentation of the MUHC culturally safe indigenous birthing project at the Pôle Santé HEC

The project emerged following in-depth consultations with stakeholders from the Inuit and Cree communities of Northern Quebec, including midwives, elders, and two patient partners. It aims to mitigate the numerous negative impacts—familial, emotional, spiritual, social, and financial—that more than 300 Indigenous women with high-risk pregnancies face each year when being transferred to the MUHC to give birth.

These consultations led to key recommendations aimed at making these births as respectful of Indigenous traditions as possible: increased presence of family members during delivery, access to traditional meals and objects, and training for healthcare staff. "The staff members felt they wanted to learn more about providing culturally safe care in a perinatal context, and that's how we were able to bring in four midwives from Nunavik, who shared their knowledge with all of our teams for a week," explains Sophia Kapellas.

The project’s next steps include a qualitative research project to better document birthing experiences, a documentary, and a clinical internship project for Indigenous midwifery students. "In a community where there are only 50 to 80 births per year, it takes years to accumulate the necessary number of births to become a midwife," says Sophia Kapellas. "Since the MUHC is a referral center for many Indigenous patients, why not facilitate this learning so they can return to their communities much more quickly, having gained a lot of experience?"

The project plans to expand to other Indigenous communities to enhance access to culturally appropriate, respectful, and safe care.

Watch the webinar.
Read the presentation.
Consult the family booklet created as part of the project.