Ottawa Hospital Research Institute

First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health

Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital are working closely with First Nations, Inuit and Métis on research to improve health. Ottawa has the highest urban Inuit population in Canada and The Ottawa Hospital is the designated tertiary hospital for the Eastern sector of Nunavut.

This page includes selected news stories about research at The Ottawa Hospital involving First Nations, Inuit and Métis.

Research News

	Wastewater monitoring: research aims to enhance TB prevention and detection in Nunavut January 16, 2024 - A groundbreaking research study is being launched in Iqaluit to explore wastewater monitoring as a tool to detect and prevent the spread of tuberculosis (TB) in Nunavut.
	Study fills knowledge gaps about surgery outcomes for Inuit in Canada May 3, 2022 - A team of Canadian researchers, including Inuit and other Indigenous researchers, have published the first study of Inuit surgical outcomes today in CMAJ Open.
	Research sets new standard for treating latent tuberculosis in Canada March 24, 2022 - A transformational treatment for latent tuberculosis (TB) is now the standard of care in Canada, thanks to research led by The Ottawa Hospital. The Canadian Thoracic Society’s new Canadian TB Standards, released on March 24, 2022, recommend 3HP (rifa
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	Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital awarded eight grants worth $5 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research August 10, 2021 - These projects will advance science and improve health in areas such as cancer immunotherapy, orthopedic surgery, long-term care, neuromuscular disease, blood clots, vascular disease, aging, kidney disease and Inuit health.
	Canadian researchers work to understand and improve health for Indigenous Peoples after surgery May 17, 2021 - Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa are building a research program to better understand Indigenous Peoples’ experience of surgery in Canada. Their latest study, published in CMAJ, is the first to analyze all available sur
	Partnering with the marginalized December 11, 2020 - To tackle health-care inequities affecting vulnerable populations, Smita Pakhalé turns to community peer researchers in a grassroots approach to epidemiological research.
	Marion Crowe brings expertise in First Nations health to Ottawa Hospital Research Institute Board October 22, 2020 - The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute’s Board of Directors is delighted to welcome Marion Crowe as Vice-Chair of the Board and the first Indigenous Board Member. Ms. Crowe, a proud member of the Piapot First Nation in Saskatchewan, was the founding
	Clinicians at The Ottawa Hospital launch 14 innovative projects to improve health-care delivery, thanks to funding from TOHAMO and The Ottawa Hospital’s Research Institute March 22, 2019 - The Ottawa Hospital Academic Medical Organization (TOHAMO) has awarded $1.169 million in Innovation Grants to 14 teams, with supporting funds provided by the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute.
	Dr. Gonzalo Alvarez presents Taima TB research program to parliamentarians June 5, 2017 - Dr. Gonzalo Alvarez was on Parliament Hill today presenting the Taima TB research program to the Parliamentary Health Research Caucus on Indigenous Health Research in Canada. Taima TB Summary The challenge Despite the ongoing efforts of d
	Government of Canada Supports Latent Tuberculosis Study March 24, 2017 - Tuberculosis (TB) is preventable and curable, yet it remains one of the most common infectious diseases worldwide. In Canada, rates of TB are low; however, there is greater incidence among Canadian Indigenous people and among foreign-born individuals
	Decision-making strategy aims to empower First Nations, Inuit and Métis patients September 29, 2016 - Postdoctoral fellow Dr. Janet Jull is tailoring and testing a peer-support shared decision-making strategy and guide to better meet the health-care needs of First Nations, Inuit and Métis. While working as an occupational therapist with Inuit
	DNA test slashes wait times for tuberculosis diagnosis in Iqaluit March 23, 2015 - Study results prompt Government of Nunavut to fund TB test's continued use Tuberculosis continues to be a significant public health concern in Canada's North, where testing for TB takes far longer than in the country's major centres. A paper just

Researchers

Name	Scientific appointment	Diseases, conditions and populations of interest	Research and clinical approaches
Alvarez, Gonzalo MD, MPH, FRCPC	Senior Scientist (Clinical Epidemiology)	First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, Health in disadvantaged peoples, Infectious disease, Lung disease, Population health, Tuberculosis	Clinical research, Epidemiology, Public health
Dennis, Kristopher MD FRCPC PhD	Clinician Investigator (Cancer Therapeutics)	Cancer, Colorectal cancer, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, Gastric cancer, Liver cancer, Pain, Pancreatic cancer	Behaviour, Biomarkers, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Cohort studies, Health professional behaviour change, Health services research, Palliative care, Pragmatic trials, Qualitative methods, Quality Improvement, Systematic reviews
Hatcher, Simon BSc MBBS MMedSc MD FRCPC FRANZCP MRCPsych	Scientist (Clinical Epidemiology)	Anxiety, Brain and neuromuscular disease, COVID-19, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, Health equity, Mental health, Traumatic brain injury, Depression, Health in disadvantaged peoples, Suicide	Clinical research, Digital and mobile health, Health economics, Health professional behaviour change, Health research methods, Health services research, Health technology, Knowledge translation and implementation research, Patient engagement, Prevention, Public health, Qualitative methods, Clinical trials, Cluster randomized trials, Epidemiology, Psychology, Systematic reviews
Pakhale, Smita MD, FRCPC, MSc (Epi & Biostat)	Senior Scientist (Clinical Epidemiology)	COVID-19, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, Health equity, Health in disadvantaged peoples, Lung disease, Sickle cell anemia	Clinical research, Clinical trials, Cohort studies, Epidemiology, Health economics, Health promotion, Health services research, Patient engagement, Pragmatic trials, Public health, Quality Improvement
Ramsay, Timothy PhD	Senior Scientist (Clinical Epidemiology)	Addiction, Alzheimer's, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Anxiety, Ataxia, Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Autism, Bipolar, Brain and neuromuscular disease, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Colorectal cancer, Concussion, Cystic fibrosis, Dementia, Depression, Dystonia, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, HIV, Immigrant and refugee health, Influenza, Kidney disease, Lung cancer, Macular degeneration, Men's health, Multiple sclerosis, Muscular dystrophy, Myasthenia gravis, Obesity, Ovarian cancer, Parkinson's, Pulmonary hypertension, Septic shock, Spinal cord injury	Artificial intelligence and data science, Behaviour, Biomaterials, Biostatistics, Cell therapy, Clinical decision rules, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Cohort studies, Critical care, Drug development, Emergency medicine, Epidemiology, Health professional behaviour change, Health promotion, Health research methods, Health services research, Health technology, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Palliative care, Patient decision aids, Pharmacology, Pharmacy, Prevention, Psychology, Psychometrics, Public health, Qualitative methods, Quality Improvement, Regenerative medicine, Rehabilitation, Risk assessment, Shared decision making, Surgery, Surveys, Systematic reviews, Transfusions, Translational research, Transplantation, Viral therapy