A combined investment of $24 million over five years from the federal and territorial governments and other partners will support the ongoing work of Hotıı̀ ts’eeda.
Hotıı̀ ts’eeda, hosted by the Tłı̨chǫ Government, is a Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (or Spor) support unit. Units established across the country by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research act as patient-oriented research centres.
Over the course of the pandemic, Hotıı̀ ts’eeda says it helped Indigenous governments and communities share culturally safe Covid-19 messaging through posters and messaging in the nine official Indigenous languages of the NWT.
Hotıı̀ ts’eeda says it also helps partners, policy makers, healthcare workers, and communities understand how to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples through a project named Ełet’ànı̀ts’eɂah.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
The $24-million investment announced this week will help Hotıı̀ ts’eeda continue that work and fund numerous other projects.
Tłı̨chǫ Grand Chief Jackson Lafferty said the investment in Spor support unit funding demonstrated a commitment to culturally relevant health research, resources and programming.
“The funding further supports Hotıı̀ ts’eeda’s continued recognition of the Indigenous patient’s voice as critical to successful outcomes in healing and wellness,” Lafferty was quoted as saying in a news release.
NWT MP Michael McLeod said Hotıı̀ ts’eeda plays “an integral part in making sure the territory’s health research priorities are being addressed and are grounded in Indigenous knowledge and culture.”
