Sexual & Reproductive Health

This file contains a transcript of a part of a portion of a sitting of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples at Prince George, British Columbia. This part includes a presentation of the Healthiest Babies Possible Pregnancy Outreach Program by Marlene Thio-Watts concerning access to health care in the Aboriginal community. Questions from the assembled Commissioners follow.

Provides background for two-day forum held January 24-25, 2012 in Ottawa, Ontario. Accompanying video.

Looks at measuring significant changes in maternal blood concentrations for PCB153 and total mercury.

Psychology Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Regina, 2008.

Surveyed residents to gauge public awareness of the effects of drinking alcohol during pregnancy on the unborn child and to measure the recall of a government advertising campaign.

Examined 58 validation studies of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and concluded that low predictive accuracy with culturally diverse women suggests cultural biase.

Study uses digitised parish records from the Demographic Data Base at Umeå University to compare how the season of birth affected the neonatal and stillbirth risk among the Sami and non-Sami in Swedish Sápmi during the nineteenth century.

Discuss campaigns and eugenics programs in Canada and the United States forcing thousands of Indigenous women to receive compulsory sterilization.

Lower sperm cell motility on the east coast appears to be related to the higher environmental contaminants detected there.

Research found that in the Phoenix Program, for sex offenders, in Edmonton, there was a significant difference in serum testosterone levels.

Presents results of study conducted on 12 males and suggests occurrence of the condition may be due to a sex-linked gene.

Examines sexual behavior and patterns of condom use.

Discusses sex trafficking in Minnesota and urban American Indian communities stating international indicators for trafficking are similar to domestic trafficking indicators.

Literature review of experiences of Indigenous youth with sexual health in Australia.

[Public Health] Thesis (Ph.D.)--Queensland University of Technology, 2007.

Summary. Infographic.

Offers six recommendations to reduce the inequity in the availability and accessibility of sexual and reproductive services.

Presents number of factors that need to be considered when developing appropriate strategies to deal with needs of Aboriginal women. Presented at Without Consent: Confronting Adult Sexual Violence, conference sponsored by the Australian Institute of Criminology.

Reports a high rate of sexual assults where there is often a close relationship between victims and offenders, and, excessive alcohol abuse or binge drinking.

Discusses concerns Aboriginal communities have about sexual exploitation of their children and youth and the need for this issue to be addressed by the community and the government.

Looks at services of the Brisbane Sexual Health Clinic and how it is making itself more inviting to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community,

Community Health Sciences Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Calgary, 2008.

Website contains information on preventing the spread of sexually transmitted infections among the Inuit, and looks at various projects, activities, resources and publications.

Reports Western mainstream health services are not meeting the need of Aboriginal people. First published in Venerology: The Interdisciplinary, International Journal of Sexual Health, Volume 8, Number 1, February 1995, pp. 13-14.

Related material: Part 2: Sexuality and Relationships.

Related material: Part 1: Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Findings indicate the two communities had networks that were similar in both size and structure. Locating information in a publicly funded system made for easier patient follow-up.

Examines characteristics of partnership selection, and racial mixing as contributing factors in the spread of HIV.

Study reports how sexual behaviour poses a risk for HIV/STD infection among Aboriginals living both on and off reserves.

Ontario study reports high risk rates for Aboriginal people living both off and on reserves.

Looks at sexually transmissible disease (STD), different types, and what people should know.

Examines the Yurok women's traditional spiritual beliefs and rituals, including scratching sticks.

Four major themes emerged from study using semi-structured interviews: ways of communicating, relationships, support and assistance, and challenges of the system.

Findings suggest that clients health and social problems have increased over the years of operation while indicators of infant health have either improved or maintained steady rates.

Study found that participation rates and health data demonstrated program success and women who had better access to health care enjoyed a better overall quality of life.

SHine SA (Sexual Health information, networking and Education SA) is a South Australia-based organization implementing a sexual health strategy aimed at South Australia Indigenous youth.

Article asserts that Fetal Alcohol Syndrome strategies have gone beyond preventing pregnant women from drinking, to pregnancy prevention itself, with options ranging all the way to permanent sterilization.

Material is full text of peer-reviewed literature.

Looks at an AIDS education program to provide information about the disease and its prevention to Native American communities.

Population Health Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Ottawa, 2012

Studies how cultural integration can be successfully used in HIV/AIDS prevention strategies.

Sociology and Anthropology Thesis (M.A.)--University of Windsor, 2007.

Discusses definition of small for gestational age (SGA) and short and long term health disparities for children born SGA.

Studies social linkages of street involved youth and connection to sexually transmitted infections.

Study results support the need for preventive and public health programs to improve maternal and infant well-being. NOTE: Also published as Journal of Aboriginal Health, Summer, 2015.

Looks at the use of story-telling as a health-promoting tool and comments on the analysis of interviews and dialogues with mothers, fathers and Culture Bearers.