(Post 6 of 12 post series on Grassroots Health Transformation)

How Indigenous Wisdom Guides Healthcare Transformation

Healthcare is about more than just medicine—it’s about people, relationships, and trust. For many Indigenous communities, healing is a holistic practice that integrates physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being. The Seven Teachings—Love, Respect, Courage, Honesty, Wisdom, Humility, and Truth—are core values in many Indigenous cultures that offer incredible insights into building a more humane healthcare system.

When we embrace these teachings, we create a healthcare system that values relationships over transactions, trust (truth) over bureaucracy, and healing over symptom management. Indigenous knowledge isn’t just ancient wisdom—it’s relevant, actionable, and necessary for a patient-centred care approach.

The Seven Teachings and How They Shape Patient-Centered Care

The Seven Teachings provide a powerful foundation for reshaping how we approach healthcare. Here’s how each principle can guide better patient care and more meaningful relationships within the system.

1. Love: Healing Begins with Compassion

Love is at the heart of all healing. In healthcare, this means treating patients with kindness, empathy, and understanding. When patients feel cared for, they heal faster, trust their providers more, and experience better outcomes.

Actionable Steps:

• Prioritize active listening in patient interactions.
• Train staff to practice empathy, even in high-stress environments.
• Encourage healthcare professionals to see patients as whole individuals, not just diagnoses.

2. Respect: Honoring Patient Voices and Choices

Respect in healthcare means recognizing each patient’s unique background, values, and autonomy. Too often, Indigenous patients face discrimination or dismissal of their concerns. By embedding respect in care, we create environments where all voices are heard and valued.

Actionable Steps:

• Integrate cultural safety training for all healthcare providers.
• Encourage shared decision-making between patients and providers.
• Respect traditional healing practices as complementary to modern medicine.

3. Courage: Standing Up for Change in Healthcare

Courage is needed to challenge outdated systems, address health inequities, and advocate for Indigenous healthcare rights. It takes bravery to speak out against systemic barriers and push for culturally inclusive policies.

Actionable Steps:

• Support Indigenous-led health initiatives and research.
• Speak up when witnessing bias or inequitable treatment.
• Encourage Indigenous representation in healthcare leadership roles.

4. Honesty: Transparency Builds Trust

Honesty in healthcare creates trust and accountability. Many Indigenous communities have historical reasons to distrust the medical system due to past mistreatment. Rebuilding that trust starts with open, honest, and transparent communication.

Actionable Steps:

• Provide clear explanations of diagnoses and treatment plans.
• Acknowledge past and present healthcare injustices.
• Establish policies that ensure transparency in patient care.

5. Wisdom: Learning from Indigenous Knowledge

Indigenous healing traditions hold centuries of knowledge about holistic health, mental wellness, and preventative care. Modern healthcare can learn valuable lessons from these time-tested approaches.

Actionable Steps:

• Partner with Indigenous healers and Elders to integrate traditional knowledge into care.
• Educate healthcare workers on Indigenous worldviews and holistic healing practices.
• Promote wellness programs that address spiritual and community well-being, not just physical health.

6. Humility: Acknowledging That We Don’t Have All the Answers

True humility means recognizing that Western medicine does not have all the solutions and that Indigenous ways of knowing deserve equal respect. A system built on humility values collaboration, not hierarchy.

Actionable Steps:

• Encourage healthcare providers to engage in lifelong learning from Indigenous perspectives.
• Create policies that value patient and community input.
• Create a culture of mutual learning between Western medicine and traditional healing practices.

7. Truth: Healing Requires Acknowledgment

Truth is about honestly addressing past harms, systemic racism, and ongoing healthcare disparities faced by Indigenous peoples. Without truth, there can be no real reconciliation or healing.

Actionable Steps:

• Acknowledge historical injustices like residential schools and forced sterilizations.
• Implement trauma-informed care models.
• Ensure Indigenous communities have equitable access to quality healthcare services.

Why Trust, Humility, and Truth Are the Foundations of a Great Healthcare System

At its core, a great healthcare system is built on relationships. Trust, humility, and truth are essential because they create safe, inclusive spaces where healing can happen. Without these foundations, even the most advanced medical treatments fall short.

Building Trust

• Trust grows when patients feel heard, respected, and valued.
• Healthcare providers must work to undo past harms by prioritizing transparency and cultural safety.

Practicing Humility

• A humble healthcare provider acknowledges gaps in their knowledge and is open to learning from their patients.
• Humility allows for true collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous health practices.

Speaking the Truth

• Honouring the truth means recognizing the ongoing inequities Indigenous communities face in healthcare.
• Healthcare systems must actively address and dismantle these barriers to create a more just and effective system.

Stories of Healing That Prove These Teachings Belong in Modern Medicine

Example 1: Traditional Midwifery Restoring Birth Practices In some Indigenous communities, returning to traditional midwifery has significantly improved maternal and infant health outcomes. By respecting traditional birthing practices and incorporating them into modern healthcare, communities see fewer complications and stronger cultural connections.

Example 2: Land-Based Healing for Mental Health Programs that integrate land-based healing, such as nature retreats and traditional ceremonies, have helped Indigenous youth struggling with mental health challenges find healing in ways conventional therapy often cannot.

Example 3: Community-Led Diabetes Prevention Programs Diabetes disproportionately affects Indigenous populations, but community-led wellness programs that incorporate traditional diets and active lifestyles have successfully reduced rates and improved health outcomes.

Real Healthcare Transformation Happens When We Honor the Wisdom That’s Already Here

The Seven Teachings are more than just values—they are a blueprint for building a healthcare system that actually does care for people. By integrating Indigenous wisdom, we move closer to a model of care that prioritizes relationships, trust, and holistic healing.

Now it’s your turn. How can you bring these teachings into your healthcare practice, organization, or community? Share your thoughts in the comments below or start a conversation with your team about embedding these values into everyday care.

FAQs

1. How can non-Indigenous healthcare providers apply the Seven Teachings in their practice? Non-Indigenous providers can start by practicing active listening, respecting cultural perspectives, and seeking education on Indigenous health practices. Simple actions like acknowledging historical traumas and ensuring culturally safe spaces can make a big difference.

2. Are there examples of healthcare systems successfully integrating Indigenous teachings? Yes! Several Indigenous-led health centers across Canada and the U.S. incorporate traditional healing alongside Western medicine. Programs like land-based therapy, Indigenous midwifery, and cultural safety training are proving that blended approaches lead to better patient outcomes.

3. Why is it important to acknowledge past harms in healthcare? Acknowledging past harms builds trust and allows for genuine reconciliation. Many Indigenous communities have experienced medical mistreatment, so addressing these histories openly is a critical step in healing and moving forward together.

Let’s create a healthcare system where everyone feels respected, valued, and truly cared for. Start the conversation now.  Comment your thoughts below. 

Contact me.