Environmental scan of Indigenous resources and culturally specific tools across intensive care units in Alberta,...

Indigenous Peoples in Canada are disproportionately burdened with a spectrum of health issues and consistently report lower satisfaction with their health care; nevertheless, little is known about their experiences with critical care and the support received during critical illness. We aimed to describe the current scope of critical-care-specific resources available to Indigenous patients and their families across Alberta to identify gaps and opportunities to implement actionable change to realize more equitable and culturally safe care.

We conducted a two-phase environmental scan. Phase 1 entailed searching websites for information to support Indigenous patients, their families, and health care workers. Phase 2 facilitated 21 interviews with intensive care unit (ICU) stakeholders from across Alberta to further describe site-specific resources, services, tools, or initiatives to support Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous partners were engaged through all aspects of the project.

Our environmental scan identified a paucity of ICU-specific resources, programs, or policies to support Indigenous patients and families' navigation with critical care. We identified two national resources aimed at clinicians, rather than patients or families. Interviews with ICU stakeholders confirmed the paucity of Indigenous-specific resources. Stakeholders cited numerous barriers, including inadequate culture training, staff time constraints and burnout, physical space limits, and insufficient personnel, such as Indigenous liaisons and social workers.

Multiple gaps exist in the availability of critical-care-focused resources and supports for Indigenous Peoples experiencing critical illness in Alberta, Canada. Addressing these care gaps may improve health equity, access, and the experience for Indigenous patients and families during critical illness and further build trust and strengthen relationships with health care workers.