The COVID-19 response among Indigenous Communities in Northern Ontario: Developing a Culturally Grounded Knowledge Translation Tool

Our aim is to carry out knowledge translation activities and share our COVID-19 research findings from a previous collaborative research program. We focused on understanding the COVID-19 vaccination system for communities in the James and Hudson Bay regions of Northern Ontario. We conducted interviews and held Talking Circles with the communities, in partnership with the Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA), resulting in outputs describing themes related to the vaccination of community members (barriers and facilitators) and themes related to the COVID-19 public health response such as leadership and governance, health resources and financing, and the challenges and strengths of the vaccination system. Our project aims to further engage these communities to generate community-based knowledge that can inform future public health crises and identify areas for strengthening the existing health system. Our project has three main objectives: 1. Communicate how COVID-19 public health prevention strategies were developed by generating and leveraging community-based knowledge and disseminated through culturally safe and effective community-based communication strategies within Indigenous communities in the WAHA. 2. Develop a set of knowledge translation (KT) products (outputs) in partnership with communities in the WAHA. These will be developed through a framework of 'storytelling as pedagogy,' in alignment with Indigenous Ways of Knowing. Potential KT outputs will include videos, pamphlets, and/or comic books. 3. Utilize the knowledge translation products to share our collaborative COVID-19 research program results with Indigenous community members in the WAHA. This will be achieved using a decolonizing relational framework through community gatherings to determine effective community-based knowledge and knowledge translation and dissemination strategies that promote individual and community health and wellness needed during future health crises such as COVID-19.