Healthy Babies & Children

Traditional teachings in Aboriginal cultures teach us that our babies are sacred gifts from the Creator that bring joy, and are symbolic of the continuation of life. A birth in a community is a blessed event and is celebrated by the family and the community. It takes a community to raise a child, and it is our job as Aboriginal women to ensure that we fulfill our responsibilities to ensure that our babies are healthy and have a good life, particularly in the first thirteen moons of their lives.

However, with the existence of social deprivation and often substandard living conditions facing many Aboriginal families, simply providing a good start for Aboriginal infants in the first thirteen moons can become a daunting task.

The Challenge

NWAC is concerned that our infants are challenged right from the start, and that our infant mortality rates are equal to developing countries such as Chile, Sri Lanka and Fiji, and higher than Latvia and Lithuania.

It has recently been reported by the Canadian Press, that the infant mortality rate for Aboriginal babies in Canada and the United States is up to four times that of non-Aboriginal newborns. The U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child has identified that the infant mortality rate among First Nations people living on reserves is estimated at eight deaths per 1,000 live births. In Nunavut where approximately 85% of the population is Inuit, the infant mortality rate is 16 per 1,000 live births – more than three times the national rate. Aboriginal children are 50 times more likely than mainstream Canadian children to be hospitalized with preventable illness such as Chicken Pox.

A recent report on Canada’s Indigenous children has highlighted that social determinants of health, barriers to access and social and economic deprivation are to blame, not genetics and this is a situation that is preventable. This report also indicates a linkage between early death and colonization, loss of land and access to natural resources, a lack of care and the legacy of abuse and severance of family ties in native residential schools. Metis physician, Janet Smylie has said: “Every infant who dies ... I believe is a tragedy we should follow up on".

The Program

In response to growing concerns about the health of Aboriginal peoples, Aboriginal leaders and First Ministers announced in 2004 that there would be new investments in programs to improve the health status of Aboriginal people. Through this commitment, the Maternal Child Health Program was established by Health Canada in an effort to address issues concerning Aboriginal women, maternity and newborn care. NWAC is also exploring other programs for Aboriginal infants and children such as the Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program, and seeking to ensure its continuation. NWAC intends to continue in its advocacy role with government agencies to ensure the continuation of programs such as Aboriginal Head Start and Early Childhood Development Programs, and strive for the development of new programs for Aboriginal babies and young children to ensure a healthy start for a good life.

The Opportunity

Through this work, the ultimate goal of NWAC is to improve the health outcomes for not only expectant Aboriginal women, their families and their infants through a variety of approaches, but to help initiate community supports during pregnancy, post-partum and early childhood, particularly in the first thirteen moons. In addition, it is intended that Aboriginal children will be provided with a good start by linking children and families with special needs to various community services such as Aboriginal Head Start, the Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program, and Early Childhood Development programs at the community level. Within this framework, NWAC seeks to work with federal, provincial and territorial agencies, together with partner organizations in exploring opportunities to improve the health and well-being of our greatest resource --- our children, many of whose faces we cannot yet see.