Aboriginal Doctor Named Deputy Provincial Health Officer

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Turtle Island Native Network
http://www.turtleisland.org

March 30th, 2012

A breakthrough for Aboriginal wellness efforts in British Columbia.

Aboriginal Health Physician Advisor Dr. Evan Adams has been appointed Deputy Provincial Health Officer, providing independent direction on First Nations and Aboriginal health issues to the Ministry of Health, reporting to citizens on health issues affecting the general population, and setting out a path for the improvement of First Nations and Aboriginal health and wellness.

"I am pleased the Office of the Provincial Health Officer is so eager to support Aboriginal health and I am honoured to step up into the position and help our people. We have worked a long time to find ways to support Aboriginal health in this province and I think this new position can only help to reform systems, create better policies and achieve better
Aboriginal health outcomes. . .I am very proud to be named Deputy PHO and look forward to expanding on my work as Aboriginal Health Physician Advisor. There is still a lot of work to bring Aboriginal peoples' health status in line with that of other British Columbians, but if we all work together, we can make a difference."

Dr. Adams is a Coast Salish physician and actor from the Sliammon First Nation. Previously he served as Aboriginal health physician advisor to government and the First Nations Health Council.

Grand Chief Doug Kelly, First Nations Health Council: "I am pleased that a member of our First Nations community who has taken on the challenge of education and the role of a health professional is now taking on a more significant role in the health care system in B.C. Congratulations and good luck to Dr. Adams on his step forward and into the important work ahead."

Joe Gallagher, CEO First Nations Health Council: "The elevation of Dr. Adams' position from that of Aboriginal Physician Advisor to Deputy PHO represents a huge step forward in the evolution of a First Nation provincial partnership."

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March 30, 2012

Ministry of Health
First Nations Health Council
First Nations Health Authority

Dr. Evan Adams named Deputy PHO for Aboriginal health

VICTORIA - Aboriginal Health Physician Advisor Dr. Evan Adams has been
appointed Deputy Provincial Health Officer, announced Minister of Health
Michael de Jong, the First Nations Heath Council and the interim First
Nations Health Authority today.

In his new overseeing role, Dr. Adams will work alongside Provincial
Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall and Deputy PHO Dr. Eric Young by
providing independent direction on First Nations and Aboriginal health
issues to the Ministry of Health, reporting to citizens on health issues
affecting the general population, and setting out a path for the
improvement of First Nations and Aboriginal health and wellness. Dr.
Adams's new role reflects a strengthening of the partnership between the
Province of B.C. and B.C. First Nations.

Dr. Adams is a Coast Salish physician and actor from the Sliammon First
Nation located near Powell River. Previously he served as Aboriginal
health physician advisor to government and the First Nations Health
Council, contributing to positive developments in health for all citizens
in B.C. while making substantial improvements in service delivery to
First Nations in the province.

As the chief resident during his family practice residency in the
Aboriginal Family Practice Program at St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver,
he won the provincial Family Medicine Resident Leadership Award from the
College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) and the Murray Stalker
Award from the CFPC Research and Education Foundation. He was named as a
role model by the National Native Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program and has
worked with First Nations youth in health promotions and life-skills
workshops across Canada.

Dr. Adams is the past president of the Healing Our Spirit B.C. First
Nations AIDS Society, which provides prevention education for Aboriginal
people in urban and rural communities throughout the province, as well as
being a past president of the Indigenous Physicians Association of
Canada, and the director of the Division of Aboriginal Peoples Health in
the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine.

From a directive and overseeing position since his appointment as the top
physician advisor on Aboriginal Health, down to working first-hand with
one of the most at-risk Aboriginal populations in the country in
Vancouver's downtown eastside, Dr. Adams brings invaluable on-the-ground
and executive experience.

His appointment is yet another positive step for First Nations health-
care representation in B.C., bringing greater Aboriginal perspective and
representation to the provincial table with the goal of raising the
quality of life for First Nations and all citizens.

Dr. Adams is a full-scholarship alumnus from Victoria's St. Michaels
University School and Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific. He also
studied general science at the University of B.C., completed his medical
doctorate at the University of Calgary, and a masters of public health at
the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore,
Maryland. As a successful actor, he has starred in mainstream films and
television, and has won a best actor award from the American Indian Film
Festival as well as a 1999 Independent Spirit Award. He was also awarded
a Gemini for "Best Host" for his appearance on the National Aboriginal
Achievement Awards broadcast.

Dr. Adams's appointment takes effect April 1, 2012.

Quotes:

Minister of Health Michael de Jong -

"I am very pleased that Dr. Adams is the new Deputy PHO. We have always
worked to find innovative ways to support Aboriginal health in this
province and this new position can only help to reform systems, create
better policies and achieve better Aboriginal health outcomes."

Dr. Evan Adams, Deputy Provincial Health Officer for Aboriginal Health -

"I am pleased the Office of the Provincial Health Officer is so eager to
support Aboriginal health and I am honoured to step up into the position
and help our people. We have worked a long time to find ways to support
Aboriginal health in this province and I think this new position can only
help to reform systems, create better policies and achieve better
Aboriginal health outcomes.

"I am very proud to be named Deputy PHO and look forward to expanding on
my work as Aboriginal Health Physician Advisor. There is still a lot of
work to bring Aboriginal peoples' health status in line with that of
other British Columbians, but if we all work together, we can make a
difference."

Joe Gallagher, CEO First Nations Health Council -

"The elevation of Dr. Adams' position from that of Aboriginal Physician
Advisor to Deputy PHO represents a huge step forward in the evolution of
a First Nation provincial partnership."

Grand Chief Doug Kelly, First Nations Health Council -

"I am pleased that a member of our First Nations community who has taken
on the challenge of education and the role of a health professional is
now taking on a more significant role in the health care system in B.C.
Congratulations and good luck to Dr. Adams on his step forward and into
the important work ahead."

Dr. Perry Kendall, Provincial Health Officer -

"Dr. Adams has already made a strong contribution to Aboriginal health
here in B.C., and I know that he will continue to do so as Deputy PHO.
His appointment will significantly strengthen the capacity of the Office
and I look forward to working with him in this enhanced role."

Learn More:

First Nations Health Council: http://www.fnhc.ca

Tripartite First Nations Health Plan:
http://www.gov.bc.ca/arr/social/health/ ... signed.pdf

Transformative Change Accord First Nations Health Plan:
http://www.fnhc.ca/pdf/TCA_FNHP.pdf

BACKGROUNDER

First Nations, through the First Nations Health Council and First Nations
Health Society, the Province of B.C. and the Government of Canada have
been working in partnership for a number of years to improve the health
and wellness of First Nations in B.C. Their commitments are captured in
the 2006 Transformative Change Accord First Nations Health Plan (TCA:
FNHP) and 2007 Tripartite First Nations Health Plan (TFNHP).

These plans both set out ambitious guidelines to improve the health
status of First Nations people in B.C. They describe a number of health
actions that the Province, Health Canada and B.C. First Nations are
implementing to support health systems transformation for First Nations
people, including the development and implementation of a new governance
structure for First Nations health in B.C.

A critical provision contained in the TCA: FNHP was the appointment of an
Aboriginal physician advisor to monitor and report on the health status
of Aboriginal people in B.C. and to track progress against the
performance indicators outlined in the plan. This was realized in 2008
with the appointment of Dr. Adams, and represents a shared commitment to
the TCA: FNHP and TFNHP.

Since this time, provincial and First Nations representatives have worked
as collaborative partners both in terms of health actions as well as the
establishment of the B.C. Tripartite Framework Agreement on First Nation
Health Governance in October 2011. The elevation of Dr. Adams' role from
Aboriginal physician advisor to that of Deputy PHO with the appropriate
legislative authority represents yet another joint accomplishment on this
transformative journey.

As Deputy PHO, Dr. Adams will work with the First Nations Health
Authority (FNHA) in improving the quality of data collected and health
indicators related to First Nations health.

The evolution of the First Nations Health Society into the FNHA maintains
the overseeing mandate of improving First Nations health and health
service delivery in the province while increasing responsibilities and
the authority of the organization.

As the interim health authority, responsibilities include the transition
of the B.C. Regional First Nations and Inuit Health office and the Head
Quarters' components of Health Canada to the FNHA, as well as
restructuring a number of key internal positions for necessary support.

Contacts:

Ryan Jabs
Media Relations Manager
Ministry of Health
250 952-1887 (media line)

Davis McKenzie
Communications and Public Relations Director
First Nations Health Authority
778 835-8276
dmckenzie@fnhc.ca