Family CARE Grant Integrates Traditional Medicines with Western Medicine
Published Monday, June 23, 2025
Annette Klement, Traditional Wellness Coordinator, Spiritual Care, Indigenous Collaboration, Equity & Inclusion with the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.
Traditional ceremonies such as smudging can be an important part of healthcare for many people at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. Indigenous cultures often take a holistic approach to medicine, treating body as well as mind and spirit. Both Western and traditional medicines can work together to help heal the patient.
Thanks to your support of the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation's Family CARE Grant Program, the Hospital can continue to offer smudging with traditional medicines to patients as part of their treatment here.
“We can smudge with traditional medicines as part of their care plan – as part of their healing,” said Annette Klement, Traditional Wellness Coordinator at the Hospital. “With Indigenous Spirituality, you take a lot of guidance from nature. Something you'll hear is, ‘All my relations.' That's more than family – it's people, animals, plants, and the air. It's everything.”
Having traditional medicines available at the Hospital is important in itself for the people who rely on ceremonies like smudging in their everyday lives. It also shows respect and support for patients coming from First Nations. Culture and language barriers can be overwhelming; the availability of traditional medicines signals welcoming and understanding, Klement said.
Since spirituality is deeply personal, the level of spiritual care a patient needs varies.
“It really depends on the person,” Klement said. “Some people smudge twice a day throughout their lives. Some people smudge only in certain circumstances, like when they have health issues. It's an option we can continue to offer our patients if they want it. You don't have to be Indigenous to benefit from this medicine. It's for anybody and everybody who feels connected to it.”
Klement said that the word is starting to spread among communities about the availability of traditional medicines at the Hospital.
Referrals for Traditional Spiritual Care are received on a regular basis, Klement said. The medicines are used often and need to be replenished.
Communication with the patient is important as well – not all Indigenous patients want smudging.
“When we assume things based on heritage, we're placing a stereotype or a bias on that person,” Klement said. “My personal goal for the Hospital is that everybody who walks through our doors will be seen, heard, and respected so that they get the care that they need and deserve.”
Part of Klement's position is to educate Hospital staff about traditional medicines and their uses through information sessions.
“Staff seem genuinely interested in having a better understanding of their patients' needs on a more personal level,” Klement said.
Thanks to a Family CARE Grant, the Indigenous Collaboration, Equity and Inclusion portfolio has enough traditional medicines for the next year. The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation's Family CARE Grants are like suggestion boxes, providing funding for ideas and projects driven by frontline staff. Find out more about this unique Health Sciences Foundation program at: healthsciencesfoundation.ca/familycare