Program offers Aboriginal focus

The University of Regina is launching a new program that will help students develop an understanding of Indigenous health needs.

The bachelor of health studies (BHS) is the only undergraduate health studies degree program offered in western Canada. But what makes it even more unique is its focus on Aboriginal health.
Every student enrolled in the four-year degree program will take five Indigenous health classes and may choose an additional four-course concentration in Indigenous health.

The program is a joint degree offered by the University of Regina's faculty of kinesiology and health studies and the faculty of arts, in partnership with First Nations University of Canada.
"It was intended to fill a gap in the non-health sciences professions," Doug Cripps, co-coordinator of the BHS and the U of R's faculty of kinesiology and health studies said of the new program. "We see it being a very, very exciting new program on campus."

The program has much to offer for students who want to focus more on health and wellness because it will look at preventative measures that can be used to improve health.

"We see in the news all of the time about the wait times, the health care crisis and rising health care costs," said Cripps. "Part of the focus of this particular degree is to have students go out and be able to work with people. So they will minimize wait times, they'll decrease the cost of health care because we hope that we'll generally be a healthier society in the future. So rather than waiting for people to get sick and then responding, which is what most of our health care system does, we respond beforehand to prevent people from getting sick in the first place."

Both Native and non-Native students will learn about the tools needed to critically evaluate health-related theory, research or policy and will explore alternative concepts of health and illness in different social and cultural contexts, Cripps said.

The focus on Indigenous health studies, combined with the other course work in the program, will prepare students who want to work in Aboriginal communities, whether they be in rural or urban settings.

The degree program can also be used by students as a "spring board" into the health profession, Cripps said, preparing them for work in health policy or analysis, advanced research on health issues or further education in nursing, social work or medicine.

"We anticipate some of the graduates to apply and enter into nursing programs," said Cripps. "The health studies program will also more than adequately prepare them for entry into employment in some of the non-profit disability organizations like the Diabetes foundation, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and Arthritis Society. That's the exciting thing about the program, there's a fair amount of flexibility that allows the student to specialize in certain areas."

Students enrolled in another health program at the U of R who are interested in enrolling in the BHS program can certainly do so, Cripps said. Students attending a post-secondary institution that has an existing transfer agreement with the U of R or with the western Canadian universities can also transfer their credits into the BHS program.

"For those who don't have an existing transfer credit agreement with us, we will establish one," said Cripps.

To qualify for the program students must have completed 30 credit hours of pre-health studies and must have maintained a minimum grade average of 65 per cent. The deadline for fall semester applications is June 1. Application forms and additional information about the program can be found online at http://kinesiology.uregina.ca/healthstudies.