First Nations Health Authority, Simon Fraser University, and St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation establish Chair in Heart Health and Wellness

The First Nations Health Authority, Simon Fraser University, and St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation have established the First Nations Health Authority Chair in Heart Health and Wellness at St. Paul’s Hospital. The position, the first of its kind in Western Canada, will offer a holistic focus on cardiac health, and put First Nations communities in the driver’s seat of heart health research.

The $1.9-million Chair will lead research and education into critical policy related to heart health, disease prevention and control associated with chronic diseases among First Nations people, providing invaluable direction and a guiding voice in the area of cardiac health and its wellness determinants.

Co-located at the FNHA, SFU, and St. Paul’s Hospital, the Chair’s responsibilities include leading research to develop protective strategies of health promotion that include culture and spirit; understand risk factors related to the social determinants of health; and produce health knowledge for policies and programs.