The purpose of this study was to identify the met and unmet needs for rehabilitation services, while highlighting the facilitators and barriers to improving the functional capacity and occupational participation in members of the Montreal Indigenous community experiencing housing instability.
This study used a participatory-action approach with a mixed-methods design. In building a relationship with the Native Friendship Center of Montreal (NFCM) and McGill’s School of Physical and Occupational Therapy, it was possible to meet service providers and service users in their own familiar settings. Data was gathered through focus groups with NFCM service providers (n=10) and individual sessions (interviews, questionnaires, observations, quantitative assessments) with service users (n=6). Participants were recruited through convenience sampling.
Indigenous people facing homelessness in Quebec would benefit from easily accessible and culturally sensitive rehabilitation for following health-related issues: traumatic brain injury related symptom management, range of motion and mobility challenges, pain management needs (especially lower body pain), endurance and shortness of breath affecting daily participation, feet-related injuries associated with diabetes and the need for frequent walking, and mental health. Participants emphasized the multifaceted barriers that this population faces in accessing existing health services, proposing that barriers would be mitigated by offering services at the NFCM. Participants emphasized the need for collaboration between rehabilitation professionals and service providers to address challenges faced by this population through collective learning opportunities.
This study addresses the research gap of physical rehabilitation needs for Indigenous people facing housing instability through a collaborative partnership in one urban context. It demonstrates a significant need for improved access to rehabilitation care, emphasizing that this care must be provided in a culturally safe way. By using participatory methodologies to identify and develop the services, the likelihood that the service delivery will be culturally safe will increase. Overall, this study opens the door for further partnership with the NFCM to co-design university partnerships to help address these identified needs and start to reduce barriers to this much needed care.
This study highlights the need for culturally safe and effective physiotherapy service provision for a transitory and vulnerable population with significant unmet health needs.
Indigenous Populations
Housing instability
