Pathways for Sexual Health Promotion Among Indigenous Boys and Men: A Community Report

Citation

Gaspar, C. M., Rand, J., Biderman, M., Boussard, A., Bogner, E., Lekas, S., Miller, D., McMillian, J., & Numer, M. (2021). Pathways for Sexual Health Promotion Among Indigenous Boys and Men: A Community Report. Halifax, NS.

Executive Summary

The Pathways for Sexual Health Promotion among Indigenous Boys and Men was a research project designed to specifically understand Indigenous boys’ and men’s holistic sexual health in Canada, and more specifically in Atlantic Canada. It was co-developed by Dalhousie University, Healing Our Nation and Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre. The project was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health

Research (CIHR) through a Catalyst Grant and aimed to meet the following objectives:

• Review the academic and grey literature on the current state of holistic sexual health among Indigenous boys and men provincially and nationally

• Organize community consultations in partnership with community organizations to explore the topic of Indigenous boys’ and men’s holistic sexual health

• Gain insight into the perspectives, experiences and contributions of key informants and stakeholders

• Investigate the role of post-colonial masculinities in the production of Indigenous boys’ and men’s holistic sexual health

  A key message driving the project was the need to provide Indigenous boys

  and men spaces of healing and mentorship to inform sexual health programing. The

  specific findings from this project include:

• The review of the literature emphasized that there is a scarcity of research exploring the sexual health of Indigenous boys and men in Canada, particularly in the Atlantic Canada region.

• Community consultation demonstrated the need for safer spaces for Indigenous boys and men to be able to talk about sexual health to promote healthy relationships and positive sexual health practices through role modeling.

• The findings from the stakeholder interviews revealed three pathways for sexual health promotion: 1) developing healthy relationships and highlighting role models, 2) providing access to comprehensive sexual health information, and 3) fostering open communication among Indigenous boys and men.

• Emerging from the 10 interviews with Indigenous men were two key themes: 1) the systems of oppression that effected their journeys; and 2) the systems of support that have and will enable them to recover.

  The findings from this project informed the proposal for a larger CIHR Operating grant project, Indigenous Masculinities and Sexual Health: Exploring community- driven interventions among boys and men through land-based methodologies, in collaboration with Dalhousie University, Healing Our Nation and the Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre. This Indigenous Masculinities and Sexual Health Project is now exploring holistic sexual health of Indigenous boys and men through Major Gatherings and Learning Lodges. These gatherings and lodges are being developed by Healing Our Nation and the Mi’kmaw Friendship Centre based on the findings from this catalyst project and the community-based sexual health findings are being explored by the Sexual Health and Gender Research Lab at Dalhousie University.

To read the full report, click the button below: