In September 2020, McGill University unveiled its Action Plan to Address Anti-Black Racism –a five-year plan that outlines concrete measures aimed at enhancing equity and inclusiveness for Black students, faculty, and staff. In the context of this plan, and in keeping with its mission to optimize health and health care equity locally and globally, the Ingram School of Nursing has introduced a variety of initiatives to address systemic racism in nursing. In conjunction with Black History Month, we sat down with a few faculty members who shared their perspectives and reflections on the School’s commitment to anti-Black racism.
For several years, Assistant Professor Kimani Daniel has had a keen interest in understanding the ways in which equity-seeking communities maintain their health and in addressing themes such as anti-colonialism and structural racism in the classes she teaches at both the graduate and undergraduate level. As she recalls, “I joined ISoN as a full-time faculty member during the summer of 2020 – a pivotal moment in global consciousness of systemic racism, with protests following the murder of George Floyd, the health care inequities of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the death of Joyce Echaquan in Quebec.”
Eager to become more involved in anti-racism initiatives, Professor Daniel joined the Dr. Kenneth Melville McGill Black Faculty and Staff Caucus. The goals of the caucus include cultivating a nurturing learning and working environment at McGill, advocating on matters of recruitment, retention and advancement, and participating in consultations on matters pertaining to the experience of Black faculty and staff.
Jodi Tuck, Program Director of ISoN’s MSc Advanced Nursing Program, is ISoN’s representative on the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences’ Widening Participation Committee, while Assistant Professor Françoise Filion, whose expertise is in community health nursing, is the rural representative. The mandate of this committee is to increase the participation of under-represented populations in the application process to McGill’s health professional programs. “Ultimately, the goal is to have our student population reflect the same diversity as the Canadian population,” notes Professor Tuck. An annual diversity survey conducted in 2020 revealed that ISoN was successful in recruiting Black students across all programs, with a population share equal to or greater than in the general population of Montreal.
Beginning in their first year of study at ISoN, students are exposed to issues such as race, implicit bias, oppression, systemic racism, cultural safety and humility. Case studies in our Inquiry-Based Learning courses provide a good starting point for discussions, simulations and debriefing on how to address implicit bias in nursing care.
Faculty Lecturer Amanda Cervantes, whose interests include migrant health and health equity, believes that students and colleagues alike are receptive to the school’s overall vision. “I see more and more faculty integrating ideas of social accountability and anti-racism in their learning objectives. Beyond their personal beliefs in the important of these issues, my colleagues recognize that our students want to make the connections between their work as professional nurses and the global dialogue around racism and colonialism.”
Currently, ISoN is actively recruiting for a Black Scholar (Assistant or Associate Professor) - a tenure-track position in the area of access to quality health care by racialized and other marginalized populations. As well, we are seeking a master’s-prepared nurse to fill the role of Academic Associate, Office of Social Accountability in Nursing (OSAN). The goal of OSAN is to support equity-based nursing education, leadership, service, research and expertise.
There is an air of excitement at ISoN as the school builds on these initiatives. “Meaningful change begins with paying more attention to how these issues arise in our interactions and in our courses,” says Ms. Daniel. “I sense a real openness in the ISoN community to being part of these conversations and that’s encouraging.”
By Hena Kon, Communications Officer, Ingram School of Nursing