This workshop is funded by the Joint Standing Committee on Rural Issues. Therefore, registration is prioritized for physicians and other regulated health professions practicing and serving rural BC. Please note the registration windows below.
- Until November 11, 2026: registration is open for currently practicing health care professionals who serve rural BC.
- November 11 - November 20, 2026: General registration (subject to availability).
The Nawh Whu’nus’en – We See in Two Worlds Level 1 Workshop is based on a widely accepted understanding that trauma-sensitive practices are the basis for offering culturally-safe and respectful health services for Indigenous relatives. It draws upon two-eyed seeing models, weaving together Indigenous ways of knowing with western trauma theory and neuroscience. It blends Dr. Michael Yellowbird’s work around neuro decolonization, Dr. Stephen Porges’ contributions around polyvagal trauma theory, and experiential Indigenous land-based healing practices to highlight the power of ceremony for reclaiming and maintaining wellness in body, mind and spirit.
The curriculum recognizes that health professionals and patients work in relationship, and a trauma-sensitive approach can help to build respectful, trusting relationships. The learning in this curriculum is directed inwards as well as outwards, inviting participants to learn not only about new approaches to practice, but also reflect on their own experiences of trauma and ways to support their own wellness.
This workshop supports health professionals in rural British Columbia to meet new provincial expectations and standards to provide culturally safe care, including the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC’s new Practice Standard — Indigenous Cultural Safety, Cultural Humility and Anti-Racism; recommendations in the In Plain Sight: Addressing Indigenous-specific Racism and Discrimination in BC Health Care (2020) report; the Rural Coordination Centre of BC’s Site Visits with Indigenous communities; and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action for health.
This curriculum consists of Level 1 and Level 2 online workshops and is available for any registered health care provider who practices in rural BC.