For International Women's Day, we are proud to feature an interview with one of our board members Holly Calliou. Holly is a Cree woman from Alexander First Nation. A graduate from the University of Alberta with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Holly has a long history in nursing and wound care. She first worked at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Alexandra Hospital from 2006 to 2007.
She then joined Indigenous Services Canada where she was able to work with a few different First Nations in Alberta. Her primary focus during her time with ISC was in Public Health. In 2015 she was offered the position of Home Care Coordinator for Enoch Cree Nation. This gave her the opportunity to practice with a completely different focus.
In this key role, she works closely with physicians, surgeons and other health professionals to provide the best care for her clients. Her work was acknowledged in 2022 when she was the recipient of the Indigenous Health Care Professional Scholarship from Wounds Canada and the Aboriginal Role Model of Alberta for Health award.
We spoke with Holly about her journey, the challenges women still face in health care and how workplaces can foster more inclusive environments.
WC: You have had a prosperous career in health care. What advice would you give to women following your path?
Holly: I started my career later in life, after I had worked at different jobs and started my family. I had decided it was time to start a career that I could be satisfied with. I had always enjoyed helping people and I was good at Math and Science so when my friend suggestedI Nursing I thought it was a wonderful idea. It was difficult starting a new career, going back to school as a mature student but it was also endlessly rewarding. So my advice would be to say it's never too late to advance your career or even to start over.
WC: In your experience, how have the challenges for women in health care evolved? What obstacles still remain?
Holly: Even though there are more and more women in health care as doctors, specialists, practitioners and other professionals there are still challenges. Some challenges include unsafe work environments, unfair role expectations and wage disparity. I also do believe that there are areas where professionals are working to improve and provide support to women. Even just recognizing an unsafe environment and offering ways to do the work safely can go a long way.
WC: What would you like health-care professionals to know in terms of making work environments more inclusive?
Holly: I think the most important thing is to understand your personal biases and prejudices and then find a way to put them aside so you can treat everyone with kindness and respect. In my practice I work with Indigenous people, I understand that due to previous negative experiences with health care systems they may not be very trusting of health professionals. Because of this I try to work with my clients in a way that shows that I care for them as a person and I want to help them. Eventually they start to trust me and are more willing to let me in.
WC: How has your identity as a Cree woman shaped your approach to health care and leadership?
Holly: As a Cree woman, I understand the negative experiences Indigenous people have suffered in the health system due to prejudices. I also know that health is not necessarily a priority when they may be dealing with homelessness, food safety and possibly addictions. For this reason, I try to work with them in whatever space they are in. I try to help them with their health issues but also leave the door open for them in case they are not ready for my help right at this moment but they may be later.
WC: In your experience, what are some of the biggest gaps in health care for Indigenous communities and what steps can be taken to address them?
I think one of the biggest gaps is the lack of resources for some communities, especially the smaller isolated ones. Some communities don’t even have nursing services available full-time or they may be shared between a few different communities. Accessing supplies and resources can be more difficult due to funding disparities since smaller communities don’t have as much funding. Another gap occurs when Indigenous people don’t access health care when they need it. In some cases, Indigenous people aren’t treated the same as everyone else. They are at times regarded as just ‘pill shopping’. These prejudices create negative experiences for the client which prevents them from accessing services because they fear the negative treatment. Another gap involves the disconnect between the different levels of government. It can be very difficult to access provincial services because the First Nation is federally funded. Provincial services do not come on to the reserve due to this disconnect. This means the Indigenous person may not be able to easily access services which other individuals in the province can access. One way to start minimizing the gap would be to offer Cultural Sensitivity and Inclusivity training to help people become aware of their unconscious biases.