Begin forwarded message:

From: Lisa Mendez <Lisa.Mendez@umanitoba.ca>

Subject: Amazon opportunity May 2025

Date: December 11, 2024 at 6:48:48 AM PST

To: Mary Bertone <Mary.Bertone@umanitoba.ca>

Apologies-the application link was wrong. I’ve corrected it below.

 

Mary,

Could you please forward this email to any cohorts of students in your college who don’t have classes/clinical May 2-11?

Applications are open for Interprofessional community engagement with an Indigenous community (Amazon) 

Dates: May 2-11, 2025

Number of students accepted: 10–16 

Apply by: January 6^th, 2025

To apply: https://forms.office.com/r/8Xf84vMQKd

 

 

This Community Engaged Learning (Amazon) opportunity is a collaboration between the Office of Interprofessional Collaboration in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences and the Amupakin Collective—a group of Kichwa health practitioners who work to keep alive the knowledge of their land, culture and traditions.  

 

In this program, students will participate in an immersive interprofessional learning opportunity within the Amupakin collective, who hold traditional knowledge that has been handed down for generations. 

The primary goals of this learning opportunity are to:  

·       Recognize the impact of the history of colonization and current policies on the health of Indigenous peoples (in both global and local contexts). 

·       Recognize the importance of cultural safety in providing health care within Indigenous communities.  

·       Affirm students' ethical obligation to band together with interprofessional colleagues to provide culturally safe care for marginalized populations. 

·       Appreciate how Indigenous ways of knowing and being can and should be integrated into our health and education systems.  

About Amupakin: 

Amupakin has been providing free traditional healthcare and midwifery services for their communities for many years. Despite their long history as trusted health providers in their community, they are still struggling to be recognized by the public health system of Ecuador. Some of their current struggles include fighting against the government’s efforts to discourage people from seeking traditional healthcare and the compulsory “training and certification” of Indigenous midwives—who have been practicing midwifery since childhood by assisting their mothers and grandmothers who in turned learned midwifery from their mothers and grandmothers. 

Program Fees: 

The program is 100% not for profit. The all-inclusive fee of $2500 covers return airfare, all in-country transportation and accommodations, three daily meals, pre-departure training, and a financial contribution to Amupakin to support their goals. 

Next steps after applying:

Once you’ve applied, Lisa Mendez will be in touch with you via email to confirm receipt of your application, discuss/confirm your availability, and to answer any questions. If there are more applicants than spaces, you may be required to complete a virtual mini-interview.

About the coordinator: 

Lisa Mendez is the Collaborative Healthcare Practice Lead in the Office of Interprofessional Collaboration and an instructor in the Department of Occupational Therapy. She first met the mamas of Amupakin in 2019 through the relationship that was built through the UM Community Engaged Learning program. She coordinated two trips in 2024 for 21 Rady students from 6 professional programs. She is currently planning a trip for Rady students in February 2025. She also coordinates the Ndinawemaaganag program, a community engaged learning opportunity within First Nation communities in Manitoba. 

Amazon experience in the news 

Program sends Rady students to rainforest: https://news.umanitoba.ca/program-sends-rady-students-to-rainforest/

Pharmacy student learns about traditional medicine: https://news.umanitoba.ca/pharmacy-student-learns-about-traditional-medicine/ 

CTV news interview: http://archive.tveyes.com/8383/12185/01aaf46d-2cbe-49d8-b6d5-672b2aeb4344/CACTVWIN_07-17-2024_18.38.14.mp4

 Lisa

 

 

Lisa Mendez, O.T. Reg. (MB)

Collaborative Health Care Practice Lead
Office of Interprofessional Collaboration

Rady Faculty of Health Sciences

Lisa.Mendez@umanitoba.ca

 

Anticipated vacation: Dec 19-Jan 2