Photo caption: Miryan Rutledge, Indigenous Navigator​​​ at West Parry Sound Health Centre.

By: Navo Chakraborty, Communications & Public Relations Officer, West Parry Sound Health Centre 

Passionate, approachable, worldly, and warm. These hardly do Miryan justice, but they’re certainly a start. Growing up in Toronto with Peruvian and Japanese heritage, Miryan’s journey to West Parry Sound Health Centre (WPSHC) is about as diverse as her background. 

Her journey has been an intersectional one; weaving together frontline support, policy analysis, community engagement and advocacy. She has supported First Nations Communities across Ontario and Canada, working to help families and individuals navigate government resources and care options, conducting policy analysis and pressing for culturally safe, trauma-informed care. 

“Health care is where policy, humanity, and justice meet,” says Miryan. “I want to be a part of helping [Indigenous] people navigate systems that weren’t built with them [Indigenous people] in mind.” 

In her role as Indigenous Navigator, Miryan will be supporting WPSHC in providing high-quality, comprehensive, and culturally sensitive care. We believe this to be a critical endeavour for ourselves, our patients, and our community. 

After all, WPSHC is located on the traditional territory of the Anishinabek Nation, and the Indigenous peoples in this area include the Ojibway, Chippewa, Odawa, and Pottawatomi lineages. Furthermore, this land is also called home by a diverse and culturally rich range of First Nations, Inuit, and Metis peoples. We believe it is of the utmost importance to recognise the continued effects of colonisation and the pain wrought by this legacy. 

With that in mind, WPSHC hopes that through continued collaboration and relationship building, we can be more respectful of the land, and its people, while promoting a care model that is centered on the health, well-being and dignity of the patients and families that we are privileged to serve. This is not an easy undertaking, nor is it one that can be completed in a hurry.

Generations of policy, harm and exploitation have understandably resulted in a breakdown of trust between First Nations, Inuit and Metis people, and the health care system. While we keep this in mind and work toward reconciling these relationships, we must also remember that the burden of responsibility for this approach lies with us, and not with those who were subjugated and harmed by our painful shared history. 

Consequently, this position is one that is of the utmost importance to WPSHC. Not only because Miryan can help guide us in doing better, but because her insight can help us improve access to and quality of care. 

“It requires constant learning, gentle advocacy, and the ability to create space for culturally safe care,” said Miryan, “which ultimately strengthens relationships and improves outcomes.” 

As health professionals, we are bound by the fundamental commitments of the medical profession, such as Commitment to the Well-Being of the Patient, Commitment to Respect for Persons, and Commitment to Justice. As care providers, we are bound by an ethical and moral duty to our fellow human beings. To, as Miryan so succinctly put it, “uphold dignity, advance equity, and ensure Indigenous voices shape the services intended for them.” 

As part of this objective, Miryan is most looking forward to building relationships with patients, families, staff, and First Nation communities. After her time working in provincial-level indigenous health policy and navigation, she is excited for a more community-minded environment, where relationships, trust and direct support can make a tangible impact. 

While WPSHC may be new to Miryan, the civic-minded environment of WPSHC certainly is not. Going on her sixth year in our community, Miryan was initially drawn to the area due to the community’s strong connection to nature, the land, the water, and the diverse First Nation communities that surround Georgian Bay. 

If Miryan could pick two words to sum up her approach to both work, and to life, it would be intention and heart. Her compassion is infectious, and it is clear to anyone who meets her that, above all, she cares. Her belief in other people and in relationships drives this  approach and has led her to approach everything with humility, respect and a trauma  informed lens. She is intentional in cultivating and maintaining the relationships in her  life, and understands that any relationship takes time, effort and energy. 

Miryan's familiarity with and love for our community is evident, and we could not be more pleased that she  has chosen to bring this remarkable approach to our health centre. We are confident that she will be an invaluable addition to the WPSHC family, and are excited to see the impact she’ll have.