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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Health Serv.
Sec. Mental Health Services
Volume 4 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/frhs.2024.1387184
This article is part of the Research Topic Women in Mental Health Services: Volume 2 View all articles

Patient Experience of an Abstinence-Based Indigenous Residential Treatment Program in Northern Ontario: A Descriptive Qualitative Study

Provisionally accepted
Teresa Naseba Marsh Teresa Naseba Marsh 1*Carol Eshakakogan Carol Eshakakogan 2*Joseph K Eibl Joseph K Eibl 1*Melissa Spence Melissa Spence 1*Kristen A Morin Kristen A Morin 1Patrick Oghene Patrick Oghene 1*Aidan Goertzen Aidan Goertzen 1*Farah Tahsin Farah Tahsin 1Graham J Gauthier Graham J Gauthier 1*Alan Ozawanimke Alan Ozawanimke 3*Brent Bissaillion Brent Bissaillion 4*David C. Marsh David C. Marsh 1*
  • 1 Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada
  • 2 Blind River, Blind river, Canada
  • 3 Sagamok First Nation, Massey, Canada
  • 4 Serpent River First Nation, Kenabutch, Canada

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Indigenous peoples with substance use disorders (SUD) and intergenerational trauma (IGT) face complex healthcare needs. Therefore understanding Indigenous patient experiences is crucial for enhancing care delivery, fostering engagement, and achieving optimal outcomes, yet few studies explore the motivations for seeking, staying in, and utilizing treatment from an Indigenous perspective. The goal of this study was to understand the patient experience with an abstinence-based treatment model in a residential treatment setting.A qualitative thematic study was conducted between April 2018 and February 2020 at Benbowpka treatment centre in Blind River, Ontario, Canada. We evaluated the results of the abstinence-based model intervention from the patient's perspective. The Client Quality Assurance Survey tool was employed to gather this data. The data underwent thematic analysis to derive meaningful insights.A total of 157 patients were interviewed. The results were categorized into three parts:(1) Critical events that encouraged participants to seeking treatment; (2) Benefits experienced by participants while they were in the program; (3) Participants take-aways and priorities after completing the program. Core themes emerged in each category and each theme is sub-categorized into quadrants of the Medicine Wheel. Firstly, there was a critical juncture that significantly impacted participants' lives that motivated them to seek treatment at the Benbowpka Treatment Centre. Second, during the study, participants admission to the Benbowopka Treatment Centre, the participants benefitted from a holistic program that addresses spiritual, physical, mental and emotional aspects of healing. Third, participants identified tangible ways in which they implement the skills they gained during the program in their daily lives. Overall, study demonstrates that clients benefitted from both the program activities and the traditional healing practices.This research identified that SUD Indigenous residential treatment programs need to include culture, healing practices, activities and relationships that are part of the treatment process. This study found that the cultural elements and healing practices of the program were highly valued by clients.

    Keywords: Indigenous, substance use, Trauma, Residential Treatment, qualitative Intergenerational Trauma, Two-Eyed seeing, Seeking Safety, Harm Reduction

    Received: 16 Feb 2024; Accepted: 28 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Marsh, Eshakakogan, Eibl, Spence, Morin, Oghene, Goertzen, Tahsin, Gauthier, Ozawanimke, Bissaillion and Marsh. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Teresa Naseba Marsh, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada
    Carol Eshakakogan, Blind River, Blind river, Canada
    Joseph K Eibl, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada
    Melissa Spence, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada
    Patrick Oghene, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada
    Aidan Goertzen, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada
    Graham J Gauthier, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada
    Alan Ozawanimke, Sagamok First Nation, Massey, Canada
    Brent Bissaillion, Serpent River First Nation, Kenabutch, Canada
    David C. Marsh, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, P3E 2C6, Ontario, Canada

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.