Ambassadors

Let us introduce our Ambassadors!

The Joyce Principle Ambassadors Network supports health and social service organizations in their efforts to adopt and implement the Joyce Principle. Made up of professionals from these sectors, the Network mobilizes a diversity of expertise to support practices that respect the knowledge, realities and rights of First Peoples.

Our ambassadors adapt to the specific needs of each institution, offering tailor-made support. As such, they can :

Participate in your working groups to develop culturally-safe practices;
Co-develop human resources policies that integrate cultural safety principles;
Contribute to the development and implementation of mandatory training programs adapted to your environment;
Co-construct awareness campaigns aimed at preventing racism in healthcare;
Review your action plans, projects or strategic documents, and provide professional and constructive feedback.

Our team of ambassadors can respond to a variety of requests, whether to present the Joyce Principle or to support its implementation within your organization.

Mikonis Awashish

RN B.Sc., Clinical Nursing Advisor

Mikonis Awashish is a nurse from the Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation and also an Atikamekw nehirowiskwew. She obtained a Diploma of Collegial Studies in Nursing in 2013 from Cégep de St-Félicien, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2017 from Université du Québec à Chicoutimi.

From 2013 to 2022, Mikonis worked at CIUSSS Saguenay Lac St-Jean Hôpital de Roberval. Her extensive experience in the public network led her to become involved in improving service delivery methods. Mikonis is currently a nursing clinical advisor for Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takakuhikan.

Glenda Sandy

MSc, Nurse Clinician and Consultant

Glenda Sandy is a Naskapi nurse from Kawawachikamach, Quebec, and a member of the Pimicikamak Cree Nation, Cross Lake, Manitoba. She earned a nursing diploma from St. Lawrence College in Kingston, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Queen's University and a Master of Community Health from Université Laval. Her thesis, entitled Naskapi Miyupimaatisiiun, explored the meaning of health among the Naskapi.

Glenda is currently working for Inuit Nunavik Public Health on a research project on tuberculosis and the desires of Inuit communities for culturally safe care.

Melanie Courtois

Nurse IPS-PL Nurse Specialist Practitioner

Mélanie Courtois has over twenty years' experience as a nurse clinician in her home community of Mashteuiatsh.

Mélanie's leadership skills enable her to mobilize people around her in a movement to transform health care and achieve community goals. Professionally involved in a cultural securitization process, her mandate is to develop a community health strategy rooted in local needs in Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takakuhikan.

Samir Shaheen-Hussain

Associate Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University and emergency pediatrician

Samir Shaheen-Hussain is Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Associate Member of the School of Population and Global Health in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at McGill University. He practices as an emergency pediatrician at Tio'tia:ke (Montreal). Samir is also involved in the Collectif Soignons la justice sociale, and is the author of the award-winning book Fighting for A Hand to Hold: Confronting Medical Colonialism against Indigenous Children in Canada.

Samir is a second-generation racialized settler, born to immigrant parents from South Asia. The place he calls home, in Tio'tia:ke (Montreal), is located on the unceded territory of the Kanien'kehá:ka nation.

Sylvie Roy

Psychologist, MSc

Born to a Nehirosiw mother from Opitciwan and a Québécois father, Sylvie Roy has been working as a psychologist in Atikamekw communities for over 25 years. Ms. Roy has also held various positions within Atikamekw Onikam Social Services, including Director of Social Protection, as part of the implementation of the Atikamekw Authority Intervention System.

Sylvie leads initiatives to improve practices in early childhood education settings, particularly in the detection of difficulties and developmental delays in preschool children. She advocates a pedagogy centered on Atikamekw culture, which is valued and explored as a protective factor.

Amanda Ottawa

Nurse and Services Coordinator

Originally from the community of Manawan, Amanda spent her early years as a nurse in the Mi'gmaq community of Gesgapegiag. She then returned home to continue her career among her people in Manawan.

Amanda is motivated by initiatives to transform healthcare practices, particularly by promoting culture within these practices. She is chair of the board of directors of the Centre de pédiatrie sociale and is involved in several research projects on the development of culturally safe approaches in healthcare settings.

Alice Echaquan

Special care counseling

Alice, an Atikamekw Niherowisiw Iskwew from Manawan, is a trained special education teacher who has worked for Manawan Social Services for the past 24 years. She is also part of a psychosocial team and a sexual assault team.

Alice is a co-researcher with the University of Quebec on a project focusing on sexuality education for parents, particularly Atikamekw fathers. Passionate about her work, human beings, grief, and sexuality in all its forms, she spends part of her time sharing her knowledge by giving lectures on motivation, positivism, and resilience.