‘We’re racially profiled as drunk Indians’ – experiences of Indigenous rural British Columbians accessing health care

Authors: Terri Aldred, Cheryl Schweizer, Erika Pritchard, Jordan Christmas, James Lui, Dana Hubler, Lee Yeates
Publication date: May 2025

A new study published in the Canadian Journal of Rural Medicine explores anti-Indigenous racism in healthcare, drawing on data from the Rural Coordination Centre of British Columbia’s (RCCbc) Rural Site Visits Project. The study was led by Dr. Terri Aldred, who also co-leads RCCbc’s RISE (Inclusion, Social Justice, Equity) group.

Through interviews and focus groups in over 100 rural communities, the researchers identified systemic, interpersonal, and epistemic racism experienced by Indigenous people across rural BC. The study found a stark disconnect between provider perceptions and the lived experiences of Indigenous patients—many of whom reported care avoidance, misdiagnosis, and harmful assumptions in clinical settings. It highlights Indigenous-led solutions and proposes practical steps for culturally safer care, calling on all of us to move beyond acknowledgment and take action toward health equity.

Link to publication