Applause, Indigenous drumming, and the whir of a drone—those were the sounds at the launch of an innovative project aimed at improving health equity in rural, remote and Indigenous communities.  

The official launch of the University of British Columbia (UBC) Faculty of Medicine’s Remote Communities Drone Transport Initiative, a pilot project funded by the 2020 TD Ready Challenge, took place on October 13, 2021. Representatives from the Stellat’en First Nation, the Village of Fraser Lake, UBC, First Nations Health Authority, and the Rural Coordination Centre of BC were on hand to celebrate.  

During the one-year pilot study, drones will carry prototype packages between the Village of Fraser Lake and Stellat’en First Nation. Once the flights are proven successful, the drones will transport laboratory samples, medical supplies and medications, allowing community members greater access to supplies and services without needing to leave their home community.

Dr. Terri Aldred, Site Lead for the Indigenous Family Medicine Program with the UBC Faculty of Medicine, Medical Director of Primary Care at First Nations Health Authority, and Physician Lead for RCCbc’s Indigenous-led Health Initiatives, said relationship-building was integral to the project:  

“It’s really important that partnerships come from a relationship-based model. What that means is we can build trust and relationships with one another, so the First Nations voice isn’t just part of the project—it has an opportunity to lead and define that project, from the moment it starts to its completion.”  

Dr. John Pawlovich, the Rural Doctors’ UBC Chair in Rural Health, and RCCbc’s virtual health lead, has been a strong advocate for establishing the initiative. You can watch interviews with Dr. Pawlovich on CKPG Today, Global News and CTV News.  

Read more about the project on the UBC faculty of medicine’s news page.