pihtikwê – Episode 9: Therapy Begins and Ends with Ceremony with Dr. Esthi Stewart

We’re thrilled to have a genuine groundbreaker in the world of First Nations Psychology joining us on pihtikwe. Dr. Ethsi Stewart is a proud member of the Yellowknife Dene First Nation and a registered psychologist.  She is Director of the Waakebiness-Bryce Institute for Indigenous Health, and the first Indigenous full Professor at the University of Toronto, in the Department of Social and Behaviour Health Sciences at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health. 

Her research and teaching interests include Indigenous mental health and healing in psychology and Indigenous ethics and research methodologies. She is also the former Chair of the Aboriginal Section of the Canadian Psychology Association and she is committed to advancing Indigenous healing issues through the disciplines of health and psychology.

Our Hosts: 

Dr. Alanaise Ferguson is a member of the Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation and a Registered Psychologist in the Province of BC. She holds an academic appointment at the University of British Columbia Okanagan in Syilx Territory. She has trained and clinically supervised hundreds of Counseling Psychology students over the past 9 years in her academic roles at Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia.  

Dr. Holly Graham is a member of the Thunderchild First Nation in Saskatchewan. She holds an academic appointment at the University of Saskatchewan. She also has an Indigenous Research Chair in Nursing. She has worked as a Registered Nurse in northern communities and is a Registered Doctoral Psychologist.