Intersectional barriers to Indigenous youths' reproductive wellness in Canada
department or school: Medicine, Faculty of
department or school: Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Department of
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCV
creator: Martin-Ferris, Samantha
issued: 2025-10-20T13:44:51Z
issued: 2025
related degree: Master of Science - MSc
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: This thesis investigates the experiences of Indigenous people in Canada accessing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. Indigenous peoples face significant barriers to good health stemming from historical colonization and systemic oppression, which can lead to reluctance in engaging with SRH services. This research was guided by two aims: 1) To examine the existing literature to identify challenges and barriers Indigenous people face when accessing SRH services, and 2) To contribute new quantitative research to the SRH field through the analysis of Indigenous youth health statistics. Chapter 2 of this thesis presents a systematic review of 54 academic and grey literature articles (1993â2023) concerning Indigenous SRH access. Findings reveal that Indigenous peoples experience feelings of shame, fear, and stigma when accessing SRH-related services. Physical barriers include geographic isolation, lack of transportation, and limited access to culturally safe care. The review also notes a recent positive increase in Indigenous community participation and authorship. Chapter 3 examines Indigenous youth reproductive wellness by addressing the question: 'What contributes to negative sexual health outcomes for Indigenous youth aged 12â19?' Using data analysis and logistic regressions from the BC Adolescent Health Survey (BC AHS), findings demonstrate that Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) factors, such as sexual abuse (Adjusted Odds Ratio 2.93, P. < 0.01) and residential school exposure (AOR 1.77, P. <0.01), play a significant contributing role in negative STI and pregnancy outcomes. Further BC AHS analysis revealed that Indigenous youth constituted 20% of the sexually active cohort who reported an STI. Through weighting and scaling the BC AHS statistics, the estimated STI rate among all sexually active BC youth aged 12â19 was 772.08 per 100,000, which exceeds national reporting averages. Additionally, Queer and Two-Spirit youth represent a disproportionate 25% of …
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/92660
note: i INTERSECTIONAL BARRIERS TO INDIGENOUS YOUTHS' REPRODUCTIVE WELLNESS IN CANADA by Samantha Martin-Ferris B.A., The University of British Columbia (Vancouver Campus), 2019 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE in The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (Women+ and Childrenâs Health Sciences) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2025 © Samantha Martin-Ferris, 2025 ii The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for acceptance, the graduate thesis entitled: Intersectional barriers to Indigenous youthsâ reproductive wellness in Canada submitted by Samantha Martin-Ferris in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Women+ and Childrenâs Health Sciences Examining Committee: Dr. Aline Talhouk, Assistant Professor, Obstetrics and Gynecology, UBC Supervisor Elizabeth Saewyc, Director, School of Nursing, UBC Co-supervisor Sarah Munro, Assistant Professor, Health Systems and Population Health, University of Washington Supervisory Committee Member Annie Smith, Affiliate Professor, School of Nursing, UBC, Director, The McCreary Centre Society Supervisory Committee Member Brittany Bingham, Assistant Professor, Division of Social Medicine, UBC Additional Examiner iii Abstract This thesis investigates the experiences of Indigenous people in Canada accessing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. Indigenous peoples face significant barriers to good health stemming from historical colonization and systemic oppression, which can lead to reluctance in engaging with SRH services. This research was guided by two aims: 1) To examine the existing literature to identify challenges and barriers Indigenous people face when accessing SRH services, and 2) To contribute new quantitative research to the SRH field through the analysis of Indigenous youth health statistics. Chapter 2 of this t…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2025-11
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0450485
language: eng
degree discipline: Women+ and Childrenâs Health Sciences
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
contributor: Talhouk, Aline
contributor: Saewyc, Elizabeth Marie
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/92660