Maternal-Infant Health Outcomes and Nursing Practice in a Remote First Nations Community in Northern Canada

This article reports those findings related to maternal-infant health outcomes of an ethnographic study that explored nursing practice, continuity of care, and health outcomes in one remote First Nations community in northern Canada. Use of multiple data sources within an ethnographic design ensured that quantitative health outcomes data were interpreted within a contextualized understanding of the remote First Nations community. The sample comprised the charts of 65 mothers and 63 infants randomly selected for retrospective chart review. The findings suggest suboptimal maternal-infant health outcomes on several of the health indicator criteria identified for the purposes of this study. The authors discuss long-term sequelae of prenatal and infant health in terms of diabetes and other chronic health conditions in First Nations populations. They explore the implications of these findings in relation to nurses' preparation to offer prenatal and infant primary care in remote First Nations communities.