Integrating Indigenous Ways of Knowing Into Learning Health Systems: Moving From Learning Health Systems to Learning Communities

In Canada, various health organizations, research bodies and funders at the federal and provincial levels have been supporting learning health system (LHS) initiatives, including in youth mental health.1,2 LHS are health networks that continuously self-study, adapt and improve health services by leveraging routinely collected clinical data and research data and engaging partners in identifying shared problems, co-designing solutions, and accelerating changes in practices and policy.3,4 LHS continuously cycle from practice to data (services generate data for learning); data to knowledge (data is analyzed to generate insights); and knowledge to practice (knowledge is applied to enhance practice and policy). An important gap in the literature and in practice is the integration
of Indigenous wisdom and ways of knowing in the LHS approach, which we begin addressing in this article.
The authors are an Elder, a national Indigenous organization leader, and Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers and clinician-scientists, who are part of the ACCESS Open Minds Indigenous Youth Mental Health and Wellness Network (a Canadian Institute of Health Research-funded national LHS network).