We Are IH: Indigenous cultural safety educator facilitating change
Name: Kelsey Arnouse, Registered Social Worker (RSW) (she/her/hers)
Job Title: Indigenous Cultural Safety Educator
Years of Service: 8
Worksite: Sahali Mall, Kamloops
Community: Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc
Ancestral Territory: Secwépemc Nation
Favourite Quote / Advice to live by: “It’s education (that) got us into this mess, and education (is what) will get us out of it.” - Justice Murray Sinclair
Born in the traditional, unceded Stó꞉lō Nation territory and raised on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of her Secwépemc Nation, Kelsey Arnouse is a proud community member of Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc.
Kelsey's maternal family is from Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc and her paternal family is from Sexqeltqin; both communities are within the Secwépemc Nation. She also acknowledges her roots as a third-generation Irish settler.
Learn more about Kelsey’s journey with IH
Kelsey has worked in a few roles throughout Interior Health and has a lot of pride in the work she has done in these roles. One of her proudest achievements is the relationships she built along the way with coworkers, peers and Nation members.
As an Indigenous person, building and maintaining relationships has been learning modelled to her by her families and is now instilled in Kelsey.
“Interior Health services both my maternal and paternal families’ communities. I have always felt the work I do contributes to creating culturally safe experiences and working from within the system allows me to facilitate change and directly impact those services.”
Kelsey is passionate about working with people on their journey to Indigenous cultural safety and about working with IH to achieve the recommendations from the In Plain Sight Report.
Kelsey has two daughters, both named after or in remembrance of their grandmothers.
She spends a lot of time supporting her children's extra curricular activities (which include biking, swimming, and gymnastics) saying, “Their hobbies are now my hobbies.”
Kelsey also enjoys spending time with her family and visiting, and hill biking, which is, as she describes “like mountain biking but with less mountains.”
Kelsey is an emergent beadwork artisan actively learning to revitalize some of her community’s handwork traditions. She was gifted a hand drum from her grandpa when she started working with Indigenous Partnerships and has been working towards learning traditional songs.
Explore Indigenous cultural safety Careers@IH
Have you thought about a career in Indigenous cultural safety at IH?
Enjoyed this story?
Sign up to receive the Stories@IH email digest twice a week to your inbox.
Sahra joined IH just two months after graduating from Okanagan College, and has served in many roles with IH that led her to where she is today.
/stories/we-are-ih-recruitment-advisor-finds-purpose-growing-careers
Interior Health has non-judgmental drug checking services throughout the Interior region. Samples as small as a grain of rice can be tested.
/stories/stop-guessing-drug-checking-saves-lives
Lillooet Hospital holds a special place in Jessica McLellan's heart. A 3rd-generation resident of Lillooet, she has served as LDHF's chair since 2018.
/stories/foundation-spotlight-series-lillooet-district-hospital-foundation
Righting wrongs gives Sharon a sense of purpose at work. There is no typical day in labour relations which makes the job exciting and a great fit for her.
/stories/we-are-ih-labour-relations-specialist-strengthens-relationships
Many of us embrace our 50s and 60s as an opportunity for adventure. Even if you’re feeling healthy now, it’s a good idea to plan your future health decisions.
/stories/six-ways-plan-age-related-health-decisions
Like many expectant moms, Emily Canzian attended prenatal classes and did a lot of preparing for her son Luca’s birth.
/stories/new-moms-journey-through-first-days-breastfeeding
STAY CONNECTED
Receive news, alerts, public service announcements and articles right to your inbox.
