A Message from the Health Director
She:kon/Aaniin/Koolamalsi/Wachiyaa,
My name is Tobi Mitchell and I am the new Director of Health for the Chiefs of Ontario as of July 2021. I come from my home community of Akwesasne finishing up a term as an elected Chief and bring forth years of technical experience in Health Policy with the Independent First Nations, Chiefs of Ontario in Non-Insured Health Benefits and at the Assembly of First Nations. I would like to thank Carmen Jones for all of her hard work and dedication over these last few years. I would also like to acknowledge all of the hard work that is being done on the front lines in all 133 First Nations. Without the dedication of frontline staff in coordinating emergency response, our communities would be in a much more critical condition and we want to acknowledge the collective efforts put forth by the communities to keep their members safe.
While I know we are all suffering from ‘pandemic fatigue’ and are feeling the strain of the last 20 months, we are now faced with the Omicron variant. Early data is showing that it is three times more transmissible than the Delta variant, however early reports suggest that it is less virulent in vaccinated individuals. While the pandemic is far from over, I encourage everyone to get their vaccines and booster shots as they are eligible to receive them. As we head in to the holiday season I encourage you to practice all public health measures for the safety of you, your family and community. We will see you all at the Annual Health Forum February
22-24, 2022 and hopefully in person again at the 2023 Health Forum!
Tekonnonhwara:ton tsi Nikaha:wi Wentanoron:shon/Happy Holidays,
Tobi Mitchell – Tobi.Mitchell@coo.org
