First Nations life expectancy plunges by 6 years in B.C.: report

Average life expectancy among First Nations people in British Columbia has dropped by more than six years between 2017 and 2021, according to a report released Wednesday by the First Nations Health Authority and the office of the provincial health officer.

The report says First Nations life expectancy in B.C. fell from 73.3 years in 2017 to 67.2 years in 2021. Life expectancy for First Nations males declined by 6.8 years, and 5.2 years for females, for an overall decline of 6.1 years, the report said.

"Clearly, this life expectancy data is gut wrenching," Dr. Daniele Behn Smith, deputy provincial health officer for Indigenous health, said at a news conference. "It is gut wrenching."

Dr. Nel Wieman, First Nations Health Authority's chief medical health officer, said the decline was largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the province's opioid overdose crisis.

Wieman said the report shows that First Nations people were hit harder by the dual public health emergencies than other populations. It also underscores persistent gaps in B.C.'s health-care system.

'We're not where we need to be yet'

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said the report indicates "modest improvement," but "we're not where we need to be yet."

She said the data in the report help tell a story of where B.C. has been when it comes to health and wellness for First Nations people and where it must go.

Wieman said the data will help First Nations chiefs and health-care leaders advocate for change.

"These are people who are currently trying to live their lives despite challenges, and the data also points to people who have lost their lives … who are missing from our dinner tables and our ceremonies — generations of people have been affected," Wieman said.

She said the report notes an improvement in high school graduation rates among First Nations students and a drop in First Nations infant mortality, but when it comes to the number of physicians in B.C., only 0.39 per cent of doctors self-identify as First Nations.

She said despite increasing graduation rates among First Nations youth, the education system must create an environment where young First Nations people consider careers in medicine.

Behn Smith added that there has been no recent improvement in the percentage of physicians in B.C. who self-identify as First Nations.

"Clearly we can't do it on our own," she said.

Working together: two-eyed seeing

Wednesday's report updates monitoring of First Nations health and wellness indicators that is being conducted from 2020 to 2030, and follows the release of a 2021 report.

Henry described the report as a "two-eyed seeing," which included Western medicine approaches and Indigenous knowledge and ways of seeing. 

"We take the best of Western world and the best of Indigenous knowledge, and ways of knowing and being, and we hold them up equally," Henry said. "And that helps us understand a broader perspective of what makes people vibrant, healthy communities and individuals — it's good for all of us."