Family, culture, community: a northern First Nations community-directed needs assessment for paediatric rehabilitation care.

The Elders Advisory group in the northern Saskatchewan Cree community of Pelican Narrows (PN) and Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation (PBCN) directed researchers that access to paediatric rehabilitation services was an urgent priority for research collaboration. In partnership with PN and PBCN, a community needs assessment (CNA) was implemented to a) develop, sustain and nurture new and existing community-researcher relationships and b) identify community needs and preferences for paediatric rehabilitation. A community-based participatory action research approach incorporating Indigenous research principles was utilised. Community members and Elders were involved from conception through design, data collection and analysis. A mixed methods design was used. Descriptive statistics obtained using a demographic questionnaire found that all children in the study (n = 9) identified multiple developmental concerns that could benefit from rehabilitation services. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather lived experiences and stories from three healthcare providers and eight families. Analysis followed an iterative thematic approach using NVIVO software. "Family, Community and Culture" provided an overarching theme for additional themes: "Barriers to Care", "Service Needs", "Preferences for Pediatric Rehabilitation", and "Potential of Virtual Care". The results confirmed an urgent need for enhanced access to culturally-responsive, multi-disciplinary paediatric rehabilitation services and informed recommendations for future care models.