Building Relationships: MCW-Central Wisconsin and the Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe People

From the September 22, 2023 issue of the Transformational Times

Building Relationships: MCW-Central Wisconsin and the Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe People  

 

Amy Prunuske, PhD and Corina Norrbom, MD  

 

Drs. Amy Prunuske and Corina Norrbom, faculty members at the Medical College of Wisconsin-Central Wisconsin, traveled with a group of colleagues to Lac du Flambeau for a workshop in July. They share some of the moments that moved them and look forward to returning soon … 

 

Above all, we came to “Be Curious” – something branded on Amy’s purple notebook from a recent MCW Kern Institute for the Transformation of Medical Education workshop by its Human Centered Design Lab. 

 

We were excited to meet with tribal members and hear about their experiences. We wanted to explore connections that could be relevant to the MCW-Central Wisconsin Physician in the Community Pathway programming we direct; to build on Amy’s previous work of incorporating Indigenous perspectives into the medical school curriculum (Lewis and Prunuske, 2017). 

 

Brian Jackson, MS, EdD, our host and a new MCW faculty member, assured us we would feel amazing by the end of the visit. 

 

What we send out into the world is what comes back to us, he said. And if the mind is ready, the teacher and teachings will appear, he added. 

 

Brian encouraged us to be proud of who we are and to learn from each other’s truths. 

 

Over the next two days, Brian’s family members shared their stories. We gained a deeper understanding of how the Ojibwe culture and familial relationships could be used to promote healing and strengthen social cohesion. They created a welcoming environment and treated us as “celebrities.” 

 

We rode in the backseat, as Brian and his father, Dr. Sonny Smart, drove us to a boarding school originally used to “civilize” Native Americans — by separating the children from their families and their culture. Now the tribe uses the space to teach Indigenous classes; to “flip the script” and make sure this history is acknowledged. 

 

Considering the far-reaching impact of our actions was among the teachings shared with us over the weekend: 

“What our seventh generation will have is a consequence of our actions today.” 
— Winona LaDuke  

  

One evening, we joined in the dancing and music at a pow-wow. 

 

Dr. Brian Jackson, Melissa Doud, and their two sons

Getting in synch with the people around you makes your relationships better. This was a meaningful opportunity to connect with both the Lac de Flambeau community and our MCW colleagues. It was a chance to feel unconscious inspiration and gratitude. 

 

The next morning, Brian’s wife, Melissa Doud, shared a video that required us to focus on a task of counting ball tosses. Many of us got the correct number of tosses but missed the moonwalking bear in the background. This was an analogy that the Indigenous perspective may be in the room but is often overlooked. 

 

We relearned how to see and were encouraged to take time to build our own awareness of Indigenous Ways of Knowing (Deloria et al. 2018).  

 

Melissa reminded us that when we look at health disparity numbers, we must remember that the numbers represent real people and families. 

 

In the Ojibwe culture, each parting ends not with a “good-bye” but with a “see you later.” There is no beginning or ending; we will just continue.  

 

We look forward to revisiting Lac du Flambeau reservation in November, this time with a group of MCW-Central Wisconsin medical students.  

 

We will pick up where we left off.  

 

For further reading:  

 

Lewis M, Prunuske A. The Development of an Indigenous Health Curriculum for Medical Students. Acad Med 2017 May;92(5):641-648.  doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000001482.  

 

Unfolding Futures: Indigenous Ways of Knowing for the Twenty First Century. Daedalus: Journal of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Philip J. Deloria, K. Tsianina Lomawaima, Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy, Mark N. Trahant, Loren Ghiglione, Douglas Medin & Ned Blackhawk, guest editors. 147 (2): 1 – 172. Spring 2018. Link here.   

 

Amy Prunuske, PhD, is an Associate Professor at the MCW-Central Wisconsin campus and director of the new MCW medical school curriculum MCWfusionTM. She is active in the Kern Institute Human Centered Design Lab.  

 

Corina Norrbom, MD, is a Family Physician and Assistant Professor at the MCW-Central Wisconsin campus.  

They co-direct the Physician in the Community Scholarly Pathway.