Deck 2: Western and Indigenous Ways of Knowing

Question 1

Epistemology is

A) a way of knowing about the world and how it works.
B) a field of spiritual and metaphysical inquiry.
C) defined as a way of thinking about human identity and the fundamental nature of human existence.
D) a theory of mind used extensively in philosophy.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Ontology is

A) the way we are, our state of being.
B) the science of cranial topography.
C) how we think about the world and how it works.
D) a variety of factors enabling nurses to heal others through prayer.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Health is

A) a matter of both physical and mental well-being.
B) the absence of disease.
C) how we live every day.
D) all of the above.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Why are health and food security often a problem in Aboriginal communities?

A) Traditional hunting and gathering can no longer feed everyone.
B) Remote and impoverished communities lack the resources of prosperous urban areas.
C) Government cutbacks have affected community health.
D) All of the above.

Question 5

Traditional Indigenous health views differ from traditional Western medicine in that

A) Indigenous view is that health is holistic; Western view is that medicine is not holistic.
B) Indigenous view is that health is earned; Western belief is that health is bought.
C) Indigenous view is that health is a gift; Western belief is that health is holistic.
D) both share the same philosophical underpinnings.

Question 6

Culture influences health through

A) the cultural stereotypes that society imposes upon individuals.
B) the cultural roles individuals internalize and incorporate into their lives.
C) providing a secure social identity with which to navigate society.
D) all of the above.
E) none of the above.

Question 7

The traditional ceremony most often used by those participating in the spiritual purification of the body, mind and soul with the intended purpose of prayer and healing of the individual holistically is called:

A) smudging.
B) sweat lodge.
C) medicine wheel.
D) midewiwin.

Question 8

Smudging is

A) a traditional practice among many First Nations and Métis peoples.
B) the burning of traditional herbs to purify the body and soul.
C) increasingly popular among Indigenous peoples across Canada.
D) all of the above.

Question 9

A shaking tent ceremony would be performed by a

A) herbalist.
B) medicine man.
C) Shaman.
D) witch doctor.

Question 10

One therapeutic benefit of a sweat lodge is

A) high temperature stimulates the body's natural reactions to toxins.
B) heat and scratching numerous lines on the skin drains the infection.
C) the belief that the sucking horn removes the poison.
D) the smell of herbs inhibits endorphin release.

Question 11

The shape of the sweat lodge typically represents

A) the shape of the Mother Earth.
B) the Circle of Life.
C) the womb of the Mother.
D) the shape of the Turtle shell.

Question 12

What is the social basis for traditional Inuit society?

A) Consensus and group survival
B) Individual profit and competition
C) Material success of each family
D) All of the above

Question 13

The ritual most often used prior to any major ceremony or celebration, or to cleanse an individual, for the purpose of clearing away negative energy, to invite in peace and harmony is called:

A) smudging
B) medicine wheel
C) sweat lodge
D) midewiwin

Question 14

Traditional Indigenous epistemology or "ways of knowing" is based on

A) human culture and the natural world being distinct and separate from each other.
B) modern medicine having the solution to all possible health problems.
C) god-like animals punishing humans for their transgressions against nature.
D) the holistic interaction of human beings with the natural world.

Question 15

Modern culture perceives the world as

A) divided into separate and mutually exclusive spheres of human and natural knowledge.
B) a living, unified and interconnected whole in which everything influences everything else.
C) a flat disc floating through space, with the sun orbiting around it.
D) inanimate matter that can be manipulated for the benefit of human being.
E) a and d.

Question 16

Traditional Indigenous epistemology

A) divides the world into human and non-human spheres of knowledge.
B) believes in the existence of a "Great Spirit."
C) sees the natural and human world as a unified whole.
D) believes that the non-human world exists for humans to exploit for their own benefit.

Question 17

Indigenous patients may see their health in

A) traditional terms.
B) in terms of biomedicine.
C) as a mixture of both ways of knowing.
D) all of the above.

Question 18

What was an important ingredient in Sophie Thomas' anti-cancer medicine?

A) Aspirin
B) red Alder
C) cedar root
D) stinging Nettle
E) all of the above

Question 19

What do Sophie Thomas' patients attribute her success to?

A) Her herbal medicines
B) Red willow bark
C) Her capacity for caring for her patients
D) All of the above

Question 20

Sophie Thomas, a First Nations Elder,

A) marketed and sold her cancer medicine using red alder to people looking for a cure.
B) held that traditional healing beliefs can result in bad medicine when practiced by an individual.
C) promoted avoidance of biomedicine among her band members.
D) attributed the healing power of her medicine to the Creator.

Question 21

All of the following concerning Indigenous holistic views of health are true except

A) the mind, body, birthplace and spirit are all integral parts of health.
B) prohibiting women from collecting herbal remedies and using spiritual rituals.
C) giving sage as a gift of thanks to the Creator when collecting herbs from the environment.
D) illness is a result of an imbalance in one of the four spheres of life.

Question 22

Pre-modern cultures perceive the world as

A) divided into separate and mutually exclusive spheres of human and natural knowledge.
B) a living, unified and interconnected whole in which everything influences everything else.
C) a flat disc floating through space, with the sun orbiting around it.
D) inanimate matter that can be manipulated for the benefit of human beings.
E) b and c.

Question 23

Non-modern epistemology is defined as

A) combining a pre-modern world view with the use of the tools and techniques of modern science, technology and biomedicine.
B) a belief that rejects all aspects of modern science and medicine in favour of returning to pre-modern life.
C) the philosophy that underlay the 1970's Back to the Land movement.
D) refusal to receive blood transfusions on religious grounds.
E) none of the above.

Question 24

A culturally sensitive nurse would recognise that First Nations

A) are taught to suppress pain and not talk about self.
B) cry and mourn loudly with the death of a community member.
C) wear copper bracelets as a preventative measure for arthritis.
D) value assertiveness as a communication style.

Question 25

According to the Canadian Nurses Association, cultural competence is

A) the application of knowledge, skill, attitudes and personal attributes required by nurses to provide appropriate care and services in relation to cultural characteristics of their clients.
B) the knowledge that cultural differences as well as similarities exist without assigning values.
C) use of culturally based care and health knowledge in sensitive, creative and meaningful ways.
D) a manner which affirms respects and fosters the cultural expression of the recipient.

Question 26

How does epistemological accommodation apply to the Canadian nursing context?

A) It doesn't apply at all.
B) It allows both practitioners and patients to retain their own values while accommodating each other in the clinical setting.
C) It explicitly gives practitioners permission to compromise professional standards in order to provide patient oriented care.
D) It views the nurse as having an insignificant role in the Canadian healthcare system.

Question 27

The medicine wheel has been adapted by different Indigenous groups into many forms with the colours to be taken to mean the following except

A) North, South, East, West
B) Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter
C) Fire, Wind, Water, Earth
D) Birth, Youth, Manhood, Death

Question 28

What are the four colours of the medicine wheel?

A) Black, Brown, Purple and Green
B) Black, Blue, Red and White
C) Yellow, Black, Red and White
D) Green, Black, Brown and White

Question 29

How old are medicine wheels?

A) Visible in archaeological sites of up to 5,000 years old
B) Invented by New Age spiritualists in the 20th century
C) Adopted concomitant cultural practices important to many Indigenous peoples
D) a and c

Question 30

The medicine wheel is

A) a useful way of representing Indigenous philosophy of health and well-being.
B) falling into disuse.
C) being taken up by peoples who have never used it before.
D) a and c

Question 31

Tobacco ties

A) represent a symbol of sacrifice and acknowledgement of a service.
B) are an important part of many Indigenous cultures.
C) are a small bag filled with tobacco.
D) all of the above.

Question 32

Herbs used in smudging often include

A) cedar, tobacco, sweetgrass and white sage.
B) rosemary, tobacco, basil and thyme,
C) wild onion, savoury, rosemary and basil.
D) spruce buds, pine needles, juniper and wild rose.

Question 33

A talking stick can be

A) a stick.
B) a feather.
C) a rock.
D) a shell.
E) all of the above.

Question 34

The talking stick

A) gives members of a talking circle the right to speak.
B) organises meetings in a non-hierarchical way.
C) represents democratic traditions in many Indigenous cultures.
D) all of the above.

Question 35

The person who holds the talking stick

A) must remain quiet until it is passed on.
B) is chosen as a leader at the meeting.
C) has the right to direct the meeting without interruption.
D) passes it on to the next person who may speak.

Question 36

Biomedicine is the

A) application of the mechanistic philosophy of modern science and technology to the human body in order to keep it in proper working order.
B) use of vaccinations to prevent infectious diseases.
C) refusal to view the body as a machine that can be repaired.
D) holistic view of health as a spiritual, physical and emotional whole.
E) none of the above.

Question 37

What is biomedicine?

A) The application of biological science to human health
B) A curative, technological approach to physical illness
C) A totalitarian ideology
D) All of the above

Question 38

The four spheres that Indigenous people believe illness to be a result of an imbalance of one or more amongst them: _______, _______, ________, ________

Question 39

Provide three therapeutic benefits identified with use of a sweat lodge.

Question 40

Describe one traditional Indigenous health practice and give examples of how this practice may contribute to improving the health of Indigenous people.

Question 41

What nursing interventions promote the creation of supportive environments that will enhance the capacity of individuals and communities to make healthy choices?