Dr. Aldred formally introduced as NCCIH Academic Lead on May 7
Academic Lead,
Dr. Terri Aldred
May 6, 2025 - Prince George, BC
A prominent First Nations physician has been appointed Academic Lead for the National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health (NCCIH). Dr. Terri Aldred will guide the work of the Centre, a federally funded organization supporting First Nation, Inuit, and Métis public health and health equity through knowledge translation and exchange.
A member of the Tl’azt’en Nation, located north of Fort St. James in British Columbia, Dr. Aldred has served on the Advisory Committee of the NCCIH since May 2023 and is currently Committee Co-Chair (a position she will leave upon becoming Academic Lead). Dr. Aldred is the Medical Director for Primary Care for the First Nations Health Authority, which plans, designs, manages and funds the delivery of First Nations health programs across BC. She is also a family physician with Carrier Sekani Family Services in north-central BC.
Dr. Aldred won a 2021 Alumni Horizon Award (formerly the Rising Star Award) from the University of Alberta, where she completed her Bachelor of Health Science degree and Doctor of Medicine. In 2018 she won the prestigious Mikhael Award for Medical Education from the Resident Doctors of Canada.
I am honoured to advance and celebrate First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people’s wellness, from coast to coast to coast and from our hub on Dakelh Territory at UNBC. The future is bright and I am excited to be part of the NCCIH’s strong purpose and vision. - Dr. Terri Aldred, NCCIH Academic Lead
“The qualities that earned Terri Aldred the Mikhael award are ones that make her an ideal candidate to be our Academic Lead,” said Warner Adam, Co-Chair of the NCCIH Advisory Committee. “Those qualities include creativity and leadership, and a commitment to bring about change that contributes to long-term improvement to medical education. In Terri’s case, her commitment goes beyond medical education to encompass the full spectrum of Indigenous health and wellness.”
Dr. Aldred assumed the position of NCCIH Academic Lead on May 6, 2025. Dr. Aldred is stepping into the shoes of Dr. Deanna Nyce who served in the position on an interim basis for the past year. Dr. Nyce returns to her role as a member of the NCCIH Advisory Committee.
“I know I leave this role in good hands with Dr. Aldred,” said Dr. Nyce. “She is deeply passionate about Indigenous health and understands that health and social justice are interwoven. She will carry forward the work of the Centre to address health disparities based on a foundation of Indigenous ways of knowing and being.”
Dr. Aldred’s leadership priorities include translating more of the NCCIH’s research on standards and best practices into day-to-day practice. “That’s an expanding area of work that’s very important," she said.
"Another priority is working on long-term approaches to achieve optimal states of health and well-being for Indigenous people. Addressing the root causes of disease and illness and setting people up to be healthy and thriving takes time and a lot of coordinated effort across multiple sectors", she said. "As a National Collaborating Centre, we're in a good place to support that."
Dr. Aldred will be formally introduced as Academic Lead on May 7, 2025, when the NCCIH celebrates its 20th anniversary.
Background
The National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health was established in 2005 and is funded through the Public Health Agency of Canada. The NCCIH supports a renewed public health system in Canada that is inclusive and respectful of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. The NCCIH fosters links between evidence, knowledge, practice and policy while advancing self-determination and Indigenous knowledge.
The NCCIH is hosted by the University of Northern BC in Prince George, B.C. in the traditional unceded territory of the Lheidli T'enneh First Nation.