Manitoba Indigenous moms dealing with child welfare face high mortality rates: report

Indigenous mothers who have their children removed by Manitoba’s Child and Family Services (CFS) have an increased risk of premature death, a new study suggests.

The study, jointly led by the First Nations Family Advocate Office of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) and University of Manitoba researchers, indicates non-Indigenous mothers are prone to higher mortality as well, but the risk among Indigenous mothers is greater.

The researchers, whose work has been published in The Lancet Public Health, analyzed 24 years’ worth of anonymous government health and social service data stored to determine their findings. They tracked data for more than 16,000 Indigenous mothers and nearly 78,000 non-Indigenous mothers in Manitoba from April 1998 to March 2022.

They found more than one in four Indigenous mothers experienced child removal by CFS, compared to one in 25 non-Indigenous mothers. Mortality risk following child removal was more than four times higher for Indigenous mothers and almost three times higher for non-Indigenous mothers, compared to non-Indigenous mothers who did not experience child removal.

The leading causes following child removal were suicide, accidental poisoning, unintentional injury and homicide, the study found.

Manitoba has the highest rate of child removal in Canada, said study leader Dr. Kathleen Kenny, a postdoctoral fellow in the College of Community and Global Health in UM’s Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.

“Child removal policies create or compound cycles of trauma, unmet needs and hardship that shorten women’s lives,” Kenny said in a news release.

“Our study is the first to document this in First Nations mothers, who are disproportionately affected by child removal as a consequence of ongoing colonization and structural racism.”

Grand Chief Kyra Wilson of the AMC said researchers are calling on federal and provincial governments to reform the child welfare system.

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The recommendations include investing in Indigenous-led solutions and services focused on supporting and preserving Indigenous families, as well as ensuring parents are given time and resources to address concerns and work toward family reunification if their child is removed.

Nahanni Fontaine, minister of families, told Global News in a statement the government is committed to strengthening supports for children and caregivers.

“This year, we invested $40.2 million in funding to 70 community organizations supporting children, youth, and families, including increased investments in Indigenous-led, family-centred prevention and early intervention supports,” she said in a statement.

“For decades, mothers and families caring for their children did not have access to the same supports available through CFS, leading to far too many unnecessary apprehensions. That’s why our government introduced kinship and customary care arrangements to keep children with their families, their kin and their communities. We continue to work closely with agencies and Aauthorities to prioritize these placements and ensure children remain where they belong and support mothers and families.”