Healing room central part of new health centre

Settled off to the side of the main entrance in the new Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre is a circular room lined with cedar wood.
The Chief Sakatcheway Aandaaw’iwewgamik Healing Room is another component of integrating First Nation traditional concepts at the new hospital.
Josias Fiddler, board member of Meno Ya Win, said if First Nations were to be part of the newly constructed health centre, they had to include traditional healing and medicinal practices. The healing room offers just that. It’s a room for ceremonial practices that First Nation people can use as they wish.
“We will not be questioned,” Fiddler said. “We will not be told what kind of healing practices that we will be doing.”
Outfitted with an air handling system, the room will properly ventilate the burning of medicines such as sage or sweet grass.
The room takes the name of the Lac Seul chief who signed Treaty 3 over 130 years ago. The ceiling is divided into the four colours of the medicine wheel – red, yellow, white and blue.
In the centre of the room is an earth pit. During grand opening celebrations Oct. 15, an Earth Gathering Ceremony was held. Leaders from several First Nations in the Sioux Lookout district placed soil from their respective communities into the pit.