Toronto Star – Dr. Alika Fontaine from Treaty 4 territory in southern Saskatchewan is the new President of the Canadian Medical Association. The CMA unites the medical profession in Canada to improve the health of Canadians and strengthen the health care system. Lafontaine co-led the Indigenous Health Alliance from 2013 to 2017, a “health transformation project” involving 150 First Nations and several national health organizations.  Once Lafontaine’s nomination is ratified at the August meeting, he will officially become president-elect. His presidency is set to begin in August 2022.

CMA Sir Charles Tupper Award for Political Advocacy — 2019 Recipient

Dr. Alika Lafontaine is receiving the Sir Charles Tupper Award for Political Advocacy for demonstrating recent leadership, commitment and dedication in advancing CMA goals and policies through grassroots advocacy.

The Indigenous Health Alliance is one example of Dr. Lafontaine’s advocacy work. In 2013, he was helping Saskatchewan First Nations figure out why its residents were so sick and uncovered a gap in the quality improvement approach between Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients. Committed to eliminating these differences across Canada, Dr. Lafontaine drafted and co-led a national strategy with territorial organizations representing 150 First Nations and several national health organizations. That proposal was then submitted to the federal government on behalf of those First Nations — the Indigenous Health Alliance — to advance health transformation.