Image: The Mental Health Indigenous Healing Space was opened with Elder Tracy Whiteye(left) providing knowledge and wisdom while attendees had the opportunity to smudge.
March 27, 2026
At the heart of London Health Science Centre’s (LHSC) Mental Health program at Victoria Hospital, a new Indigenous Healing Space brings traditional healing and cultural practices directly to the mental health unit.
Grounded by a medicine wheel and anchored by vibrant Indigenous art, the room has been designed to support patients’ emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing. It is peaceful, purposeful, and represents a shift in how care is being delivered at LHSC.
Reflection turns into action
While the organization has offered an Indigenous Healing Space and an Indigenous Healing Garden at Victoria Hospital for the past several years, patients in the Mental Health program are not always able to access these spaces.
As a result, the Mental Health team decided to take action to embed traditional healing within the unit itself.
Through a partnership between the Mental Health and Indigenous Health teams at LHSC, a room was transformed into a place where healing could happen. Appropriate ventilation equipment was installed to safely support smudging. A medicine wheel decal was placed in the centre of the room to represent emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing, as well as signal that cultural safety is a foundational element of a patient's care journey here at LHSC.
“This is a space where patients and staff can grow, learn, and be vulnerable together,” said Tammy Fisher, Director of Mental Health at LHSC. “It reflects our ongoing commitment to listen, learn, and strengthen care in meaningful and lasting ways. We are truly proud of this space, that invites reflection, connection, and healing."
Connections to culture and healing
At the heart of the healing space is a mural created by local Indigenous artist, Destiny Elijah.
"The piece I created for the healing space is made up of the medicine wheel framework and symbolizes what I have learned about healing and fulfilling a hunger for culture and growth,” Elijah says.
“It reflects Indigenous wellness by honouring physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual balance,” she continues. “It speaks to the strength of women, the healing power of Mother Earth, the guidance of ancestors, and the meaning of ceremony and movement. Placed in a mental health space, it is a reminder for Indigenous Peoples: you are not lost, your ancestors walk with you, and you belong.”
When the space was complete, it was opened with a ceremony. Members of the Indigenous Health team, leaders of the Mental Health program, and LHSC executives gathered to mark the occasion. Elder Tracey Whiteye from Elunaapéwii Lahkéewiit (Delaware Nation of the Thames) opened the ceremony in a good way, honouring both the journey that led there and the patients who find healing within its walls.
From policy to practice
For some patients, access to ceremony and traditional medicines have become a powerful form of crisis intervention that pairs spirituality with Western approaches.
The new Indigenous Healing Space aligns closely with LHSC’s Indigenous Healing and Cultural Practices Policy, which formally supports patients’ access to traditional healing as part of their care, as well as the hospital’s commitments to enacting Joyce’s Principle and advancing Truth and Reconciliation.
On the Mental Health unit, those ideals are now being put into practice each day, embedded directly into care planning, and reflected in the physical environment.
To bring this plan to life, the Mental Health team worked closely with the Indigenous Health team and hospital partners to ensure the space reflected cultural teachings and community priorities. Elder Whiteye helped bring cultural guidance and Traditional Knowledge to the space.
To further support culturally grounded care in the mental health unit, the Mental Health team created the role of Indigenous Patient Navigator within the unit in collaboration with the Indigenous Health team. This role is dedicated to walking alongside patients in their care journey, assisting in care planning, supporting family meetings, and ensuring patients’ spiritual and cultural needs are considered from the outset.
The Indigenous Patient Navigator also supports patients as they gather in the new Indigenous Mental Health Healing Space to sit around the medicine wheel with Elder Whiteye twice a month to smudge, share experiences, and exchange knowledge as a form of healing and ceremony – an experience referred to as being in circle. The Navigator also regularly offers additional smudging and circle opportunities each week so that patients can reflect upon and share their mental health and well-being journeys.
Care shaped by culture
The Mental Health Indigenous Healing Space reflects what is possible when care is shaped by listening, partnership, and cultural humility. It offers patients dignity, identity, and belonging during some of their most vulnerable moments.
As LHSC continues its journey toward safer, more inclusive care for First Nations, Métis, Inuit and Urban Indigenous Peoples, the creation of dedicated Indigenous Healing Spaces reflect a lasting commitment to ensuring culture, ceremony, and compassion are part of the path to healing.