Tla’amin doctor takes position
Dr. Evan Adams has been selected as chief medical officer for the First Nations Health Authority (FNHA).
Adams, a member of Tla’amin (Sliammon) Nation, will assume the position on Monday, December 1.
According to FNHA, Adams will work with government partners on health issues that affect first nations and all aboriginal British Columbians.
“It has been a lifelong dream to work directly with first nations and aboriginal peoples on our wellness and prosperity at this level,” said Adams in a media release.
Adams was appointed deputy provincial health officer in 2012 and works with doctors Perry Kendall and Eric Young. In that role he has reported to the ministry of health on issues affecting the general population and set out a path for the improvement of first nations and aboriginal health and wellness.
BC health minister Terry Lake said that Adams will be missed.
“Dr. Adams has been a tremendous asset to the province as deputy provincial health officer,” said Lake. “I know he will help to further advance the health of first nations and aboriginal people in his new role.”
Kendall said the health authority had made “a great choice,” and he called Adams “an exceptional public health practitioner.”
The provincial health authority is the first of its kind in Canada. Last year FNHA assumed the programs, services and responsibilities formerly held by Health Canada’s First Nations Inuit Health Branch—Pacific Region.
Adams has also worked as an actor in films and television.
