BACKGROUNDER
2007OTP0038-000410 April 10, 2007	Office of the Premier Ministry of Health First Nations Leadership Council
DR. EVAN ADAMS NAMED AS ABORIGINAL PHYSICIAN ADVISOR

The appointment of an Aboriginal physician to advise on Aboriginal health issues is a key commitment in the First Nations Health Plan, launched in November 2006.

 

As the new Aboriginal Health Physician Advisor, Dr. Evan Adams will have specific responsibility for monitoring and reporting on the health of Aboriginal people in British Columbia and tracking progress against performance measures in the First Nations Health Plan.

 

BIOGRAPHY

 

• Evan Tlesla II Adams is a Coast Salish actor-turned-physician from the Sliammon Band near Powell River, British Columbia.

 

• Adams completed three years of pre-med studies at the University of British Columbia.

 

• He completed a Medical Doctorate at the University of Calgary in 2002 and completed his Aboriginal Family Practice Residency program – during which he was Chief Resident – at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver in 2005.

 

• Adams is the past-President of the Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada (IPAC) and is the current Director of the Division of Aboriginal People’s Health in the UBC Department of Family Practice.

 

• Adams is also an award-winning actor, known for his roles on the television series Da Vinci’s City Hall, the feature film Smoke Signals and the Emmy-award winning television movie Lost in the Barrens.

 

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Media contact:	Mike Morton Press Secretary Office of the Premier 250 213-8218	Marisa Adair Communications Director Ministry of Health 250 920-8500 250 952-1887 (media line)
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