ICBOC Certifications
About ICBOC Certifications
The Indigenous Certification Board of Canada represents a major historical turning point in establishing an official recognition of the special qualifications needed to provide professional healing, health and wellness services in Aboriginal communities.
The corner stones of the Indigenous Certification Board of Canada certification process were laid by the Association of BC First Nations Treatment Programs over twenty years ago. This process honours and incorporates indigenous peoples’ culture, traditions and healing philosophies.
ICBOC professional certifications are not only comparable to those of other certification agencies in Canada and internationally, but exceed them in term of cultural competence standards and requirements.
The ICBOC Model
The Indigenous Certification Board of Canada currently offers a range of certifications in the field of addictions and mental wellness.
Moreover, ICBOC professional certification are embedded in a unique, culturally appropriate model of capacity development of the indigenous workforce. This model reflects the realities, needs and aspirations of Indigenous workers, individuals, families and communities.
The ICBOC capacity development model, which inspires the standards and structure of our certification system, is based on our long experience listening to indigenous workers, experts and organisations in the fields of addictions, mental wellness and community developments across Canada.
Directory of Certified Professionals
We are focused on providing a larger choice of Level IV specializations for Indigenous Addictions Specialists Certified at Level III
For more information on ICBOC Addictions and Wellness Range of Certifications, click on the tabs below
Please take a look at the list of our current certifications to discover which works best for you.
You can click on the title of each certification to learn more.
- Certified Indigenous Attendant in Residential Addiction Services (CIARAS)
- Certified Indigenous Client Support Addictions Worker (CICSAW)
- Certified Indigenous Wellness and Addictions Worker (CIWAW)
- Certified Indigenous Addictions Specialist, levels I, II and III (CIAS I, II, III)
- Certified Indigenous Addictions Specialist, level IV – FASD (CIAS IV – FASD)
- Certified Indigenous Addictions Specialist, level IV – RG (CIAS IV – RG)
- Certified Indigenous Addictions Specialist, level IV – COD (CIAS IV – COD)
- Certified Indigenous Addictions Prevention Worker (CIAPW)
- Certified Indigenous Addictions Prevention Specialist, levels I, II, III (CIAPS I, II, III)
- Certified Indigenous Clinical Supervisor in Addictions (CICSA)
- Certified Indigenous Clinical Team Leader in Addiction Services (CITLAS)
Diabetes is one of the fastest growing diseases among the Aboriginal populations in Canada. While diabetes was not observed in the Aboriginal populations until the second half of the 1900s, today most Aboriginal populations report prevalence rates that exceed or are comparable to the prevalence rates seen in the non-Aboriginal population[1].
In Canada, the prevalence rate in Indigenous adults younger than age 35 is over 50.0%, and the lifetime risk of diabetes at age 20 is estimated at 75.6% in men and 87.3% in women. It is predicted that one in two Indigenous people in their 20s will develop diabetes at some point in life. The social determinants of health play a major role in the development of chronic diseases such as diabetes. Colonization is recognized worldwide as the most significant social determinant of health [2].
Some studies about Indigenous health in Canada have found a connection to culture, including Indigenous languages, helps create resilience to health problems that disproportionately affect Indigenous people, like HIV, diabetes and suicide[3].
ICBOC subscribes and practices the belief that culture is the foundation of healing and that workers in the health and social fields are the most efficient agents for the healing of their own people. That is why ICBOC is committed to provide opportunities for workers in diabetes to be recognized for their professional competence, cultural expertise and commitment to heal their own people.
Two diabetes certification options are available, please choose the certification that best fits your current situation by clicking on the links below
[1] https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/chronic-diseases/reports-publications/diabetes/diabetes-canada-facts-figures-a-public-health-perspective/chapter-6.html
[2] https://www.bcmj.org/articles/diabetes-care-first-nations-populations-british-columbia
[3] https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/indigenous-language-health-care-workers-1.4660009
Community support workers, managers (or coordinators) and supervisors are employed by First Nations, Inuit, Metis or mainstream social and health services and programs, government agencies, mental health agencies, group homes, shelters, substance abuse centres, school boards, correctional facilities and other establishments.
ICBOC offers two streams of Community Support workers certifications:
– Inuit-specific Community Support certifications, developed through the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Training Strategy (ASETS) in collaboration with Tungasuvvingat Inuit (TI) and Ilinniapaa Skills Development Centre (iSDC)
– Indigenous Community Support certifications, available to the First Nations, Metis unregulated workforce in the social and community services sector. The Indigenous community support certifications are also offered to mainstream workers who are employed in Indigenous work settings and who need to demonstrate the relevant experience and competencies in First Nations and Metis culture expected by Indigenous employers, colleagues, clients and communities.
In accordance with ICBOC’s Capacity Development model and its integrated laddering certification system, please find the available certifications for each stream in the following link.
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