As the modern era has ended formal assimilation policies and introduced multicultural policies that support Indigenous traditionalism, an interesting challenge is now faced by Indigenous Peoples, the institutionalization of tradition! (RCAP, 1996; Waldrum, 1997; Frideres, 1993). The fact that government agencies “support” the revitalization of Aboriginal “culture and heritage” creates the need to analyze what kind of impact these new policies will have on specific areas, most critically, traditional medicine. The Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 defines “Aboriginal healer” as an Aboriginal person who provides Aboriginal healing services (Chapter 18, 1991). This open-ended definition can become a double-edged sword, since.
