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College of Medicine

Research Area(s)

  • The determinants of Indigenous health and wellness
  • Health systems research in relation to Indigenous populations
  • Promotion and monitoring of Indigenous wellness and resilience

About

Prof. Malcolm King, a member of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, is a health researcher at the University of Saskatchewan, joining the Department of Community Health & Epidemiology in October 2017. There, he serves as as the Scientific Director of SCPOR, the Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research; he also continues to teach and research in Indigenous health, with a particular focus on wellness and engagement.

From 2009 to 2016, Prof. King led the CIHR Institute of Aboriginal Peoples’ Health as its Scientific Director, spearheading the development of a national health research agenda aimed at improving wellness and achieving health equity for First Nations People, Métis and Inuit in Canada. Prof. King’s international Indigenous health interests include improving Indigenous health through workforce development and provision of culturally appropriate care, and developing Indigenous health indicators to monitor progress in programs aimed at achieving wellness and health equity.

Prof. King was honoured with a National Aboriginal Achievement Award in 1999, and in 2016, he was named a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. In November 2021, he was inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and in June 2025, he received an honorary doctorate from York University.

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Selected Publications

  • Gracey M, King M. Indigenous health: Determinants and disease patterns. The Lancet 2009; 374: 65–75. http://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(09)60914-4.pdf
  • King M, Smith A, Gracey M. Indigenous perspectives on health: The underlying causes of the health gap. The Lancet 2009; 374: 76–85. http://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(09)60827-8.pdf
  • Long R, Hoeppner V, Orr P, Ainslie M, King M, Abonyi S, Mayan M, Kunimoto D, Langlois-Klassen D, Heffernan C, Lau A, Menzies D. Marked disparity in the epidemiology of tuberculosis among Aboriginal peoples on the Canadian prairies: the challenges and opportunities. Can Respir J 2013; 20: 223-230.
  • King M. Addressing the Disparities in Aboriginal Health through Social Determinants Research. Chapter 8 of Trovato F, Romaniuk A, eds. Aboriginal Populations: Social, Demographic, and Epidemiological Perspectives. Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 2014, 197-209.
  • King A, King M. Improving the Health of Indigenous People through Health Practitioner Training. Chapter 30 of Menzies P, Lavallée LF, eds.  Journey to Healing: Aboriginal People with Addiction and Mental Health Issues. Toronto: CAMH Publications, 2014, 413-434.
  • King M. Contextualization of socio-culturally meaningful data (letter to editor). Can J Public Health 2015; 106: e457. doi: 10.17269/CJPH.106.5328 http://journal.cpha.ca/index.php/cjph/article/view/5328/3222
  • Abonyi S, Mayan M, Jody Boffa J, Lopez-Hille C, McMullin K, Heffernan C, Hoeppner V, King M, Orr P, Long R. “Finally when I started falling down”: Indigenous TB patient experiences of health and illness on the Canadian Prairies. Intl J Indigenous Health 2017; 12(1): 3-23. https://journals.uvic.ca/index.php/ijih/article/view/16900
  • van der Spuy I, Karunanayake CP, Dosman JA, McMullin K, Zhao G, Abonyi S, Rennie DC, Lawson J, Kirychuk S, MacDonald J, Jimmy L, Koehncke N, Ramsden VR, Fenton M, Marchildon, GP, King M, Pahwa P. Determinants of excessive daytime sleepiness in two First Nation communities. BMC Pulmonary Medicine 2017; 17: 192.
  • Patel S, Paulsen C, Heffernan C, Saunders D, Sharma M, King M, Hoeppner V, Orr P, Kunimoto D, Menzies D, Christianson S, Wolfe J, Boffa J, McMullin K, Lopez-Hille C, Senthilselvan A, Long L. Tuberculosis transmission in the Indigenous peoples of the Canadian prairies. PLOS ONE 2017; 12(11): e0188189. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0188189
  • Fayed ST, King A, King M, Macklin C, Demeria J, Rabbitskin N, Healy B, Gonzales S (Sempulyan). In the eyes of Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Exposing the underlying colonial etiology of Hepatitis C & the imperative for trauma-informed care. Can Liver J 2018: 1.3 doi: 10.3138/canlivj.2018-0009
  • King M, King A. Fostering support for Indigenous adolescents facing health inequities. Chapter 6, pp. 92-100, in Stewart M, ed. Supporting Children and Their Families Facing Health Inequities in Canada. University of Toronto Press, 2021. https://utorontopress.com/9781487533199/supporting-children-and-their-families-facing-health-inequities-in-canada/
  • Robinson-Settee H, Settee C, King M, Beaucage M, Smith M, Desjarlais A, Chiu HHL, Turner C, Kappel J, McGavock JM. Wabishki Bizhiko Skaanj: A learning pathway to foster better Indigenous cultural competence in Canadian health research. Can J Public Health 2021; 112: 912–918. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.17269/s41997-020-00468-2.pdf
  • Karunanayake CP, Fenton M, Skomro R, Ramsden VR, Kirychuk S, Rennie DC, Seeseequasis J, Bird C, McMullin K, Russell BP, Koehncke N, Smith-Windsor T, King M, Abonyi S, Pahwa P, Dosman JA. Sleep deprivation in two Saskatchewan First Nation communities: a public health consideration. Sleep Medicine:X 2021; 3: 100037. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleepx.2021.100037
  • Leckie JN, Joel MM, Martens K, King A, King M, Korngut LW, de Koning APJ, Pfeffer G, Schellenberg KL. Highly elevated prevalence of spinobulbar muscular atrophy in Indigenous communities in Canada due to a founder eff Neurol Genet 2021; 7: e607. https://doi.org/10.1212/NXG.0000000000000607
  • Dosman JA, Karunanayake CP, Fenton M, Ramsden VR, Seeseequasis J, Skomro R, Kirychuk S, Rennie DC, McMullin K, Russell BP, Koehncke N, Abonyi S, King M, Pahwa P. Obesity, Sex, Snoring and Severity of OSA in a First Nation Community in Saskatchewan, Canada. Clocks & Sleep 2022; 4: 100-113. https://doi.org/10.3390/clockssleep4010011
  • Liu PP, King M, King A. Achieving health equities in Indigenous Peoples in Canada - Learnings adaptable for diverse populations. Circulation 2022; 146: 153-155. doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.122.060773
  • Woods C, Settee C, Beaucage M, Robinson-Settee H, Desjarlais A, Adams E, Turner C, King M, Pokiak L, Wilson M, Voyageur E, Large C, McGavock J, Kappel J, Chiu H, Beardy T, Flett I, Scholey J, Harris H, Jones J, Nahanee LM, Nahanee D. Ensuring Indigenous co-leadership in health research: A Can-SOLVE CKD case example. Intl J for Equity in Health 2023; 22: 234.
  • Froehlich J, Smith J, Iyer S, Ametepee K, Smith K, Foshion V, Smith W, Mease A, King A, King M. “No matter how many times you fall, they’ll still give you another opportunity” – Conversations with key informants to evaluate a community-led rehabilitation facility in northern Saskatchewan. Turtle Island J Indigenous Health 2023; 1(3): 38-53. https://doi.org/10.33137/tijih.v1i3.38474
  • Teare A, Mease A, Madampage C, King A, King M. A process for Indigenous community research through meaningful engagement with Grandmother's Bay. AlterNative 2024; 20(1): 30-41. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/11771801241235348
  • Lamont R, King M, King A, Schellenberg K, Pfeffer G. Higher than expected incident cases of spinal bulbar muscular atrophy in western Canada. Brain 2024; 147(5): e43-e44.
  • Kader SB, Abonyi S, Dosman JA, Karunanayake CP, King M, Seesequasis W, Burgess L, Naytowhow C, Pahwa P. Association between insomnia and four domains of health based on an Indigenous Medicine Wheel: Findings from two Saskatchewan First Nation communities. Can J Public Health 2025; 115: 880-891. https://doi.org/10.17269/s41997-024-00935-0
  • Sefton MV, King M, King A. Regenerative Healing. Tissue Eng Part A. 2025 Oct 23.  doi:10.1177/19373341251392179  Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41194632.