Research Guides: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Healthcare: Native American Health

Topics in Native American Health

Documents

Achieving Racial and Ethnic Equity in U.S. Health Care: A Scorecard of State Performance by David C. Radley, Jesse C. Baumgartner, Sara R. Collins, Laurie Zephyrin, & Eric C. Schneider
Publication Date: November 2021

Evaluates health equity across race and ethnicity, both within and between states, to illuminate how state health systems perform for Black, white, Latinx/ Hispanic, AIAN, and Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) populations.
Broken Promises: Evaluating the Native American Health Care System by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
Publication Date: September 2004

Documents the existence of cultural, social and structural barriers that continue to limit Native American access to health care, and makes numerous recommendations including educating and training health care providers on cultural differences that influence the effectiveness of disease prevention and treatment programs, recruiting more health care providers to reduce patient wait times and ensure that services are available when needed, increasing the retention rates for IHS health care providers to improve the continuity of health care and strengthen the doctor-patient relationship, improving program monitoring and evaluation, modernizing data collection, increasing appropriated funding levels, increasing enrollment in public insurance programs, and increasing collections from third party insurers.
Broken Promises: Continuing Federal Funding Shortfall for Native Americans by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
Publication Date: December 2018

Update to the 2003 report, A Quiet Crisis: Federal Funding and Unmet Needs in Indian Country, which evaluated budgets and spending of federal agencies that sponsor Native American programs, including the Departments of Health and Human Services, Interior, Housing and Urban Development, Justice, and Education.
Indian Health Service: A Culture of Caring by the Indian Health Service
Publication Date: 2004

Overview of the history, funding, structure, and work environment of the Indian Health Service.
Invisible Tribes: Urban Indians and Their Health in a Changing World by the Urban Indian Health Commission
Publication Date: 2015

Examines health care issues facing urban American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Leveraging Culture to Address Health Inequalities: Examples from Native Communities by Karen M. Anderson (Editor); Steve Olson (Editor); Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity and the Elimination ofHealth Disparities Staff; Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice; Institute of Medicine
Publication Date: 2013

Summary of a workshop that brought together more than 100 health care providers, policy makers, program administrators, researchers, and Native advocates to discuss the sizable health inequities affecting Native American, Alaska Native, First Nation, and Pacific Islander populations and the potential role of culture in helping to reduce those inequities.
A Quiet Crisis: Federal Funding and Unmet Needs in Indian Country by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
Publication Date: July 2003

Reveals that federal funding directed to Native Americans through programs at the U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Education, and U.S. Department of Agriculture has not been sufficient to address the basic and very urgent needs of indigenous peoples. Among the myriad unmet needs are: health care, education, public safety, housing, and rural development.

Government Sites

Bureau of Indian Affairs
Bureau within the U.S. Department of the Interior responsible for enhancing the quality of life, promoting economic opportunity, and carrying out the responsibility to protect and improve the trust assets of American Indians, Indian tribes and Alaska Natives.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Division of Tribal Affairs
Works closely with American Indian and Alaskan Native (AIAN) communities and leaders to enable access to culturally competent healthcare to eligible to CMS beneficiaries in Indian Country.
IEA Tribal Affairs
Component of the Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs established to serve as the official first point of contact for Tribes, Tribal Governments, and Tribal Organizations wishing to access the Department of Health and Human Services.
Indian Health Service
Federal health program for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Native American Research Centers for Health
Funding program for federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) tribes and organizations for health research, research career enhancement, and research infrastructure enhancement activities.
Profile: American Indian/Alaska Native
Minority population profile from the Office of Minority Health
Think Cultural Health
Sponsored by the Office of Minority Health, this site features information, continuing education opportunities, resources, and more for health and health care professionals to learn about culturally and linguistically appropriate services, or CLAS.
Tribal Affairs
Food and Drug Administration engagement with American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments.
Tribal Health
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this site highlights the rich history of American Indian and Native Alaska (AI/AN) tribal nations, tribal contributions to public health, and organizations working to improve tribal public health.
Tribal Health Research Office
Part of the National Institutes of Health, this office was established to ensure meaningful input from and collaboration with Tribal Nations on NIH policies, programs, and priorities.
United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
Has jurisdiction to study the unique problems of American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native peoples and to propose legislation to alleviate these difficulties. These issues include, but are not limited to, Indian education, economic development, land management, trust responsibilities, health care, and claims against the United States.

Professional Organizations

Adequate Healthcare for Native Americans
American Lung Association
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium
Provides the highest quality health services for Alaska Native people at the Alaska Native Medical Center and across Alaska through training, health education, disease and injury prevention, and rural water and sewer construction.
American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Caucus
Caucus of the American Public Health Association that promotes equal opportunity and access for indigenous peoples of North America and the Hawaiian Islands to health care, provides a supportive entry into APHA, and disseminates information about major native health issues and programs.
National Congress of American Indians
The oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization serving the broad interests of tribal governments and communities.
National Indian Health Board
Established by the Tribes to advocate as the united voice of federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes, NIHB seeks to reinforce Tribal sovereignty, strengthen Tribal health systems, secure resources, and build capacity to achieve the highest level of health and well-being for our People.
Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board
Non-profit tribal advisory organization serving the forty-three federally recognized tribes of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho to promote health and disease prevention. NPAIHB houses a tribal epidemiology center (EpiCenter), several health promotion disease prevention projects, and is active in Indian health policy.

Research Centers & Institutes

American Indian Research Center for Health
Encourages practical research to improve American Indian peoples’ health status, increases the number of American Indian scientists and health professionals engaged in research, educates non-Indians about the need for culturally appropriate health research within American Indian communities and research institutions, and ensures Tribe’s status as stakeholders in the processes of conducting research on their reservations and dissemination of the data generated.
Center for Indiginous Health
Supports and implements public health interventions designed for and by Indigenous peoples.
Centers for American Indian & Alaska Native Health
Mission is to promote the health and well-being of American Indians and Alaska Natives, of all ages, by pursuing research, training, continuing education, technical assistance, and information dissemination within a biopsychosocial framework that recognizes the unique cultural contexts of this special population.
Collaborative Research Center for American Indian Health
Platform bringing together Tribal communities and health researchers from multiple disciplines, to work together in conducting cutting-edge transdisciplinary research that addresses significant health disparities experienced by American Indians in South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota.
National Congress of American Indians Policy Research Center
Mission is to lead, conduct, and translate high quality policy research and data to improve outcomes for Indian Country.
Seven Directions: A Center for Indigenous Public Health
The first national public health institute in the United States to focus solely on improving Indigenous health and wellness.
Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Native American operated non-profit corporation organized to design and deliver education, research, training, and technical assistance programs which promote the enhancement of justice in Indian country and the health, well-being, and culture of Native peoples.
Wassaja Carlos Montezuma Center for Native American Health
Provides training and technical assistance and conducts respectful research to benefit the health and well-being of Native people, families, and communities.

Websites

American Indian Public Health Resource Center
Addresses American Indian public health disparities through technical assistance, policy development, self-determination feasibility analysis, education, research, and programming in partnership with tribes, in North Dakota, across the Northern Plains, and the nation.
Seeds of Native Health
National campaign founded by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community to support grassroots practitioners, researchers, and advocates working to resore healthful diets and encourage broader strategies to improve Indian nutrition now and in the future.

Government Sites

IHS National Committee on Heroin Opioids and Pain Efforts
Works with tribal stakeholders to promote appropriate and effective pain management, reduce overdose deaths from heroin and prescription opioid misuse, and improve access to culturally appropriate treatment.
Office of Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse
Program within the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration that provides tribes with prevention and treatment resources as required by the Tribal Law and Order Act (TLOA).

Professional Organizations

National American Indian & Alaska Native Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network
Provides education and training opportunities for individuals and groups involved in providing substance abuse treatment and counseling, including health professionals in primary prevention and treatment for substance abuse.
National American Indian & Alaska Native Prevention Technology Transfer Center Network
Aims to provide training and technical assistance services to the substance abuse prevention field including professionals, para-professionals, organizations and others in the prevention community focused on American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities.

Professional Organizations

National Indian Council on Aging
Advocates for improved comprehensive health, social services and economic well-being for American Indian and Alaska Native elders.
National Society for American Indian Elderly
Goal is to improve the quality of life for elderly Native Americans through helping various service organizations to improve the quality of life of all our people.
National Indigenous Elder Justice Initiative
Funded by the Administration for Community Living to provide research, education, and training for the identification and prevention of Elder abuse in Indigenous communities.

Research Centers & Institutes

National Resource Center on Native American Aging
Assists in developing community-based solutions to improve the quality of life and delivery of related support services to the Native aging population.

Professional Organizations

Association of American Indian Physicians
Strives to improve the health of American Indian and Alaskan Native Communities.

Professional Organizations

American Indian Cancer Foundation
National non-profit organization that was established to address the tremendous cancer inequities faced by Native communities.

Research Centers & Institutes

NCI Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities
National Cancer Institute's efforts to reduce the unequal burden of cancer in our society via basic and community research, as well as networks, and to train the next generation of competitive researchers from diverse populations in cancer and cancer health disparities research.

Documents

Advancing Health Equity for Native American Youth: Workshop Summary by the Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity and the Elimination of Health Disparities; Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice; Health and Medicine Division; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Staff; Karen M. Anderson (Editor); Steve Olson (Editor)
Publication Date: 2016

Summary of the presentations and discussions from a workshop held where participants discussed issues related the visibility of racial and ethnic disparities in health and health care as a national problem; the development of programs and strategies by and for Native and Indigenous communities to reduce disparities and build resilience; and the emergence of supporting Native expertise and leadership.
Coverage Trends for American Indian and Alaska Native Children and Families by Joan Alker, Karina Wagnerman, & Andy Schneider
Publication Date: July 2017

This report analyzes data using the racial categories established by the U.s.Census Bureau. The time period examined ranges from 2008 and 2015. Previous research by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families shows that AI/AN children consistently have the highest rates of uninsurance. This issue brief builds on that research by examining trends in health coverage for AI/AN children and families nationally and in states with substantial AI/AN populations.
What’s Killing Our Children? Child and Infant Mortality among American Indians and Alaska Natives by Teshia G. Arambula Solomon, Felina M. Cordova, & Francisco Garcia
Publication Date: March 7, 2017

This paper discusses AIAN infant and child death in an effort to understand the root causes of significant disparities and calls for serious efforts by public health and health care institutions for prevention and intervention to address core problems.

Government Sites

Administration for Native Americans
An office of the Administration for Children & Families that promotes self-sufficiency for Native Americans by providing discretionary grant funding for community based projects, and training and technical assistance to eligible tribes and native organizations.

Professional Organizations

National Indian Child Welfare Association
Works to eliminate child abuse and neglect by strengthening our families, tribes, and the laws that protect them.
Notah Begay III (NB3) Foundation
Supports and funds Native-driven, culturally centered programs and provides direct opportunities for Native youth to live healthy, active lives. Focuses on four core areas: physical activity, healthy nutrition, youth development and cultural connections.

Research Centers & Institutes

Center for Native American Youth
Works to improve the health, safety, and overall well-being of Native American youth.

Documents

People with Disabilities on Tribal Lands: Education, Health Care, Vocational Rehabilitation and Independent Living by National Council on Disability
Publication Date: 2003

This project examined research on health, rehabilitation, independent living, and education issues that affect people with disabilities living in Indian Country. The report discusses views and perspectives of AI/AN people with disabilities, tribal leaders, and federal agency representatives identified as productive in meeting the needs of people with disabilities residing in tribal lands. This report also assesses and recommends government-to-government (state to sovereign tribal to U.S. government) improvements in relationships needed for effective coordination across existing federally funded projects/programs.

Research Centers & Institutes

Albuquerque Area Southwest Tribal Epidemiology Center
Collaborates with the 27 American Indian Tribes in the Albuquerque Area to provide high quality health research, surveillance and training to improve the quality of life of American Indians.
Tribal Epidemiology Centers
Indian Health Service, division funded organizations who serve American Indian/Alaska Native Tribal and urban communities by managing public health information systems, investigating diseases of concern, managing disease prevention and control programs, responding to public health emergencies, and coordinating these activities with other public health authorities.

Research Centers & Institutes

National Native American AIDS Prevention Center
Mission is to eliminate HIV/AIDS, HCV, and STI's in Native communities and confront related health and social determinants that negatively impact American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and Indigenous peoples.

Government Sites

IHS Division of Behavioral Health
Serves as the primary source of national advocacy, policy development, management, and administration of behavioral health, alcohol and substance abuse, and family violence prevention programs for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people.
Office of Tribal Affairs and Policy
Serves as SAMHSA’s primary point of contact for tribal governments, tribal organizations, federal departments and agencies, and other governments and organizations on behavioral health issues facing American Indians and Alaska Natives. Provides efficient and effective delivery of resources and services to ensure that American Indians and Alaska Natives have access to prevention, treatment, and recovery support services that reflect the best of modern science and traditional cultural practices.

Professional Organizations

Indigenous
National Alliance on Mental Illness
National American Indian & Alaska Native Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network
Works with organizations and treatment practitioners involved in the delivery of mental health services to American Indian and Alaska Native individuals, families, and tribal and urban Indian communities to strengthen their capacity to deliver effective evidence-based and experience-based practices.

Documents

Social Determinants of Health Among Rural American Indian and Alaska Native Populations by Janice C. Probst & Fozia Ajmal
Publication Date: July 2019

Policy brief from the Rural & Minority Health Research Center that documents current disparities within the rural American Indian and Alaska Native population.

Professional Organizations

National Indigenous Women's Resource Center
Provides national leadership to end violence against American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian women by supporting culturally grounded, grassroots advocacy.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Healthcare: Native American Health

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