Effects of Anti-Inflammatory Foods on Hyperglycemia in Type-1 Diabetics

Based on a case study administered by Dr. Charlotte Gerson, an IDDM patient referred to as R.H. reversed hyperglycemic symptoms within ten weeks while adhering to a diet of mainly vegetables and some low-glycemic index fruits. R.H. also ingested mineral supplements and underwent multiple coffee enemas each day (Gerson & Bishop, 2007, p. 56). This self-study hypothesizes that diet alone has a positive correlation coefficient with hyperglycemic blood glucose levels in type-1 diabetics (IDDM). Conducting this self-study contributes information to the limited research and database of alternative methods for managing IDDM hyperglycemia, and provides candid documentation of the effects that food has on type-1 diabetics

Application of a RE-AIM framework to assess the impact of the Southwest American Indian Collaborative Network

In response to a Request for Proposals from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (ITCA) along with health care partners from the Phoenix Indian medical Center (PIMC) and academic partners from the Arizona Cancer Center (ACC) at the University of Arizona (UA), and the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) established a Community Network Program entitled the Southwest American Indian Collaborative Network (SAICN). The ultimate goal of the SAICN project was to “eliminate cancer health disparities by closing the gap between the health needs of the community and cancer prevention and control made possible by a responsive health delivery and research system.” At the close of the 5-year funding period for the SAICN project, a RE-AIM framework provided an important evaluative tool for identifying areas of potential long term impact

Participatory Evaluation of the Tribal Victim Assistance Programs at the Lummi Nation and Passamaquoddy Tribe

The high rate of crime in American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities and/or against AI/AN people reflected in numerous studies in the last three decades, demonstrates the need for victim assistance programs in Indian Country to help victims cope with and heal from violent crime (Wolk 1982; Allen 1985; Sacred Shawl Women’s Society, no date; McIntire 1988; DeBruyn, Lujan & May 1995; Norton & Manson 1995; Fairchild et. al 1998; Greenfield & Smith 1999; Alba, Zieseniss, et al 2003; Perry 2004). The U.S. Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) became aware of the lack of resources available to AI/AN crime victims living on Indian lands. OVC, acknowledging the intense and extensive need for culturally relevant resources on reservations, established the Victim Assistance in Indian Country (VAIC) Discretionary Program in 1988, which later became the Tribal Victim Assistance Program (TVA). OVC initiated this program to establish “on-reservation” victim assistance programs that would provide permanent, accessible, and responsive victim assistance services on tribal lands. Recognizing the need for evaluation of promising victim services programs operating in Indian Country, OVC, in collaboration with the USDOJ National Institute of Justice (NIJ) supported an evaluation of two TVA programs—the Lummi Victims of Crime (LVOC) Program in Washington and the Passamaquoddy Tribal Victim Outreach Advocate (TVOA) Program in Maine. This report summarizes the results of the participatory evaluation conducted at these two sites

Collection and Utilization of Child Abuse Statistics in American Indian Communities

Public health research in American Indian communities involves many complex issues that may both help and hinder the development of an effective research methodology and the collection, analysis, and utilization of data. These issues include: 1) the unique strengths and diversity of Indian cultures; 2) the complicated relationships that exist between federal, state, and tribal agencies; 3) the vast distances between communities and services that exist in rural areas; 4) extremely limited human and financial resources; 5) overlapping and often conflicting legal and jurisdictional authorities; and 6) an array of social issues including poverty, substance abuse, modernization, and assimilation. Defining the parameters of any health issue requires a broad based understanding of the unique social, cultural, and political dynamics of Indian tribes and tribal communities

Screening For Mental Health Problems among Incarcerated Youth in Nevada: Practice and Policy

Incarcerated youth in Nevada with serious mental health problems are not being effectively identified. The current study examined the utility of simple screening instruments as a mechanism for identifying incarcerated youth who may have a mental health disorder. Adjudicated youth, incarcerated at each of Nevada’s 12 juvenile detention facilities, participated in the study by completing a demographic questionnaire and a standardized mental health screening instrument: the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument-Version 2 (MAYSI-2). Findings indicate a high prevalence of mental health disorders among incarcerated juveniles in Nevada. Identifying youth with mental health problems is complicated by the lack of a systematic screening or assessment process within detention facilities, and limited enabling legislation at the State level. Based on the research findings, policy recommendations were made and subsequently adopted by the State Legislative Counsel Bureau

Barriers to Health Care for People with Disabilities and Practice Administrators’ Knowledge of the ADA: Nevada Compared with the Nation

The purpose of this study was to determine if the number of barriers reported in the clinics could be predicted by characteristics of the administrators orcharacteristics of the practice.To increase accessibility to health care, interventions should focus on practices located in buildings built before 1993, practices with administrators who are younger and have limited experience as administrators, administrators with low levels of ADA knowledge and practices with smaller number of patients

Type 2 Diabetes Science and American Indian / Alaska Native Culture: Creating a National K-12 Curriculum Prevention Strategy for Native Youth

Preventing and reducing the onset of type 2 diabetes among American Indian/Alaska Native youth requires educational strategies to affect knowledge, attitudes, and cognitive decision-making skills. In an unparalleled effort to address the growing epidemic of type 2 diabetes in tribal communities, eight tribal colleges and three federal agencies collaborated to develop and implement a kindergarten-through-twelfth-grade (K–12) Diabetes Education in Tribal Schools curriculum. This article outlines the scientific and cultural development of a comprehensive K–12 science curriculum as a targeted health prevention strategy

Editor’s Note

As we gain new knowledge about the determinants of disease, the causes of health disparities, and effective strategies for prevention, the need for effective methods for research and practice has become paramount. Eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in health requires reconsidering traditional methods for health research and practice to ensure that disparities are correctly identified and measured, and that interventions effectively target populations at risk

The Convergence of Science and Culture: Developing a Framework for Diabetes Education in Tribal Communities

In an unprecedented effort to address the epidemic of diabetes in tribal communities, the Diabetes Education in Tribal Schools project brought together a group of individuals from eight tribal colleges and three federal agencies to develop a diabetes prevention curriculum for American Indian and Alaska Native school children. The curriculum incorporates Western and Native science with culturally responsive teaching techniques. Both the project and its evaluation process have reached beyond conventional bounds to acknowledge fundamental issues of tribal culture, history and health and the integration of science, culture, and community. This article will discuss the challenges and rewards of the inter-cultural dynamics of the project’s development process, the tribal community context within which the curriculum will be implemented, and the necessary convergence of science and culture, requisite for education in this population and the elimination of diabetes-related health disparities