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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 12, 2012)
Tgnanrn^roi q'-Tpwit C om m unity Health News Report details reservation health trends By Dave McMechan Spilyay Tymoo Indian Health Service and tribal H ealth and H um an Service officials discussed the annual H ealth System R eport for the reservation last week with Tribal Coun cil. , D ata in the report shows trends in health care on the reservation. T he following are some examples o f these trends: , Total patients served at the clinic has risen steadily over recent years. “Trends have remained stable... with approximately two-thirds o f patients being Warm Springs tribal members and approxi mately two-thirds o f patients residing on the Warm Springs R ese rv a tio n ,” th e r e p o r t states. From 2008 to 2011 (the m ost recent year for which data is available): “There has been a small increase in pa tients w ho are Warm Springs tribal members and a slight decrease in patients w ho are members o f other tribes or w ho have no tribal affilia tion.” The Warm Springs clinic serves all m em bers o f the C o n fe d e ra te d T rib es o f Warm Springs. The clinic will serve other federally-recog nized tribal m em bers w ho reside in counties th at are immediately adjacent to the reservation: This w ould in clude, for instance, Jefferson C ounty b u t n o t D eschutes County, “Between 2008 and 2011, we saw an increase o f ap proxim ately 3.7 p ercent o f patients w ho reside on the Warm Springs Reservation,” the report states. “As o f 2011, over 85 percent o f patients resided either on the reserva tio n o r in th e M a d ra s / R edm ond/B end area.” O ther inform ation in the report: T h e la rg e st ag e-g ro u p among tribal members is the 20-24 year-olds, followed by the 25-29 year-olds. Together, these two' groups make up about 22 percent o f the mem bership. The next largest groups (in order) are the 5-9 year-olds (a b o u t 10.1 p e rc e n t); 0-4 year-olds (9.9 percent); 10-14 year-olds (9.8 percent); and 15-19 year-olds (8.2 percent). “The Confederated Tribes has a higher percentage o f its p o p u latio n in younger age groups, and fewer persons in older age groups, than the U.S.. general and (other) N a tive American populations,” the report states. O n the o th er hand, the n u m b er o f clinic visits by patients over 40 has increased m ore than the num ber for younger patients. As an inter pretation o f this, the report says:-“The num ber o f indi viduals in th e over-40 age group has grown in propor tio n to th e y o u n g e r age groups over the past several years.” T he average life expect ancy among residents o f the reservation rem ains signifi cantly sh o rter than th at o f the general U.S. population. The average life expectancy in the U.S. is 78.7 years. The average life expectancy on the reservation in recent years has been in the low 50s. The report lists the lead ing causes o f death among the reservation population. The m o st recent data indicates that chronic liver disease and cirrhosis in 2011 became the leading cause o f death among the membership. This was the first year that liver disease-cirrhosis was the leading cause o f death. In earlier years accidents were the leading cause o f death. Accidents remain the second- leading cause o f death. Diabetes has rem ained a leading cause o f death. Can cer and stroke are also among the top-five leading causes o f death. The report offers the following interpretation: “A ccid en tal d eath s had b een th e leading cause o f death since the 1950s. Rates o f ^accidental d e a th s are g radually declinifig. Since 2001, the rate o f m otor ve hicle accidents has decreased significantly, likely due to the passage o f the Tribal Seat- Belt law. “Rates o f death related to cirrhosis, diabetes, cancer and stroke are climbing. M ost sig nificant is that cirrhosis is now the leading cause o f death. D eath from cirrhosis is 15 times more comm on among the Warm Springs people than for other Americans. Cirrho sis is also a major contribu tor to early death. The aver age age o f those dying with cirrhosis in 2011 was only 40 years old. Alcohol abuse and, hepatitis C infection are the major contributors to this dis ease. “D iab etes is a grow ing concern. The majority o f pa tients with diabetes died from related heart disease or kid ney failure. This remains an area that needs emphasis for our local population. We can combat this through healthier diets and increased physical activity, reducing thé number o f o v erw eig h t an d o b ese people in our community.” Community Counseling remodel almost done By Dave McMechan Spilyay Tymoo ' B e interior o f the old girls dorm has been totally rem od eled. The remodeling work includes new paint and car peting, and a new air condi tioning system. F rom the basem ent to the top floor the building has been totally re furbished. “T h e w ork is a b o u t 95 percent done,” said Caroline C ru z, d ire c to r o f trib a l Health and H um an Services. ‘W e need to get the phone system installed, and there are som e cosm etic details before the final inspection.” T he old girls dorm houses the Comm unity Counseling Center. During the remodel ing, the C ounseling C enter sta ff have been at various tem porary locations around the campus. Some are at the Family R esource C enter, a modular unit by the Family R esource C en ter, and the house by the old boys dorm, n e x t to th e trib a l p u b lic defender’s office. The plan is for the Com Dave McMechan/Spilyay The interior of the Community Counseling Center has been completely remodeled. When the center reopens in January, there will be a central reception area in the room at the top of the stairs. munity Counseling employees to m ove back to the girls’ dorm building at the start o f the new year, Cruz said. This will be a big; move, as there are 26 people on staff. T he rem odeling pro ject was paid for through grant money and funding from In dian H ealth Services. T h e remodel grant also included funding for the new w are house by the clinic. Total cost o f both projects is about $1.3 million. A bout $600,000 went to the Com m unity C ounseling C enter IA f in a l touch fo r the building may be wall murals by local artists. remodel,, Cruz said. The new air conditioning system was a big expense, she said. The new air conditioning will be a great improvement. The top floor would get very h ot in the summer while the ground floor was cool. With the new system, each floor will have its own temperature control. There is better security for the building, and better handi cap access. T here will be a central reception area, so the side doors can remain locked. The need for the remodel was recognized several years ago. In 2005 form er director Jim Quaid submitted a grant application for the project. The application was updated and re-su b m itted in 2009, when Cruz came on board as director. T h e re w as so m e delay when if was determined that lead paint and asbestos had to b e re m o v e d fro m th e building. There was another delay in dealing with the fed eral regulations regarding his toric buildings. “We had funding in 2009 but couldn’t start construction until earlier this year,” said Cruz. A final touch for the build ing will be wall murals by lo cal artists. There is no budget fo r th is, b u t C o m m u n ity Counseling couldprovide the supplies. A rtists w ould be asked to “adopt a wall,” Cruz said. Page 7 Spilyay Tymoo December 12, 2012 Mobile clinic arriving in spring A m obile clinic will begin serving tribal m em bers during the first part o f the new year. The mobile clinic will allow health workers to visit outlying com m uni ties such as Sim nasho, Seekseequa and Sidwalter. The clinic could also be used for special visits to locations like the Early C h ild h o o d E d u c a tio n Center. Depending on the na ture o f the visit, the m o bile clinic will be staffed by a physician or nurse practitioners. There may also be a dental com po n e n t to the clinic, said Caroline Cruz, director o f tribal Health and Human Services. T h è m obile clinic is currently being custom ized to the specifications identified by the tribes. Cost o f the unit is about $300,000, fu n d ed th ro u g h co m m u n ity healthcare programs. The mobile clinic is a coopera tive project o f the Com munity Health Program, the Joint Health Commis sion, tribal H ealth and H um an Services and the Indian Health Service. “I ap p la u d this p ro je c t,” said T rib al C o u n cilm an A u stin Greene. There are com m u n ity m e m b e rs w h o have a difficult time mak ing the trip to the clinic, he said, and the m obile unit will be a great benefit to them. The idea for a mobile clinic serving the reserva tion began about three years ago, Cruz said. At the time; the community w as re sp o n d in g to the H1N1 flu outbreak. There was an im minent need to serve elders and others in the outlying communities, C ruz said. C om m unity health workers began the grant process, and secured the necessary funding. T h e m o b ile clinic sh o u ld arriv e by th e spring, C ruz re p o rte d . O ther news from the re7 cent community health re port to Tribal Council: Dr. Rudd comm ented that the clinic has started a successful literacy pro gram , w here physicians give books to children who visit the clinic. There is a direct correlation be tween literacy and health, Rudd said. Also: T h e clin ic re c e n tly dedicated the1 exercise trail by the clinic, and opened the Child Abuse Interven tion Center. Veterans drop-in center planned for campus A drop-in center for vet erans, and a new building for Victims o f Crime Services, are two added benefits that will happen when the Com m unity C ounseling C enter re-opens early,next year. Some o f the Counseling C e n te r s ta ff h av e b e e n working from the house lo cated b y jh e old boys’ dorm. This is a three-bedroom one-bath modular hom e that is in very good condition. T he building will be dedi- ■ cated to local veterans, said Caroline Cruz, director o f trib al H ealth and H um an Services., The hom e will be available for veterans w ho need a tem porary place to stay. There may also be a staff perspn on site to assist with veterans matters. Some o f the Community Counseling employees have been working out o f a m odu lar u n it by the Fam ily R e source Center. This unit will be pro v id ed to V ictim s o f Crim e Services, said C ruz. VOCS is currently w orking from a house on campus that eventually will be removed. WARM SPRINGSTELECOM Flu arrives on the reservation T he flu has reached Warm Springs. There have been re cent confirmed cases o f in fluenza on the reservation, Community Health reports. Influenza is caused by a virus that is spread mainly by droplets made w hen people with flu cough, sneeze or talk. These droplets can land in th e m o u th s o r n o ses o f p eople w ho are nearby, or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. Less often, a person might also get flu by touch ing a surface or object that has flu virus on it and then touching their own m outh or nose. To avoid th is, p e o p le should wash their hands of- L. ten with soap and water. I f soap and water are not avail able, use an alcohol-based hand rub. People w ho have thè flu often feel some or all o f these symptoms: • Fever o r feeling fever is h / chills. • Cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose. • Muscle or body aches, headaches, fatigue (tiredness). • Some people may have v o m itin g an d d ia rrh e a , though this is m ore comm on in children than adults. M ost people with the flu have mild illness and do not need medical care or antivi ral drugs. I f you get sick w ith flu symptoms, in m ost cases, you should stay hom e until your fever is gone for 24 hours. A void c o n ta c t w ith o th e r people except to get medical cate. If, h o w ev er, y o u have symptoms o f flu and are very sick or w orried about your illness, contact your health care provider. C o m m u n ity H e a lth nurses will be offering flu vaccines at the Early Child h o o d E ducation C enter and at W arm Springs E lem en tary this week. Stop by the fro n t desk o f E C E o r the school to pick up a consent packet. V / y High 222 Lookee Lod Assisted Living Facility ________ : - - Wg ‘ I ■' . , y t 2321 Ollallie Lane CPO Box 6) Warm Springs, OR 97761 Cal I 541-553-1182
