Smoke signals., May 01, 1991, Page page 10, Image 10

Smoke Signals
May 1991
page 10
Kennedy Honored at Health Conference
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Grand Ronde Tribal health director Cheryl Kennedy shows of the award she received at the Minority Health
Conference. Also shown in this picture are Tribal council member Kathryn Harrison (left) and Tribal chairman
Mark Mercier (right). Kennedy said she was "extremely pleased" with the award. (Photo by Joe Brisbois).
Recognized with Outstanding Individual Award
Grand Ronde Tribal Health Director Cheryle Kennedy
recently received the 1991 Minority Health Conference's
Outstanding Individual Award. She was nominated for
the award by the Tribal Health Committee.
The Conference, which was held March 28th & 29th at
the Jantzen Beach - Red Lion Inn, was presented by the
Oregon Health Division's Minority Health Program.
The theme of this year's conference was "Chronic
Diseases: The Cultural Environment of Change."
Besides the Outstanding Individual Award the Health
division also honored El Nino Sano of Hood River,
Oregon for the Outstanding Program Award, Northwest
Portland Area Indian Health Board for the Outstanding
Coalition Award, Connie Masuoka, DDS of Portland,
Oregon for the Outstanding Health Care Provider
Award and the Klamath Tribal Health Committee for
the Outstanding Leadership Award.
Cheryle, who is a member of the Confederated Tribes
of Grand Ronde, has been the director of the Tribal
Health Program since October of 1984. She has
specialized in developing Community Health Programs.
She received her Associates Degree from Mount Hood
Community College in 1979. From 1972 to 1980,
Cheryle was the Family and Children's Counseling
Program supervisor for the Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation. In 1980, Cheryle became
the Tribal Health Director for the Burns-Paiute Tribe,
where she developed and supervised the Tribe's health,
education, and social services programs.
Cheryle is the first and only Health Director for the
Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde. She has pro
vided leadership in the health arena, which has resulted
in the development of a comprehensive contract health
services program. This program allows individual tribal
members in six counties in Western Oregon direct
access to health care providers for certain priority
medical health care. She developed a community health
program which offers a wide range of community health
services, including classes on diabetes, nutrition, mater
nal child health, and a part time clinic staffed by a nurse
practitioner for direct medical services.
More recently, Cheryle was involved in the team which
developed the first tribal owned and operated Youth
Residential Treatment Program, which is in operation in
Keizer, Oregon. In 1990, Cheryle put together a
Community Health Representative program, which
provides in-home care and community health services to
members of the tribe in the more remote areas, and
provides transportation and access for those individuals
to medical health care providers.
Cheryle has written the Tribal Specific Health Plan, a
five year comprehensive plan for the development of
health care services for the Tribe. She wrote the
original Tribal Action Plan to initiate a response to
alcohol and drug abuse among members of the Tribe.
Cheryle continues to provide leadership to the Tribal
Health and Human Services Committee and the actions
the Committee is involved with concerning health issues,
and remains an active and important member of not
only the staff, but also the Tribal community.
From 1989 through 1991, Cheryle completed her
Bachelors Degree in Business Management through
Mid-Management Training Program through Indian
Health Services.