Smoke Signals 9
NOVEMBER 15, 2012
Experts say foeaDttlh and wellness Dmpcovfing
By Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writer
Marking national and Oregon
Native American Heritage Month,
a gathering of Native American
wellness professionals told an au
dience of about 50 doctors, medical
students and researchers at Oregon
Health & Science University on
Monday, Nov. 5, that healing is tak
ing place in Indian communities.
Native leaders Cheryle A. Ken
nedy, Grand Ronde Tribal Council
member; Dr. Donnie Lee, acting
director of the Office of Clinical
Support in the Portland office of
the Indian Health Service; Jackie
Mercer, executive director of the
Native American Rehabilitation
Association of the Northwest; Joe
Finkbonner (Lummi), executive
director of the Northwest Portland
Area Indian Health Board; and
moderator Dr. R. Dale Walker, di
rector of OHSU's One Sky Center,
focused on programs addressing
issues of Native wellness today.
"We learned we're not in this
alone," said Kennedy of the re
sources the Native community has
developed.
She also referred back two and
three generations to when medi
cine people in her family taught
her about Native plants and their
healing properties, and the value
of self-reliance.
"My grandmother said, 'Where's
your health? It's right there at the
end of your arms,' meaning we help
ourselves."
Lee noted many of the continuing
health disparities that Natives in
the Northwest face: twice the pov
erty level of the general population,
two to four times the deaths from
accidents, 1.7 times the suicides
and 2.3 times the rate of diabetes,
with 39 percent of Native women
still experiencing domestic vio
lence. To meet these needs, Indian
Health Service receives $4.3 billion
a year, or $2,741 per person com
pared with the overall national poor
population that receives $7,238 per
person in federal funding.
"Woefully underfunded," is how
Lee described Indian Health Ser
vice programs.
"We need to work together," he
said.
Considering Native American
history over the last 150 years,
"It's really about trauma," Mercer
said, "and helping people overcome
trauma to have opportunity."
The Native American Rehabili
tation Association model "is about
integration of services," Mercer
said. "Health reform is going to
happen, and we know that that's
about community, because com
munity heals."
She also expects that health care
reform through the Affordable Care
Act will improve outcomes and the
quality of care, and will cut costs.
Finkbonner noted that federal aid
for Native American health care
needs is "not about race. It's about
political status" that comes from
treaties of the 1850s.
"The ceding of our lands by our
treaties," said Kennedy, "in essence
pre-paid for our health care. We
paid for it with our land.
"And still," she added, "Native
Americans have the least health
care funded in the United States."
"It was the first prepaid medical
system in the country," said Fink
bonner. Despite continued inequalities,
Finkbonner noted significant im
provements in Native health. In
1974, Native American males had
a life expectancy of 48 years com
pared with 68 years for all Ameri
cans; today, Native Americans are
living only six years less than the
general population.
"We're thinking seven genera
tions out, and this shows how good
that is," Finkbonner said. "There
are marked improvements in many
areas, but we still have a significant
way to go."
On specifics, Kennedy made a
few suggestions: "If I could give one
piece of advice to doctors working
with Native Americans, I would
say, 'Take a little more time for
Indians to warm up to you. Take
: I ft H f
Friday, Nov. 30
7 P.M.
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1 nrisiimrn
Youth Prevention will not be
serving dinners anymore.
There will be lots of healthy
snacks, water and juices.
Door prizes too!
you have any questions
contact Youth Prevention,
Shannon Stanton 503-879-1489
Amber Mercier 503-879-2162
Tina Lara 503-879-2040
Thank you for respecting Grand Ronde's Tribal community
and our culture by not displaying gang affiliation
or by bringing drugs, alcohol or weapons to this event.
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Photo by Michelle Alaimo
Tribal Council member Cheryl A. Kennedy answers a question, as other
members of the panel look on, during the Celebrating Native American
Voices: Our Health and Wellness panel discussion at the Oregon Health &
Science University Auditorium in Portland on Monday, Nov. 5.
the mystery out of what Native
patients are facing.' "
She asked providers to "think
about what our norms are."
In addition, she said that because
Tribes are mostly located in rural
areas, "Recruitment is a huge issue
for us. There is a real shortage of
community health nurses.
"It would be a wonderful gift if
we could overcome drug and alco
hol problems. Our health care bill
would shrink if we get a hold of
these costly diseases."
Meetings like this make a differ
ence, said Donovan Redtomahawk
(Dakota Lakota), a senior research
associate in the Smoking Cessa
tion Center at OHSU. "Traditional
medicines, I believe, are going to
become more common," he said.
"New knowledge will be available
for Native American urban com
munities." Still today, he added, "Many ur
ban Native Americans are unaware
of what a sweat lodge is."
For Matthew Town, a medical so
ciology Ph.D. candidate at Portland
State University, the "dialogue is
always good. It's a good reminder
of the things we're doing. Having
agencies come together and partner
shows what can be done."
"We know that mutual respect
is the key to all of this," Kennedy
said.
Walker announced that OHSU
is actively seeking Native students
and wellness professionals to the
health care university and com
munity. He quoted writer Sher
man Alexie (Spokane), saying the
"evolutionary process," is ongoing,
with Natives already in leadership
positions in all avenues of Ameri
can life.
OHSU's One Sky Center is "a na
tional resource center for American
Indian and Alaska Native health,
education and research," according
to its Web site. "It is dedicated to
quality health care across Indian
Country.
"Current initiatives include Evi
dence Based Practices in Indian
Country and a Native-to-Native
Mentorship program for graduate
students and junior and mid-career
faculty interested in substance
abuse research," according to One
Sky's Web site.
The gathering was sponsored by
One Sky Center and the OHSU
Center for Diversity and Inclu
Intervention
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