Success Stories

Success Stories

ITCA-TEC Success Story: Regional Community Health Profile

Success Stories, TEC News
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One major project the ITCA TEC was able to complete was the Regional Community Health Profile (CHP). Additionally, increased training in statistical analysis along with enhanced coding software has allowed the TECPHI team an avenue to improve systems and efficiency in developing reports resulting in 43 Tribal-specific CHPS.

Using SAS software, the Tribal reports were all automated. While there is work to be done in terms of customization for each Tribe, formatting, and additional statistical analysis along with current counts, the TEC has made strides in being able to provide better information to those we serve. This is also impacted by the partnerships the TEC has been able to build and maintain and strong relationships with the Arizona, Nevada, and Utah health departments have allowed us to access updated data each year.

Over the last year the TEC has been able to update overall IHS data and get updated COVID information to be used in the future. In general, access to data has been greatly improved and will allow ITCA to provide more timely and relevant information to those in our service area.

 

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CTEC Success Story: Investing in the future of public health

Success Stories, TEC News
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Each summer California Tribal Epidemiology Center (CTEC) invites college students and recent graduates to participate in the Summer Research Assistant Program (SRAP). Tribal and Urban Indian Health Programs can participate as host sites for Summer Research Assistants (SRA). The CTEC team serves as mentors for each SRA. This summer’s 2022 SRAP, seven SRAs are working on projects ranging from diabetes prevention, data collection, COVID-19 case data analysis, public health advisory, and accreditation processes.

We met with Chiagoziem Okonkwo, an SRA from the summer of 2021. Chiagoziem worked with the Indian Health Council (IHC) to create a multilevel prevention project to address commercial tobacco-related harms.

 

“I grew up in Nigeria. We are not taught anything at all about the Native American community or culture. It was so interesting to learn about research and the Native community as a whole. I felt like I was a big part of the IHC and what we were doing.”
 
– Chiagoziem Okonkwo

 

Builds Essential Skills

Chiagoziem reflected on the skills she gained during the SRAP. “I would say that the two big takeaways were how to conduct key informant interviews (KIIs) and the concept of community–based participatory research. I realized I would like to start an organization like CTEC in Nigeria. When it comes to communities that have been historically misrepresented in research, the Nigerian community definitely represents that. KIIs were interesting, learning how to conduct them and learning that I like to talk a lot.”

Guides Education and Career Choices

For Chiagoziem, the SRAP introduced the concept of presenting research in film formats. She recalls, “That was the first time I saw something like that, and it made me really interested in film, editing, and cinematography…CTEC played a role. I will
be graduating in June 2024 from UCLA with a Psychology Major with a minor in film.”

Makes a Difference

CTEC supported 22 SRAs from 2017 to 2022. Every SRA has a story about their experience and the difference that the SRAP made. For Chiagoziem, the difference was everything. “It did not happen on purpose, but I think back to the application process… it was the summer of my first year of my undergraduate. I felt unqualified. But being able to work toward it and actually get the SRA encouraged me that I could go after everything that I want. I would never know what the outcome would be… I should always try. That is one skill that I learned from my experience. Keep trying.”

 

Chiagoziem Okonkwo
Chiagoziem Okonkwo
 
Investing in the future of public health
 
Investing in the future of public health

#keeptrying
#buildingcapacity
#internshipsmatter
#goafterwhatyouwant
#publichealthworkforce


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RMTEC Success Story: The School Food Institute

Success Stories, TEC News
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In 2022, the Rocky Mountain Tribal Epidemiology Center (RMTEC) formalized a collaborative partnership with the Chef Ann Foundation, No Kid Hungry, and the Coalition to End Childhood Hunger to bring a comprehensive diabetes prevention approach to the Tribal schools in the RMTEC region. With the help and expertise of these partners, RMTEC aims to transform Tribal school food programs at the local level through diabetes education and training of school food service workers.

The RMTEC School Food Institute sponsors a set of online courses offered by the Chef Ann Foundation that provide professional development and training on successful “scratch-cook” operations in schools, giving school food service professionals the tools and knowledge to make fresh, healthy school meals for its students and staff.

In April 2022, RMTEC staff, along with staff from the Chef Ann Foundation, visited the Blackfeet and Flathead Tribal sites to provide onsite scratch-cook training. The chefs trained school food service staff on making simple, healthy meals with fresh ingredients and served the meals in the schools. Staff also received education and training on using locally available ingredients. It is RMTEC’s hope to expand these partnerships to include all Tribal sites in the Rocky Mountain region over the next few years.

The School Food InstituteThe School Food Institute


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CTEC Success Story: Tribal Adverse Childhood Experiences Project

Success Stories, TEC News
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At a Glance

Historical trauma among American Indian and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) can negatively impact health. Tools to assess Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) can help healthcare providers intervene earlier to prevent harmful health outcomes. The California Rural Indian Health Board’s Tribal Epidemiology Center (CRIHB CTEC) piloted a Tribal Adverse Childhood Experiences (TACE) tool based on tribal health program data to create a culturally responsive tool for providers to adapt trauma-informed care (TIC) to meet patient needs. The TACE survey was piloted to 526 patients with positive community response.

Challenge

ACE exposure can impact physical and mental health across the lifespan. Increased screening for ACEs early in age helps healthcare providers prevent and treat associated health outcomes. Trauma is not experienced equally and people with higher ACE scores may be at greater risk for substance misuse, risky behaviors, and other poor health outcomes that worsen health disparities. Current ACE screening tools do not account for AI/AN cultural contexts, including the intergenerational impacts of historical trauma stemming from colonialism, displacement from ancestral lands, forced cultural assimilation, and more. ACE tools also do not account for protective factors that mediate associated health outcomes, resulting in incomplete representations of trauma and health among AI/AN communities.

Approach

CRIHB CTEC wanted to understand unique experiences of trauma and resilience in California AI/AN communities served by three pilot tribal healthcare programs. The original ACE screening tool was adapted to incorporate key informant interview data from tribal healthcare providers on how TIC and trauma assessment tools can be adapted to Indigenous communities. The TACE tool was piloted to patients and providers at the three sites and later validated through a data and action approach for future use in tribal healthcare programs. Providers were surveyed on culturally responsive TIC and findings informed tailored TIC interventions towards providers based on their individual communities’ needs.

Results

The TACE survey included the original 10 questions from the ACE assessment and additional indicators measuring resiliency, chronic stress, and cultural connection. Over 275 tribal health program staff were reached by the TIC survey and associated interventions. 526 total patients were surveyed on TACEs, with over 170 reached through community engagement processes. Project staff identified that participants with higher TACE scores were more likely to find comfort in their religious or spiritual beliefs and higher TACE scores were associated with greater intergenerational connection. The impact and positive community response of this project show its potential to impact Indigenous communities across the United States by effectively identifying and addressing trauma to improve health.

 

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CTEC Success Story: Austin Boykin

Success Stories, TEC News
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Austin Boykin is a member of the Bridgeport Indian Colony’s Paiute tribe and was raised in the Eastern Sierra mountains of California. His tribe is a member of the Health Consortium of the Toiyabe Indian Project, Inc., a valued member of the California Rural Indian Health Board, Inc. (CRIHB)

Haskell Indian Nations University granted Austin a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an Emphasis in Management in 2019. Prior to joining the California Tribal Epidemiology Center (CTEC), he worked for CRIHB’s Health Systems Development Department as an administrative assistant, gaining valuable insight into American Indian Alaska Native health issues.

In 2020, Austin joined CTEC as an outreach coordinator. The majority of his time is spent gathering data sharing agreements in tribal communities and attending outreach events throughout California to promote and educate about CTEC services. Additionally, Austin coordinates the biannual CTEC Advisory Council meetings, designs and distributes the CTEC newsletter, and oversees the Summer Research Assistant Program (SRAP). Above all, he enjoys the SRAP the most since he meets a variety of qualified candidates during the recruiting phase of the project.

 

Austin Boykin

Austin Boykin

 


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