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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Culture and cultural competency

Encouraging Tribal Community Crash Reporting
Provides information on the process of working with 4 Native American tribes in North Dakota to establish a crash reporting system that generates more reliable information about motor vehicle injuries for Indian Nations. Evaluates current crash data and collection processes with goals toward reducing fatalities, promoting safety, and recognizing tribal sovereignty when collecting data.
Additional links: Research Brief
Author(s): Kimberly Vachal
Date: 04/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
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Integrating Culture and History to Promote Health and Help Prevent Type 2 Diabetes in American Indian/Alaska Native Communities: Traditional Foods Have Become a Way to Talk About Health
Reports on the implementation of the Traditional Foods Project (TFP), a community-based intervention to promote access to and integration of traditional foods, physical activities, and social support in culturally and geographically diverse American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities.
Author(s): Lemyra DeBruyn, Lynne Fullerton, Dawn Satterfield, Melinda Frank
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 17
Date: 02/2020
Type: Document
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Native American Youth Citizen Scientists Uncovering Community Health and Food Security Priorities
Details a study on food security and nutrition via community-based participatory research by a group of 13-18 year olds in the Karuk Tribe in rural northern California. Explores findings related to community gardens, school food quality, and food gathering and preservation, among other issues.
Author(s): Katherine K. Kim, Victoria Ngo, Grant Gilkison, et al.
Citation: Health Promotion Practice, 21(1), 80-90
Date: 01/2020
Type: Document
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The Healthy Hawai'i Initiative: Insights from Two Decades of Building a Culture of Health in a Multicultural State
Provides an overview of the Healthy Hawai'i Initiative (HHI), a statewide public health program founded in 2000 to promote health and wellness through policy change and social ecological efforts. Analyzes information from interviews with individuals involved with HHI. Discusses coalitions that brought together community leaders, grassroots organizations, and rural communities.
Author(s): Joy Agner, Catherine M. Pirkle, Lola Irvin, et al.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 20(1), 141
Date: 01/2020
Type: Document
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2020 Navajo Nation Maternal and Child Health Needs Assessment
Report documenting a Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Needs Assessment for the Navajo Nation reservation. Describes health status, healthcare system strengths and weaknesses, and uses a Navajo-specific cultural framework to discuss health outcomes in relation to environmental, community, family, and individual health. Offers data on demographics, environmental health, women's health, maternal health, perinatal and infant health, child health, and adolescent health.
Date: 2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Arizona Department of Health Services, Navajo Nation Department of Health, Navajo Native American Research Centers for Health
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Supporting American Indian & Alaskan Native Communities Combating COVID-19
Reports on a virtual roundtable panel on health disparities related to COVID-19 facing American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Discusses the Indian Health Service response to the pandemic and gaps in pandemic-related services, including telehealth access, underfunded and understaffed healthcare facilities, data quality and information access, cultural literacy, and behavioral health needs. Addresses social determinants of health for Native populations, citing data from research studies and quoting roundtable panelists.
Date: 2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Executives for Health Innovation
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Access to Autism Spectrum Disorder Services for Rural Appalachian Citizens
Summarizes the challenges of accessibility and affordability faced by residents of rural southwest Virginia as they seek services for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Highlights the effects of extreme poverty and the need for cultural sensitivity among service providers. Offers suggestions for policymakers and features demographic statistics on caregivers and providers.
Author(s): Angela Scarpa, Laura S. Jensen, Denis Gracanin, Sharon L. Ramey, Angela V. Dahiya
Citation: Journal of Appalachian Health, 2(1), 25-40
Date: 2020
Type: Document
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Bringing Palliative Care To Underserved Rural Communities
Discusses challenges and strategies related to providing palliative care to rural, predominantly Black communities in the South. Focuses on bridging cultural divides and integrating patient spirituality into the healthcare process.
Author(s): Charlotte Huff
Citation: Health Affairs, 38(12)
Date: 12/2019
Type: Document
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Professional and Cultural Development of Medical Students Mentoring Adolescents in a Predominately Native Hawaiian Community
Describes the development and design of the the Nānākuli Pathways to Health (NPH) program, a mentoring and health career curriculum, to determine its impact on students' professional development while serving in a rural, underserved Native Hawaiian community.
Author(s): Malia S. Lee, Sachi K. Kaulukukui, Mai S. Smith, Jerrick J.K. Laimana, Kelli-Ann N.F. Voloch
Citation: Hawai'i Journal of Medicine and Public Health, 78(12 Suppl 3), 35-40
Date: 12/2019
Type: Document
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SOAR for Native Communities
Training module designed to help people serving indigenous populations to understand human trafficking and its impact on American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. Includes resources relevant to indigenous populations and supports professionals in building trauma-informed and culturally appropriate interventions. Content is free with account creation.
Date: 12/2019
Type: Tutorial/Training
Sponsoring organizations: National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Center, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health
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